Williamstown has broken its North Ballarat hoodoo, progressing through to the Peter Jackson VFL Preliminary Final with a commanding 67 point win over the Roosters as Ben Cavarra reports.
The Seagulls were able to defeat the Roosters for the first time since round five 2008, to be one win away from a Grand Final berth. Matthew Panos continued his great late season form with five goals, and was one of six multiple goal scorers for Williamstown.
A windy and overcast day greeted both teams at Box Hill City Oval, but the breeze wasn’t favouring either side, blowing straight across the ground.
The first five minutes was heavily contested by both teams and it was North Ballarat who had the majority of the play, but failed to put on any scoreboard pressure. Williamstown’s Panos broke the deadlock, kicking the first goal of the game against the flow of play. Nathan Djerrkura was dominating early in the game for Williamstown, but it was North Ballarat’s Derek Micallef who opened the scoring for the Roosters. North Ballarat was wasteful early on in the game, and the wind was playing havoc, causing skill errors and many turnovers. Williamstown went into the first break leading by five points after Nathan Djerrkura marked and kicked a goal after the siren.
Both teams struggled to take advantage of scoring opportunities at the start of the second quarter, missing gettable shots on goal. Williamstown then swung into action, kicking the next six goals unanswered racing out to a 35 point lead. The Rooster’s Liam Hoy finally kicked a goal against the flow of play, one they desperately needed. The forward pressure started to arrive, with both teams causing turnovers in their forward half. Matthew Grossman stopped what looked like a certain goal to the Roosters, and with Will Minson dominating in the ruck; Williamstown took a 30 point lead into the half time break.
The next quarter started with Williamstown dominating, a Lindsay Gilbee interception led to him launching a 50 metre long goal. Oliver Tate showed great desperation, getting a fingertip to Andrew Hooper’s shot on goal, which eventuated in a point, but Christian Howard laid a great tackle and kicked a well-deserved goal from 40 metres out. North Ballarat began to find a bit more of the football with their acting captain Myles Sewell playing a great quarter; the Roosters kicked 2 goals in a row, including Bill Driscoll kicking a great set shot from a tight angle deep in the pocket. The game was still congested, until Mitch Hahn kicked two goals to break it open, with Williamstown dominating the clearances. Nth Ballarat’s Matt Tyler marked and kicked a goal after the siren, but the damage had already been done, Williamstown taking a 46 point lead into the final break.
Williamstown’s coach, Peter German urged his players to keep the ball moving throughout the last quarter.
North Ballarat’s Levi Dare kicked the first goal of the quarter, but when the Seagulls kicked the next two goals the contest was over. Williamstown’s Ed Carr took a great mark and finished off his good work with a goal, but North Ballarat’s Oliver Tate sent a scare through the Rooster’s camp, hobbling off the ground with an injury. The Rooster’s pain got worse, when Mitch Hahn kicked his third goal of the game, with Williamstown dominated the final term kicking the last five goals of the match. The Seagulls claimed a well-deserved 67 point victory to go straight through to the Preliminary Final on Sunday September 18. They will await the winner of this Saturday’s Casey Scorpions versus Werribee Tigers clash
The final score was Williamstown 20.14-134 defeating North Ballarat 10.7-67.
The Rooster’s will need to bounce back this week when they play Northern Bullants on Sunday, whilst the Seagull’s get a well deserved week off – their first of the season after a long Foxtel Cup campaign.
Last Modified on 05/09/2011 17:48