On a blustery day at Trevor Barker Beach Oval, Sandringham hosted North Ballarat in a battle between sixth and ninth on the VFL ladder. With both teams fighting for a finals position, North Ballarat needed to win to strengthen their chances of finishing in the final eight. The Roosters did just thatwith a 10 goal to 4 second half, seeing North Ballarat comfortably defeat Sandringhamby 30 points, 18.14 (122) to Sandringham’s 13.14 (92) as Nick Ciantar reports.
Both teams started strongly in the first quarter, going goal for goal until Sandringham kicked the last two. Zebra defenders Beau Dowler and Raph Clarke started the game up forward and the change of position seemed to work, with Dowler kicking two early goals and one goal for Clarke. Jack Newnes started the game strong for Sandringham, kicking two goals and had six disposals in that quarter (14 for the game). The Zebras led by seven points at the first break.
Sandringham’s impressive ball use and structures were starting to show on the scoreboard. They kicked the first three goals of the second quarter and extended their margin to 26 points. However at the 25 minute mark, Ben Cunnington intercepted a Jay Lever kick and kicked the Roosters first goal of the quarter. They then managed to kick the next two goals, to finish the quarter only six points behind Sandringham.
The Roosters’ momentum late in the second quarter flowed into the third, by kicking the first two goals. The Roosters were able to get their hands on the ball first and move it into their forward 50 quickly. Myles Sewell was the best on the ground, finishing with 34 disposals and 8 tackles. His work rate in the midfield was outstanding and his 10 disposal third quarter, helped the Roosters gain supremacy in the game. The Roosters kicked six goals to the Zebras two and went into the final break with a 19 point lead.
As the rain started to fall in the last quarter, the Roosters continued to stamp their authority on the game. They kicked four goals to Sandringham’s two and their work rate and structures over the entire ground saw them turn the tables in the contest. Gavin Urquhart was strong in the back line, whilst Derick Micallef kicked five impressive goals up forward. Lachlan George’s and Cruize Garlett’s (25 disposals each) run and carry in the midfield set up their scoring options, whilst Cameron Richardson (24 disposals, 6 tackles, 2 goals) was very impressive across a number of positions.
For the Zebras, Adam Cockie continued his impressive year in the midfield, finishing with 26 disposals and one goal. Brett Peake (26 disposals) played one of his best games of the year, playing as a rebounding defender and at times a forward. However the Zebras could not match the strength of a determined Roosters team in the second half.
North Ballarat turned around a slow start in the second quarter to comfortably defeat Sandringham. Their 10 goals to 4 second half, recorded an impressive victory on the road as saw them return to the top eight. They meet Coburg at Mantello Holden Oval this Saturday at 1.10pm, which will be televised on ABC. Sandringham will meet Bendigo at 2pm at Queen Elizabeth Oval.
Last Modified on 17/07/2012 16:39