FOOTBALL REVIEW
Sale and Warragul kicked off round 3 at the Nest on a sunny Saturday afternoon. It looked like a mismatch on paper with the undefeated Pies welcoming the bottom of the table Gulls to Sale. The Magpies were still missing 2019 Lawless Award winner Brad Dessent who was serving the final week of his round 1 suspension and Kane Martin which gave the Gulls some hope leading in. The early stages set the tone for the day with the star studded Sale midfield getting control early. Shannen Lange was everywhere in the first term and showed his class early with some blistering clearances. Jack Johnstone. Mitch Dowse and Jack McLaren also got plenty of the football. Jordan Dessent kicked the first of the afternoon not far into the first term and it would be a lead that wouldn’t be relinquished all afternoon. Jarrod Freeman kicked the second for Sale and was proving to be a handful along side Dessent. Freeman would be an issue all day for the Gulls defence and was one of Sale’s best. Both sides missed a number of chances in the first term but it was Sale who had the majority of the play. Brayden Fowler looked the only avenue to goal for the Gulls but a lack of deep entries saw most of his ball come up around the 50 metre mark. Michael Lynn was batting hard and produced one of the Gulls better forays forward but it wouldn’t be enough to get them a major in the first term. Luke DiCiero and Will Leslie controlled the half back area with Di Ciero bringing his own ball in the first term. The 21 point margin at quarter time flattered the Gulls with the majority of the play heading towards the clubrooms end. The second term saw the Gulls pick up a few goals but Sale had the answers. Some sloppy play by Gulls Lachlan Wilson saw a free kick given away in the ruck and after throwing Dane McGuiness to the ground the resulting 50 metre penalty gave the Pies another major as the lead grow. Warragul would have been happy to go in only 4 goals down at the main change.
The third term followed the trend of the first two with the ball spending plenty of time in Sale’s half. Lange continued to find the ball and soon passed 25 disposals for the day. The goal post was keeping the Gulls within a respectable margin with no less than 4 magpies shots on goal smashing into the woodwork. Two snapped goals to Magpies stars Jordy Dessent and Shannen Lange pushed the margin out and when Jarrod Freeman’s late goal saw the margin blow out to 55 points at the 25 minute mark of the third term. Mason McGarrity kicked the Gulls first goal of the quarter after the siren to reduce the margin.
Freeman kicked his third goal early in the last but both he and Dessent would go onto miss chances to blow the margin out. A running goal to Jack McLaren put the margin outside 10 goals. It just wasn’t Warragul’s day as the siren sounded to beat Michael Lynn’s uncontested goal on the goal line summing up a disappointing afternoon for the Gulls. The Magpies will be happy with the win but also look to have plenty of improvement in the tank. They have been inaccurate in multiple games this year and will need to fix that up when they come up against the likes of Moe and Leongatha. Lange received the MVP votes for the game and you would expect to Trood Award and Rodda medal votes also. McLaren, Di Ciero and Freeman also were among Sale’s better players on the day. For the Gulls, Masterson had some good moments across half back and Sam Whibly fought hard in the ruck but the majority of their players didn’t have anywhere near the polish with the ball that is required against the top sides.
Undoubtably the match of the round was the clash in Wonthaggi as the undefeated Power took on the winless Tigers. The Power’s bogey side looked like again they would add to their six consecutive head to head wins.
The Power started well transitioning the ball from defence easily. A few big marks from Jordan Staley and Josh Bates couldn’t get on the scoreboard . Kuiy Jiath was getting plenty of it and Dan Musil was getting the better of the ruck. Morwell pulled the game back and started winning ball around the middle and for the second time in as many weeks Cody MacDonald would hit the board early and kick the first major of the game with a dribble snap from the clubroom pocket. In a play that would have coach Knight seething Toma Huther beat two defenders in the air to regain the lead minutes later kicking the Power’s first major from the goal square. Huther was proving a handful as he won a free kick and turned around buddy esq and kicked a goal from just inside the 50 metre arc. In an unlikely mini shootout it was small forward Cody Mac Donald who got on the end of a few leads up forward and managed to kick the Tigers second narrowly carrying the journey to bring back the margin. Wasteful possessions from half back hurt Wonthaggi with the match going in to quarter time virtually level on the scoreboard and in general play.
Although both sides made some basic errors it was an easy match on the eye with the footy free flowing from end to end. Tom Davy snapped a miracle goal from the clubrooms pocket which was getting plenty of action. The goal was the Power’s fourth and saw them open up a 14 point buffer mid way through the second term. Tyler Brown pulled one back after using the stand rule to full advantage taking off from a squared up ball on the fifty to reduce the margin only minutes later. Troy Harley took a strong grab and nailed the set shot to take the margin out to 19 points mid way through the second term and was proving to be a difference maker. The Power were unluck not to extend their lead as Harley again marked and looked to have goaled again, but his shot was touched forward on the line and with players stopping the Power snapped the ball through but the umpire had adjusted that the ball had been touched for a behind. The Power went into the half 8 points in front but would feel they should have gone in with a greater advantage after a late set shot sitter was missed by Harrison Dawson and Jack Blair had his long range set shot punched off the goal line after the half time siren.
Golden opportunities were scarce in a tight third term with the Power looking under siege at times and resorting to plenty of slow play. The Tigers Justin Hecker kicked the first and only goal of the third term to bring the margin back to 3 points. It was a contender for goal of the day with Hecker hemmed in the pocket he drove the ball towards goal from the clubrooms pocket and saw it sail through. Wonthaggi’s best chance came as Jarryd Blair initiated a long switch of play which opened up their 50 late in the term but the forwards could separate and the chance went missing.. The Tigers went into the final term with a one point advantage and it was anyone’s game. Morwell missed early chances. A Tom Caile set shot miss followed only minutes later by a Cody MacDonald snap that he would normally kick saw two golden chances go begging early. With the lead at 3 points it was the Power’s turn to attack and an out on the full set shot from the pocket was followed by a wild Jack Blair snap that also failed to register. The game was getting tense as Jordan Staley and Josh Schultz missed set shots to reduce the margin. Schultz’s gettable miss had lasting ramifications as the resulting kickout saw the Tigers transition from end to end as Justin Hecker dribbled through his second for the game to restore a 7 point buffer. The big names had lifted for both sides with Jarryd Blair seemingly on the end of everything around the clearances and Tank Rosato also getting plenty of the ball. The most unlikeliest of sources looked the likeliest for the Tigers with Justin Hecker again getting on the end of a lead and sending one through for a behind from deep. Tom Davy regained pulled the lead back for the Power with his Daniel Well’s like mid air snap in the goal square. Lachlan Ferguson had a flying shot after the centre bounce which narrowly missed. Josh Bates who was one of the Power’s best took a solid contested mark from the kick out and send the ball back inside 50. A snap from the pack led to a diving mark by Feguson on the goaline. He would go back and snap the ball around the corner to put the Power in front. It was all going the Power’s way and Bates again was on the end of it and his squared-up ball the Mitch Hayes looked to have the Power in the driving seat. Hayes missed a set shot from a similar position to Dawson earlier as the Power showed shades of the 2014 Grand Final wasting gettable set shot chances. Ferguson again got another opportunity at ground level from the kick in but failed to capitalise in a case of deja-vu from his earlier chance missing to the netball court side. The Power had a 8 point lead with 5 minutes to play and were in full control of general play. After again resorting to slowing down the play the Power took a minute off the clock. An errant Tim Knowles switch gifted first gamer Cain Iorangi a goal and halted all the momentum that the Power had. With the margin at 2 points there was less than 2 minutes to play. Interestingly Morwell had undersized Brayden Duve in the ruck against Toma Huther and the Power managed to get their hands on the ball first on multiple occasions and were in no hurry to open up the play. The siren sounded with the ball on the netball court half forward flank for the Power for them to hold on to a 2 point win. For Wonthaggi Josh Bates had a day out on the wing, Staley and Huther dominated the ruck and around the ground. Jarryd Blair had a big last term when it counted. Morwell didn’t have Kuiy Jiath in their listed best but he got plenty of the footy and provided an avenue forward. Dan Musil battled hard against Huther and Staley. Cody MacDonald and Justin Hecker were lively around goals in patches while Anthony Rosato was again a standout.
From watching this one Morwell can match it with the best but need to desperately find consistent options to goal up. They would be a much more impactful side with a Kristian Jaksch or Jordan Dessent in a key forward role. Their lack of height in key areas cost them dearly at times. The Power will take the win and will be happy with their younger players with the likes of Josh Bates, Flynn Anderson and Tom Murray leading the way.
In the other games. Moe produced a scintillating first term to setup their big win over Bairnsdale. 7 first quarter goals saw the match all but over at the first break. Only in accurate kicking kept the margin from blowing out. The Red Legs were still able to get a respectable score on the board but it was the Lions through their main man Kristian Jaksch who bagged another 5 to sit clear on top of the Lawless Award table. Midfield due James Blaser and Jacob Wood were named best with small forward Harri Sim snagging 3 goals also. Brayden McCarrey bagged 3 for Bairnsdale with Simon Deery and Link Robinson among their better players. Final margin was 71 points in favour of the Lions who finished 17.21-123 to 7.10-52.
The Parrots continued their dominance over the Hawks with a 85 point win at the Aviary. In another high scoring game the Parrots kicked 23 goals to 9 in a mini shootout. It was the Leongatha smalls who done all the damage with Aaron Heppell kicking 6 goals in a best on ground performance. Jack Ginnane and Cam Olden bagged 4 a apiece while Cade Maskell and Jack Hume both kicked 3. For the Hawks their key forwards Matt Stevens and Michael Theodoridis kicked 5 between them with Chris Robinson and Harry Wans among their better players. Final scores 23.12-150 to 9.11-65.
Maffra drew on every trick they had in their playbook as they went into ¾ time starring down the barrel of a third straight loss at the hands of Traralgon. The Maroons led by 4 points at the last change but Maffra showed why they are the reigning chapions with the Eagles virtually doubling their score in the last kicking 7 goals to none to seal a crucial win. The Carr brothers led the way with Ed being named best and Alex getting the MVP votes. Micth Bennett was back with 4 goals while youngster Johnti Schuback scored a goal in his debut game for the eagles. For Traralgon it will again be a case of how they can match it for 4 quarters with the better sides. Tye Hourigan backed up his strong showing on ANZAC eve and was among the better players. Ewan Williams was also good in his return back from a nasty injury. Maffra finishing 14.6-90 to Traralgon 7.12-54 which puts the Eagles back into the 5 coming into round 4.
Last Modified on 05/05/2021 19:20
