By Ben Carbonaro
The Werribee Tigers rebounded from last week’s disappointing performance with an eight-point win over Coburg at Chirnside Park last Sunday.
Another poor first quarter cost Werribee, but a much stronger and disciplined second quarter performance kept them in the contest.
It was a closely contested second half, with the Bees leading by just three points at three quarter time and then holding off a strong Coburg fight back.
Tigers coach Simon Atkins thought his charges ability to win contested football in wet and windy conditions got them the win.
“It could have gone either way, at the end of the day you just need to be able to win contested footy,” he said.
“In the last quarter we had 20 tackles and I was really happy with the intensity around the contest.”
Atkins said that a strong last quarter performance in such conditions was a credit to his charges.
“You do need a lot of spirit and commitment in those sort of conditions,” he said.
“I thought they really played well and in the last quarter our indicators say that it (contested football) got them across the line.”
Will Martinello rotated between the forward line and midfield after spending most of this season almost exclusively as a forward.
The former Murray Bushranger was outstanding as he racked up 28 disposals and provided plenty of midfield drive.
Atkins praised the performance of his young charge.
“He probably more of a split of probably 60/40 being deep forward and going on ball,” Atkins said.
“We were one bloke down at half-time, so that probably helped him and he won the footy.”
North Melbourne-listed Alan Obst (18 disposals, 2 tackles, 1 block, 2 spoils) was best on ground for his game in defence, as he helped to shut down much of Coburg’s forward line.
Michael Barlow (27 disposals) was again consistent in the midfield and his defensive pressure was evident as he laid a team high seven tackles.
Ben Ross (27 disposals) provided plenty of midfield pace and put his hand up to be included in North Melbourne’s team for Sunday’s game against St Kilda at Docklands.
Jarrod Mather (3 tackles, 1 block) and speedy midfielder Flinn Chisholm (6 tackles, 1 block) stood out for their defensive pressure, something that has been a highlight for Werribee this season.
Ross and fellow midfielder Michael Rockefeller both booted two goals apiece for Werribee, with North Melbourne-listed Alan Obst best on ground after being a pillar in defence.
Jay Schulz kicked four goals to the goal scorers list for Coburg and young rookie Alroy Gilligan chipped in with two goals of his own.
Best for Coburg was Richmond-listed defender Jarrod Silvester for his work in restricting Werribee’s forwards from having a major impact on the game.
The Werribee Reserves couldn’t continue their good run of recent form going down by 27 points 11.10.76 to 7.7.49
North-Melbourne listed forward Nathan O’Keefe kicked two goals to be top scorer for the Tigers.
Josh Bryce (23 disposals, 5 tackles, 3 blocks, 1 spoil) was best on ground for his outstanding game in defence.
In what shapes as a huge match next Saturday evening, Werribee hosts rival Geelong under lights at Chirnside Park from 7pm.
Werribee Tigers 1.2 4.7 7.11 11.11-77
Coburg Tigers 2.3 4.7 7.8 10.9-69
Werribee Tigers
Goal Kickers: B. Ross 2, M. Rockefeller 2, B. Speight, L. Gardiner, M. Pask, T. Henderson, S. Wright, D. Gleeson, B. Fletcher
Best Players: A. Obst, W. Martiniello, M. Barlow, J. Mather, B. Ross, F. Chisholm
Coburg Tigers
Goal Kickers: J. Schulz 4, A. Gilligan 2, A. Thomson, A. Pattison, N. Caruso, A. Horne
Best Players: J. Silvester, T. Simmonds, K. Moore, A. Thomson, A. Raines, J. Schulz
Last Modified on 18/08/2009 17:44