The Minor Semi will start at 12.30pm at No.1 Oval in Tamworth. What a final this will be, the Swans dropped from top spot on the ladder to third courtesy of a 3 point loss to the Kangaroos last week. The Bulldogs were safe in fourth place whatever the outcome last week but a come from behind win by 1 point win over the Nomads does not instil full confidence in the Bulldogs. But if they can get some of their stars back and travel with a full team then they will take it right up to the Swans. The Swans have a couple of Greens to come back into their team and they will add a lot. The Swans played some very good footy against the Kangaroos last week and were unlucky to lose. So far this year the Swans have won both games against the Bulldogs at No.1 and the Bullies won the game at the Kennel. Bulldog Captain, John Woolaston, has been outstanding this year in the backline and will probably get the job on the dangerous Dean Hoy. Hoy was kept quiet last week with just 1 goal so will keen to bust out this week. The Bulldogs Tony Gillies Medallist, Sam Naismith, will have a big job on the Swans Andrew Donohue and whoever can give their on ballers first use of the ball will go a long way to getting their team through to the Preliminary Final in week 2. The Swans backline has been very good this year and is probably just that little bit better then the Bulldogs forward line one on one. The second of the 3 Tony Gillies Medallist's is also playing in this game, Swans Captain Damien Wendt, and he will be running all day as he has done all year.
This is going to be a great game with both teams knowing that if they lose they are out of the running for 2009. My tip is the Swans to go to the Preliminary Final on the strength of a 19 point win.
In the Major Semi, at 3pm, the Kangaroos and the Saints will be giving their all to gain a home Grand Final. The Kangaroos were missing a few players last week but did enough to win the game against the Swans and ensure they got the double chance by finishing on top of the ladder. The Saints knew they had to beat the Cats by a bit to slip into second and that they did. Mick Viney was outstanding last week kicking 14 goals but it won't be as easy this week for the 2009 Gerry Griffiths Medallist and he will have to work hard to earn every goal gets. The Saints will be hoping that their Tony Gillies Medallist, Peter Heath, will be back playing this week as he has made a big impact on the Saints team this year. Kangaroo Captain, Tim Cotter, backed up his 2008 Tony Gillies Medal by being one of the runners up this year and has also been on fire this year. He played very well last week and will likely get Michael Corley as a tagger at the start of the game. The Saints Joe Kimmince is, I think, the difference in this game. He has been improving every year and this year was one of the runner ups in the Tony Gillies Medal. Kimmince can play anywhere from fullback to full forward and nearly won the 2008 Grand Final for the Saints playing in the ruck. The Kangaroos too have their match winners and the dangerous Dan Overeem is one of them. Saints Captain, Matt Harrison, usually gets the job on Overeem and the honours are fairly even over the years. The big bonus the Kangaroos have this year is the recruitment of Pat Walton. Walton has been a revelation for them this year and I think he will get experienced Saints backman, who has been playing on ball, Shaun Mansbridge.
These 2 teams always play tight hard games and this one will be no different. The Kangaroos are 2-1 up on the Saints this year and both of the wins were at No.1 so I will tip them to continue that this week by 4 points.
Last Modified on 26/08/2009 19:40