At Bellevue Oval in Armidale the New England Nomads were keen to erase the memory of last week's loss to the Saints. Unfortunately for the Tamworth Swans it was their turn to play them. The Nomads were in control of this game from the start and while the Swans were able to slot 2 goals in the first quarter the Nomads kicked 5 goals to lead by 20 points at the first break. The Nomads went one better in the second quarter kicking 6 goals while the Swans doubled their tally to 4 goals at half time. With a 46 point lead going into the third quarter one would have expected the Nomads to totally run away with the game, but to the Swans credit they fought back. Even though the Swans could only manage 2 behinds for the quarter they restricted the Nomads to just 4 goals for the quarter. This still gave the Nomads a 68 point lead at the start of the last quarter and even though the Swans did kick 1 more goal in this quarter they had no answers for the green machine as they went on their merry way kicking another 6 goals to win by 106 points. The Nomads have now had three 100 plus point wins at home this year and this has boosted their percentage greatly. This win looks to have sewn up 2nd place on the ladder for the Nomads, while with just 2 wins for the year now sees the Swans move to the bottom of the ladder. For the Nomads Hamish Ross was again a standout up forward kicking 7 goals and Jono Frost was their best player. Andrew Donohue was the Swans best player and they had 5 individual goal kickers.
The match of the round at No.1 Oval in Tamworth was a real cracker between the Kangaroos and the Saints. The Kangaroos looked like they might have the Saints measure in the first quarter kicking 6 goals and holding the Saints to 4 goals to lead by 8 points at quarter time. The Saints came out all fired up in the second quarter kicking 6 goals and after keeping the Kangaroos to just 2 goals for the quarter and took a very handy 7 point lead into half time. We again had another game swing in the third quarter with the Saints only able to kick 1 goal for the quarter and the Kangaroos running rampant booting 5 goals to lead by 18 points at the last break. The Kangaroos, smelling blood, put on 2 quick goals at the start of the last quarter to push their lead out 32 points and have the game in the bag. They didn't count on the resolve of the Saints however as they fought back hard kicking 7 of the next 9 goals in the game to trail the Kangaroos by just 2 points with only minutes remaining. But as is the norm with good sides the Kangaroos steadied and kicked one last goal to win by 8 points. This win means that the Kangaroos will finish minor premiers and get a week's rest in the first week of the finals. The Saints should finish third but will need to win at least one of their last 2 games to be assured of this. The Kangaroos best player was Ian Clement and their leading goal kicker was Lachlan Maloney with 4 goals. The Saints best player and leading goal kicker was Stewart Walker in his 2nd game back for the year.
In the last game down at the Cattery the fur was flying between the Cats and the Bulldogs. The game could have been all over at quarter time had the Bulldogs kicked straight, 4 goals 7 behinds. Their kicking for goal has been a problem all year and it is now starting to cost them games. The Cats kept themselves in it kicking 3 goals to be down by 13 points at the first break. The second quarter was where the Cats started to dream. They poured on 6 goals to the Bulldogs 4 goals to be only 1 point behind the Bulldogs at half time. The third quarter was a tight one with the Cats kicking 2 goals and the Bulldogs kicking 3 goals. The Bulldogs again missed shots on goal in this quarter, but extended their lead to 12 points at the last change. The last quarter was the Cats best as they kicked 4 goals and kept the Bulldogs goalless. Again the Bulldogs had their chances kicking 6 behinds for the quarter giving the Cats their 2nd win in a row and third for the season by 9 points. The Bulldogs remain a game clear in 4th place on the ladder, but the big news is the Cats are off the bottom of the ladder for the first time since 2008. The Cats best payer was John Mahy and Stuart McAdam kicked 5 goals. The Bulldogs best player was John Woolaston and they had several players kick 2 goals each.
Last Modified on 07/08/2011 11:12