League well represented
THE MPNFL was proudly represented by four interleague sides last weekend and to all who played, coached, assisted and umpired – well done.
The afternoon was well-hosted by the Pakenham Football Club and the crowd was very good with plenty of support from followers of all three MPNFL leagues, together with many from the West Gippsland Latrobe Football League as well. The Toomuc Reserve proved to be an excellent choice of venue and the Saturday fixture obviously agreed with many fans who decided to go to the football and then still had another two days to relax.
The results were wonderful for the footballers but not so happy for our two netball teams.
In the main game, the MPNFL retained the Pakenham Gazette Cup with an 83-point result in a magnificent exhibition.
The selection of a fast and youthful team was vindicated by the Sharks superiority in every facet of the game in perfect conditions as they bolted away from the first bounce.
The Sharks extended their lead at every break in play and the match became an exhibition after half time.
Daniel Fry and Ryan Hendy finished the day with six goals each, while Chris Irving was awarded the best afield trophy, and was joined by Michael Collins, captain Adam Hunter, Brian O’Carroll and Lee Boyle as the Sharks best players.
In the under 18 curtain raiser the Sharks rallied after a lack-lustre first half to storm home and defeat the West Gippsland Latrobe side by 31 points.
Nathan Gillis was named best on the ground while Brad McDonald (six goals), Dean Scanlon, Vergim Faik, Ricky Plummer and Matthew Gibbs also saw plenty of leather on t5he day.
Senior interleague coach Paul Kennedy was a happy man after the day’s games and paid tribute to the organizers.
“I’d like to thank everyone involved with the league, the directors, the administration and all the back-up people who put in their time to make this day happen.”
“It’s a great experience for the players and the result shows that the league is in pretty good shape.”
In the netball, the senior side coached by Alyson Hook started fast and with intent and shot out to a nine-goal lead at one stage in the first half. However the WGLNA is a powerful league and came back strongly to overtake the Sharks and win the A-grade game by 9 goals.
The 19-and-under match was a similar story, with the WGLNA maintaining their composure and making less mistakes to overcome the Sharks by 12 goals.
The one-off match is a bi-annual event that is played in between the VCFL Country Championships round-robin that will return in 2010.
Check out the league website www.mpnfl.vcfl.com.au for all the up-to-date details of the interleague weekend, together with all other news and views on our three competitions.
Last Modified on 11/06/2009 13:11