Ben
Rowles
The
Gol Gol Hawks have leap frogged into second place on the Millewa Football
League ladder, after pulling away from a determined Werrimull outfit in the
second half to record a 90-point victory on Saturday.
The Hawks were expected turn up to perfect conditions at
Carramar Drive and steam roll the bottom of the table Magpies, but it was
Werrimull who came out firing, after some relentless pressure inside the
forward 50 allowed Jamie Keenan to kick the first goal of the game.
Jason Bruhn replied soon after for the Hawks, but it was
the Pies who were having a red hot crack and getting more numbers to the
contest than their more fancied opponents.
However for all the effort Werrimull were putting into
the cause, they were struggling to find a suitable matchup for Bruhn, who
kicked 4 goals in the first quarter to give the Hawks a slim, but unconvincing
lead at the first change.
Werrimull coach Matt Kelly was very pleased with his
charges at quarter time, and stressed the need to keep playing positive
football for the remainder of the match. Meanwhile in the Gol Gol camp, coach
Jason Wilkie was disappointed with his chargers lack of respect for their
opponents and demanded more accountability at each contest.
Whatever Wilkie said must have had a profound effect on
the Hawks playing group, as Gol Gol promptly came out and kicked five goals to
nothing in the second quarter, with 4 of those coming off the boot of league
leading goal kicker, Kaleb Sherwell. Werrimull were still plugging away and
fighting hard, but with a lift in intensity from the Hawks, the gap in class
was starting to become obvious, as Gol Gol took a 41-point lead into the main
break.
The Pies needed early goals in the third term to give
themselves a chance to get back into the game, but a smart snap from Wilkie
early in the third continued the Gol Gol domination. Colby Loxton broke the
Pies drought late in the quarter, as he kicked a smart goal on the run to end
Gol Gol’s 13 goal streak. However, by this stage, Gol Gol had well and truly
got the game wrapped up by three quarter time.
Despite the lopsided scoreline, Werrimull were still
having a real crack and managed to stem the tide marginally in the final
quarter. However in the end, the Sherwell-Bruhn combination proved too good for
the Pies, as the Hawks ran out 15 goal winners.
Sherwell continued his great goal kicking form as he
nailed 8 majors, while Bruhn turned in another brilliant game as he kicked 7.
For the Pies, it was a slightly disappointing result
after such a great start, but they will know they have plenty of positives to
take away from this game. Chris McGregor impressed with his run out of defence
for Werrimull, and they will be looking for him to keep up his impressive form,
as they strive for their first win in the next fortnight.
In other games, Cardross gave warm favourites Nangiloc a
real scare in their encounter at Cardross Reserve on the weekend.
The Lions were had a point to prove after some big losses
in recent weeks, and were in the contest the whole day as they pushed the
Demons right to the limit. As expected, the game was a bruising affair, with
players from both sides working hard to gain the upper hand for their team.
The game went right down to the wire, with Cardross with
the Demons every step of the way. But in the end, Nangiloc had enough composure
in the dying moments to run out 6-point winners.
For Nangiloc, this was an important win heading into next
week’s bye, as it allows the Demons to jump into fourth on the league table. As
for the Lions, Jai Hudson and Jason Bolitho were superb all day, and Cardross
will feel this game will give them a lot of momentum, as they head into the
bottom of the table clash with Werrimull in two weeks time.
The final game of the round saw the top of the ladder
Bambill travel to Lake Cullulleraine to take on Meringur.
This match gave the Roos an opportunity to see where they
were at against the league bench mark, and they acquitted themselves quite well
in the first half, despite trailing the Saints by 27-points at half time.
Colin Keatch was having another fantastic game for
Meringur, and he was being well supported by Ron Richards and captain Dan
Smith, who were both competing hard. However, as we have seen time and time
again this year, Bambill have the ability to break a game apart in minutes, and
this occurred in the third term, when the Saints slammed on 6 goals to no score
to end the Roos hopes of winning the game.
Meringur managed to gain some respectability in the final
quarter by outscoring Bambill, but the Saints were in front when it counted, as
they recorded a 65-point win.
Keatch was the standout player for the Roos, kicking 2
goals to cap off a solid effort. As for Bambill, veteran forward Brett Haase
kicked 6 goals in a fine display up foward, and he was well looked after in the
midfield by Simon Kelly, Jason Hunt and Ben Milsom, who supplied constant drive
for the Saints all day.
Both these sides have crucial encounters when the Millewa
resumes in a fortnight, with Meringur taking on Euston, and Bambill clashing
with fellow competition powerhouse, Gol Gol.
Last Modified on 31/05/2009 20:01