Division 1
Mac Uni Warriors 13.7.85 Defeated Pennant Hills 4.6.30
The Warriors took on Pennant Hills at Ern Holmes in what we knew would be a tough encounter on the long and thin Demons home ground.
Due to a number of late pullouts we went in with only 21 players and saw the debut of an exciting under 18 in Ziggy Middendorf who was available after the 18’s forfeit. The coaching staff had kept a close eye on him this year and would have debuted earlier if not for a broken foot early in the season. Ziggy started on the half forward flank and impressed with his courage and defensive pressure whilst also finding his fair share of the football.
Scott Cations was lively early and contributed to some great early scoreboard pressure and finished with 5 goals for the day which moves him to 2 goals behind the Div 1 leader. Kev Jones showed some great evasive skills to register his first for the day and the Warriors kicked 6 goals, 1 behind to effectively put the game out of the Demons reach.
The 2nd quarter saw a change in Demons tactics with plenty of numbers behind the ball and ensuring it was going to be tough for us to score and even tougher for them with no numbers forward. Geoff Clarke was finding a heap of footy on the wing and his defensive pressure was also exceptional. Once he learns how to bounce the ball he may run the length of the field one day to kick a goal.
Paul Jackson’s move to the wing in the 2nd half proved beneficial with Jacko finding a lot of space on the top side of the ground whilst Donnie Ollington continued to be a great target to switch to down back.
The 2nd half was not pretty football in any way with the highlight provided by Brett Harland who went down to the forward pocket in the 3rd quarter and kicked 3 goals in 3 minutes to ensure 4 crucial competition points were for the Warriors to take home.
The Warriors now face Wollongong at home on Saturday at 2.30pm with the 2’s v Campbelltown, Kookas v Sydney Uni and 18’s v Sth Power. Big game of the weekend is the 3rd Grade Warriors v Auburn away in a top of the table clash.
Go Warriors and Kookas!
Best on Ground: Tim Scoular, Geoff Clarke, Scott Cations, Paul Jackson, Ziggy Middendorf, Donnie Ollington
Division 3
Mac Uni Warriors 7.5.47 defeated by Penrith Rams 19.15.129
Best on Ground: P. Hyndman, D. Marsh, M. Bishop, M. Bell, A. Hobart, S. Potter
Division 4
Macquarie Warriors 17.14.116 defeated Penrith Rams 11.9.75
The Warriors had hit Round 13, the business end of the season, and they made the trek out to Penrith knowing that this game was a make or break encounter. After losing to the Rams in Round 4 the boys were firing on all cylinders, looking for revenge.
The game started in an even fashion, with both sides having forward thrusts, but it was the Warriors who got on the board first after Nev got on the end of a handball and kicked truly. This seemed to spark Penrith into action though, and numbers at the ball plus some handling errors in our backline allowed them to kick three goals on the trot and skip out to an early lead. We managed to peg this back however, with late goals to Stumpy and Rooster bringing the margin back to 2 points at quarter time.
The second quarter showcased a much tighter performance all over the ground, with the Rams having nowhere to go whenever they took possession. The centre clearances were being dominating by the Warriors, with Party and Salmon forming a great combination and Pup shutting out a dangerous opponent. This midfield dominance allowed our forward line no end of opportunities and they did not disappoint kicking 7 straight for the quarter, with Kenty’s Daicos-esque grubber from the sideline a highlight. This allowed us to go into the long break with a three goal break.
The third quarter saw the Warriors continue their dominance, and despite only having one on the bench, it was our opponents who seemed to be tiring. Rooster and Stumpy kicked 5 between them for the quarter, bringing their collective tally to nine for the game before Scuba volleyed a loose ball into the bottom left hand corner, World Cup style, to give us six for the quarter. But it was our backline who were largely to thank for our dominance this quarter. Led by Storky and Stapo, we let Penrith in for only one goal and were able to go into the three quarter time huddle with an unassailable 8 goal lead.
The last quarter saw the Warriors take the foot off the gas slightly as we kicked one goal for the quarter, squandering a few other chances. Despite this, we were still able to canter home for a 41 point win.
A great win for the boys especially considering the shortage of players and the significant turnaround from Round 4s result. We are now keenly anticipating having a crack at the undefeated Auburn next week.
Best on Ground: A Lal, C Hayes, G Hood, R Pryor, G Smith, M Tharme
Division 4
Mac Uni Kookas 3.10.28 defeated by Camden Cats 9.17.71
After a week of low number on the training track the Kookas were anticipating fielding a side of just 16 footballers verses Camden. The final player count heading into the first quarter was 19, with a couple of U18s lending support.
The Kookas pre-match preparation was the strongest it has ever been with the boys demonstrating that they are a bona-fide team. However with a lot of depth now missing from the Kookas side the game plan was to take things a quarter at a time.
The first quarter started in a fairly balanced manner with the Kookas moving the ball really well. U18s stand-in Ben Sewell playing on western wing provide to be a valuable contribution by consistently our performing his opponent. Swell was also the Kookas individual goal kicker of the day bagging 3 goals.
Poor marking and inaccuracy on goal damaged the Kookas consistent forward line pressure. On the other hand the backline and midfield where working well with all players attacking the ball. Dean Wallace on the HBF was playing his best game on the year by spoiling marks and following up with tackles and clearances – his second and third attempts were impressive.
After halftime the Kookas change their game plan and restructured the side in a more defensive line up. Luke Cosica who has proved to be and strong back man was move from the HF-line to HB and showed once again that he is the “Great Wall of Cosh”.
At the end of the day the effort of the Kookas can be commended for a performance that unfortunately wasn’t reflected on the scoreboard. All players left the field knowing that that had expelled everything they had to give.
Best on Ground: Ben Sewell, Dean Wallace, Luke Cosica, Ben Hutton, Tim Wall, Kelly Eynaud.
U18 Challenge Cup
Mac Uni Warriors forfeited to Penrith Rams
Forfeit
Best on Ground: NA
Last Modified on 13/07/2010 17:12
