Start of the 2010 CAFL Season for the Eagles was a very brave outing against the Blues which resulted in a gritty win that showed very promising signs of a consistent season. There were great numbers on the day and the Eagles had up to 10 players on the bench rotation and a stellar trio in the waterboy positions (1. Pat "only when i'm required" Wyatt 2. Mihai "eagles on 3" Tataru 3. Four "i'll throw you of the deck" Beers) and Ivan "which way am i heading?" Luketina as a very relaxed runner.
The strong opening performance came thanks to the eagles team being committed and some good leadership that was being shown on the day. The team looked good from the warm up an started the game holding most of the possession but a few minor mistakes gave away goals to the Blues. Eagles showed they were going to be no pushover this season and fought back accordingly. Second quarter was time for eagles to show their true aggressive nature. Rob got into a minor scrap with some guy with a tramp stamp but former true Eagle Scrim made sure to help out his teammate! Some outstanding plays in defense by Scrim, Hickey and Smithy made sure that Blues were kept at bay. Eagles went ahead at the break by 2 goals and spirits were soaring high.
A lot more work was to b done and 3rd quarter proved this as it went scoreless for more than 10 minutes in a true arm wrestle. Blues used their superior fitness to keep the Eagles under pressure and managed three quick goals to go ahead at 3 quarter time. Team talk for the Eagles was very motivational and we all showed how much we wanted the win. The sideline support was outstanding and it managed to drown out Adie's shrieks and the non-existent blues support.
Falling behind early in the fourth quarter the Eagles showed true desire and patience to stay in the game and get loser and closer to the lead. The best help the eagles received was the horrendous inaccurate kicking by the blues who failed to convert a few kicks from in front. The game was tied up with a minute to go and eagles showed the best portion of play in the whole game to move the ball from the eagles own 50 into the opposition 50 and scored the winning goal to take the Eagles to an opening day win against the fiercest rivals. The celebrations followed and also the breakdown in the blues camp.
Congratulations Eagles for the first win of the season and big thanks go out to Sweaty for buying the celebration keg. Let's get out there next week and do a bit the same..
Goal Scorers: Sweaty 3, Rob Smith 3 (including winner), Red 2 Simon and Howie
Last Modified on 13/09/2010 09:40