It had been a cold and frosty night in the north-west, frost covering the grass as the sun rose; but by game time it had dawned into another glorious winter's day for the Bombers' clash with the high-flyiing Eagles.
First up was the Under 18s, and top spot was on the line. When the two sides played at Gore Hill a few weeks ago it had been a thrilling draw, and another close contest was anticipated this time. But it was a slow start for the Bombers, who hd several players missing through injury and unavailability. Conceding five nanswered goals in the first quarter meant the Bombers would be playing from behind, and although they won the seond quarter they were still 27 points in arrears at the long break.
The pressure of coming from behind was added to by a rising injury toll, which eliminated North Shore's interchange bench and forced injured players to be rested up forward. Against a well-drilled Eagles side, the under-manned Bombers tried hard but were well beaten, eventally going down by 63 points.
The Bomber injury plague also affected our First Division team, with several late changes before the clash with East Coast. But it was a bright start, with a goal in the opening minute and the Bombers leading by two points at the first change. They continued to create chances in the second term, but several shots sailed wide. It had been a closely contested affair in the first half, but the Bombers were 13 points behind at the long break.
The Eagles threatened to run away with the contest during the third quarter, but the Bombers fought back. It was three goals apiece, the Bombers coming back from five goals down during the quarter to restore the deficit back to the half-time margin of 13 points; highlighted by a run with several bounces by Michael Voyage. Coming from behind brings pressure, and a few free kicks to the Eagles in front of goal during the final quarter didn't help North Shore's chances. The Bombers continued to fight hard, but went down in what had been a tightly-contested affair by 26 points.
And then it was time for the senior clash, the Premier Division encounter. But it wasn't the start the Bombers wanted, with a first quarter that saw the Bombers struggle to get enough possession to compete with one of the competition's front-runners. The Bombers were 21 points in arreas at quarter time and, similar to the earlier games, suffering the tricky task of having to play from behind.
Seb Paynter broke the goal drought early in the second term, but the Eagle drive kept going, and soon the scoreline was 50-12 and the outlook was bleak. But a snap over the shoulder by Teddy Strudwick lifted the Bombers and galvanised them into action. The midfield lifted, players who had struggled early making their way back into the contest as the margin narrowed back to three goals. But an Eagle goal against the run of play on the stroke of half time meant the Bombers were 25 points behind at the long break.
The Bombers tried hard in the third quarter, and their efforts couldn't be faulted. But it wasn't our day. There were occasional highlights - an attempted speckie by David Martin that had he held it would have been a contender for mark of the century, a sensational tackle by Pat Codling on an opponent twice his size to force a turnover, a couple of bullocking runs by Ron Wason. But overall it wasn't running our way - the marks weren't sticking, the ball wasn't bouncing our way, and the game was drifting further and further out of reach as the Bombers trailed by 44 points at the last change.
By now the sting had gone out of the game, and the last quarter was a non-event in which the Bombers didn't score and the Eagles didn't trouble the scorers too much. The siren mercifully sounded to end the afternoon, with the Bombers going down by 56 points.
Meanwhile at Trumper Park, the Third Division side were also depleted, having to lend several of their number to other teams leaving the team under-manned; and they were no match for UTS.
It was a disappointing day to have gone down in every grade - the effort of the team couldn't be faulted, but a cursed run of injuries and several players being unavailable this weekend left our teams severely under-manned.
But we'll be hoping to get stronger teams on the field in every grade next week as we return to Gore Hill for some critical clashes against Pennant Hills. And it will be Back to Bears day next week, when our champions of seasons past will return to the club, and we'll be hoping our present generation of Bombers will put on a show to remember.
Last Modified on 09/01/2012 22:09