The 2012 Gippsland Power under 15 schoolboys squads ventured down to Melbourne last week to participate in Division one of the sixty-third edition of the intra-state schoolboys championships. Now known as the VLine cup, the championships have been an invaluable stepping stone for many of the Power squads in its 20 year history and once again the Gippsland boys were able to turn in an outstanding performance which culminated in them winning the title for 2012.
Under coaches, Brian Graham and Scott McDougall, the boys began their preparation in November last year as they trained together in regional centres based in Sale and Garfield. Early in 2012 they started training together as one unit at the Power’s Morwell base and from the large initial group, a squad of forty-six was selected. With two weeks to go before the VLine cup started, the coaches selected two squads with the top group Latrobe, to participate in the Division one competition and the other boys, East Gippsland, in Division two of the three level competition.
The Division one group were in a six team structure with each of the country-based TAC Cup represented. They faced the prospect of playing three games in three days with each match being of four fifteen minute terms. Game one for the boys was against the Goulburn Valley team at the Coburg Oval and, after a slow start, they found themselves ten points down at the half-time interval. With the game up for grabs they lifted their work rates in the third term but didn’t take full advantage of their efforts, kicking 2 goals 5 behinds, to lead by one point with a term to go. The Goulburn Valley boys regained their composure in the last term to run out winners by 8 points.
Final Scores Goulburn Valley, 8 goals 9 behinds 57 points defeated Latrobe 6 goals 13 behinds 49 points. Goal kickers, Kade Alexander, Charlie Driffield, Josh Dunkley, Bailey Harfield-Park, Brandon Scott and Corey Stockdale 1 each. The better players were Josh Dunkley, Nash Holmes, Kade Alexander, Charlie Driffield and Brandon Scott.
Based on their narrow defeat, the boys now found themselves in a tough situation with a limited chance to be able to compete in the grand final two days later. Game two of their schedule saw them up against the Geelong team and this represented a stern test as they had won Division one five time since 2003 with the last two as part of this dominant position. The match was played at the historic Oval in the middle of Melbourne University and after another slow start they dominated the first term to lead by thirty two points at the first break. The Geelong boys responded in the second quarter and reduced the lead to twelve points by the long break.
The Power boys lifted to the challenge in the third quarter and, despite kicking inaccurately again, led by 28 points with on term to go. Despite the fact that the Geelong boys were kicking with the strong breeze, the Power boys worked tirelessly to run out impressive winners by thirty-eight points. Final Scores, Latrobe 13 goals 7 behinds 85 points defeated Geelong 7 goals 5 behinds 47 points.
Goal kickers, Charlie Driffield, Daniel Grech, Jackson McMahon and Corey Stockdale 2, Kade Alexander, Connor Ambler, Josh Dunkley, Jordan Sabell and Brandon Scott 1. Better players were Connor Ambler, Nash Holmes, Daniel Grech, Kade Alexander and Charlie Driffield.
In a unique situation, the Power boys discovered that after two games in the six team division, each side had won one game and lost one. The top two sides based on percentage were to play off against each other for the 2012 championships. Unbelievably, due to their narrow loss in game one and comprehensive win in game two, the Power side finished on top of the Division and were in the Grand Final against the Ballarat boys.
Once again the boys went to the wonderful Melbourne University oval with a genuine belief that they had a good chance of winning the prestigious title if they continued to work hard. After having Ballarat kick the first for the match, the Power boys dominated the rest of the quarter and led by twenty five points at the end of term one. The second quarter saw the Power side dominant again but their inaccuracy was costly as the managed three goals from eleven scoring shots to go to the long break by forty-three points.
With the title up for grabs, the Ballarat side dominated the centre breaks for most of the third term and kicked five unanswered goals to go into the last quarter only fourteen points down. Things looked grim for the Power side early in the last term as Ballarat kicked the opening goal. With the title on the line, the Latrobe boys dug deep to shut down the Ballarat avenues to attack and began to find their own ways of scoring again. They took the game and title by the throat for the majority of the quarter with some exceptionally hard, team based football and emerged victorious by twenty three points.
Final scores Latrobe 11 goals 13 behinds 79 points defeated Ballarat 9 goals 2 behinds 56 points. Goal kickers Josh Dunkley 4, Jarred Jans and Alex Lawson 2, Jackson McMahon, Brandon Scott and Jake Smith 1. Led brilliantly by captain Josh Dunkley, the Power boys also had significant contributions from Alex Lawson, Daniel Grech, Nash Holmes and Jake Smith.
The title win is important for the Power in the future as it has given some of the region’s best youngsters the perfect stepping stone for their TAC Cup careers. They have responded magnificently to some severe challenges to their approaches to football and are now well-prepared for the Power under 16 program in 2013. The vast majority of the top-age boys in 2012 won the title in 2009 and names like Membrey, Northe, Muir, Graham, Fusinato are now key players in the side’s steps towards the top of the TAC Cup this season.
The boys in this year’s side have been well prepared by Brian Graham who is now a key member of the Power’s coaching panel. During their preparations they were also supported by Power coach Nick Stevens, Regional manager Peter Francis and Development officer Rob Reid, the under 16 coach. Their victory was a stunning reward for work that began last November and has all at the Power eagerly looking forward to them returning to the club for the 2013 season as members of the under 16 squad.
Last Modified on 09/07/2012 09:02
