By Heather Mellican
Coburg will be looking to redeem themselves next week after a 51-point loss to Werribee at Mantello Holden Oval today.
The clash of the Tigers was an important game for both teams going in, with Coburg pushing for a spot in the top four and Werribee hoping to gain their place in the top eight.
Werribee controlled most of the play all day, only allowing Coburg a sniff in the third quarter as they controlled their deliveries inside 50, dominated from stoppages and took advantage of Coburg’s turnovers from the first quarter.
Coburg tried to make up the 20 points going into the second quarter with a quick goal from captain, Nick Carnell as the rain began to pelt down, providing no easy ball for either team.
Coburg began to control the ball in their forward half and make space as Werribee’s pressure dropped.
However Werribee quickly struck back with Travis Tuck proving to be relentless in stoppages and Werribee having the numbers all over the ground, taking advantage of easy uncontested opportunities.
Werribee’s Ben Ross proved unstoppable, having the ball on a string and picking up 21 disposals in the first half as the travelling Tigers found themselves with a 32-point lead going into half time.
Coburg showed there was no giving up as a quick goal from Richmond’s Luke McGuane gave the Tigers the momentum they needed.
They began to spread well, create opportunities and get ahead in stoppages early on and reduce the deficit to 20 points.
Two goals from an attacking piece of play from Matthew Arnot finding Todd Elton in the goal-square before Brett O’Hanlon connected from a long opportunity had the home team back in with a chance.
The downside of the third quarter saw Ben Griffiths go down with a possible knee injury. He was helped off the ground and did not appear for the rest of the game.
Both teams showed no sign of giving up as Ross and Leigh Harding tried to swing the play back in Werribee’s favour by taking advantage of Coburg’s overuse of the ball.
Dan Connors provided a good option in the forward 50 and around the ground, while Ben Clifton and Willie Wheeler showed their determination. Despite these efforts, Werribee were still able to hold a 30-point lead going into three quarter time.
Coburg were unable to gain back momentum in the last quarter, with Werribee running all over them and controlling the ball through Harding and Tuck to take home the four points.
Leigh Masters, Nathan Thomas and Willie Wheeler all had promising performances, while McGuane proved to be a worthy option in the forward line, picking up four goals and Connors showed his class, going on to finish the game with three goals and 18 disposals.
Coburg will be striving to claw their way back when they take on North Ballarat next Saturday at Eureka Stadium.
Coburg Tigers 3.1 5.5 10.10 12.11.83
Werribee Tigers 6.3 10.7 15.10 20.14.130
Coburg Tigers
Goal Kickers: L. McGuane 4, D. Connors 3, T. Elton 2, N. Carnell 2, B. O'Hanlon
Best Players: L. Masters, N. Thomas, W. Wheeler, B. Darrou, D. Connors, L. McGuane
Werribee Tigers
Goal Kickers:B. Warren 4, W. Sierakowski 3, L. Hansen 2, S. Wormald 2, B. Ross 2, J. Purton-Smith 2, S. Gibson , B. McKinley , L. Harding , B. Sharp , N. Grima
Best Players: B. Ross, L. Hansen, L. Harding, B. Warren, B. Sharp
Last Modified on 05/05/2012 22:53