The Bulldogs were in the penultimate game and a victory would give them the chance to defend the title they won in 2011. Unfortunately the Tatura side came up against a very strong Tigers outfit and, after putting up a brave performance, was beaten by 36 points.
The contest was played at Deakin Reserve in fine conditions with a blustery wind favouring the Shepparton United end. Paul Neville came back into the side that was narrowly beaten in the second semi final.
Kicking with the aid of the wind in the first quarter, the Bulldogs were quickly on the board with a goal to Alex O’Reilly. He followed with another in the opening minutes and the Dogs were out by 12 points.
The endeavour of every Tatura player was to be admired and the pressure and skilful ball movement opened up plenty of scoring opportunities. These were capitalised on with more goals to Steven Beale, Matt Cornwall and Pat Frappell.
The Tigers finally opened their scoring into the strong breeze and cut the Tatura side’s lead to 23 points. A quick reply by Adam Brassil regained momentum. However, the Rochester combination was able to link up well to put through its second against the wind, which ultimately was to prove vital. At the first break, the Bulldogs had a 22-point lead, which was a solid result considering the advantage of the strong wind.
The Tigers put their stamp on the match in the second term scoring five goals five behinds whilst keeping the Tatura team scoreless. The 13-point margin at half time, whilst manageable, would prove to be a bridge too big for the Dogs. In an interesting side note from the match, Tatura did not score at all when kicking against the breeze.
The second half commenced with the Bulldogs out to quickly eradicate the deficit. Unfortunately, the conversion rate was not as good as the first quarter and instead of six goals, the result was one goal and six behinds.
Jon Coe played a great game across half back and continually won the ball and drove the team forward. Adam Brassil and U/18 player Matt Cornwall also were fine contributors. The Tigers, up against the blustery wind, were able to take their chances; they scored a valuable goal to maintain a nine-point lead at the final break.
Needing to play an inspired final term, the Bulldogs tried their hearts out. However, against bigger, stronger bodies, this was to be fruitless and the Tigers gained complete control to boot four-goals-to-nil in the last term. Pat Frappell showed enough to suggest that he will play a lot of senior football and Nick Elliott also worked tirelessly at the bottom of the packs. Rochester has lost only one game for the season and showed they will be a strong chance to win the flag.
After such a great season in 2011, it was predicted the Reserves would struggle for numbers and be easy beats against most opposition in 2012. This proved incorrect and, under the tutelage of Paul Neville and Scotty Thorn, the team gelled into a formidable outfit and should be very proud of their year; to finish a clear third is an admirable result.
SCORES: Tatura 7-6-48 V Rochester 12-14-86.
GOALS: A O’Reilly 2, P Neville 1, P Frappell 1, S Beale 1, A Brassil 1, M Cornwall 1.
BEST: J Coe, A Brassil, P Frappell, M Cornwall, P Neville, & N Elliott.
Last Modified on 24/09/2012 10:41