Saturday dawned sunny but cool for a big day of footy. Three grades at Gore Hill, first up being Div 4 against Sydney Hills Eagles.
It was a tight and low-scoring opening, with neither side scoring in the first ten minutes. The Bombers broke the deadlock with the first goal, but the Eagles had a quick reply. A tightly-contested opening quarter saw the Bombers two points behind at the first change. The Eagles scored early in the second; but the Bombers lifted. Playing their best Div 4 footy for the season so far, they were controlling the ball around the ground and playing inspired football as they hit the lead late in the quarter to lead by two points at the long break.
But things weren't going our way. A few unucky bounces, a few 50-50 calls that didn't go our way; and the Eagles were back in front. The Bombers were unable to score in the third term, and trailed by 13 points at the last change.
The Bombers burst out of the blocks in the last quarter, two goals in the first five minutes cutting the margin to a point and raising hopes of a win. But a couple of free kicks in front of goal to the Eagles killed the Bombers' momentum and the Eagles steadied; with the Bombers eventually going down by 17 points.
Next up was the Div 1 team, taking on Southern Power. By now the sun had disappeared behind clouds and the temperatue had noticably cooled.
The Power got the early jump, but the Bombers were hanging in there and getting enough goals to keep them in touch. There were 18 points in it at quarter time, but the margin was soon back in single figures as the Bombers put the Power under pressure. But late in the quarter, the ladder leaders in Div 1 got on top with a few late goals; putting the Bombers 25 points behind at half time.
The third quarter saw the Bombers tighten the game and put the Power under sustained pressure. A run of three goals to one in a low scoring quarter cut the margin to 14 points at the last change, as the Bombers fought and contested every possession. But unfortunately they were unable to sustain the pressure in the last quarter and the floodgates opened; with the Power scoring eight goals in the final term as the Bombers went down by 53 points.
And then it was time for the main event, the Premier Division clash against Balmain. The Bombers raced out of the blocks, with Sam Mason goaling in the opening minute and then Evan Davis threading a goal through a tight angle a couple of minutes later. It was a good first quarter for the Bombers, but after those opening two goals they were only able to find two more to show for their dominance. But holding the Dockers scoreless, they led by 21 points at quarter time.
The Bombers were clearly the better side around the ground, dominating possession and running the ball forward with regularity. But reward for effort was not always there, with some inaccurate finishing letting the Bombers down and not always finding the best goal-scoring options. But with three goals to one for the quarter, the Bombers led by 37 points at the long break and were well placed.
But the Bombers dropped their guard in the third quarter. Five behinds in a row to open the quarter, and then had to withstand a charge from Balmain as they kicked the first four goals of the third term to get within 17 points. But the Bombers steadied with two goals to stop the Balmain charge and remain 24 points to the good at the last change.
The Bombers steadied at the last change, and took control around the ground in a marathon final quarter that went well beyond 30 minutes. The Bombers were keeping the scoreboard ticking over with regularity; but too many of the shots sailed wide. But even with a return of 6.12 for the final quarter, the Bombers were still able to take an easy 65-point win and consolidate their hold on a top-two ladder position.
Last Modified on 15/06/2013 16:52