Gippsland Power Media Release
By Bryan Mitchell
Gippsland Power continued their irresistible run to the business end of the 2005 TAC Cup season with a gritty, disciplined and determined win against the Calder Cannons in difficult conditions at Coburg. The Power went into the game with 8 of their Victorian Country representatives back but having the luxury to be able to rest tyros, Xavier Ellis, Rob Eddy and Lachlan Hansen. Players like, Tyson Goldsack, Spencer Noonan and Tye Holland retained their positions as a result of taking their opportunities and the team looked very strong on paper with good form being the hallmark of the 22 boys in the side.
Conditions at Coburg meant that it was never going to be a day for pretty football but the Power belied this with a brilliant first quarter when they had the wind advantage. They dominated the term as the result of a rampant mid-field unit, outstanding defence and some exceptional forward play and applied relentless pressure at every contest. The consequence was that the Cannons had no easy possessions and were worn down by the persistence and skill exhibited by the Power unit. By the first break they led by 31 points but had won the mind game to assert their dominance on the match.
The second term was a more dour struggle as the Cannons responded to the challenge thrown down by the Power and began to stem the flow of forward thrusts and force the Power defence into error due to their willingness to work harder. The Power didn't help themselves with some poor decision making when using the ball and suddenly the momentum had swung towards the Cannons and the lead was cut to 21 points. It wasn't time to panic but more a case that a readjustment of their thinking was required so that they played to the conditions better when they third term started.
In the worst of the day's conditions, both sides struggled to break their shackles and it was a case of who could dig deepest when the pressure was on. The Power defence was outstanding but the forward line didn't have the same potency with youngsters Jay Neagle and Beau Vernon off as a result of injury when they collided when both had eyes only for the ball. The arm-wrestle continued until the 20 minute mark when the Power created a great team goal for "Daisy" Thomas and then a Ricky Delphine "special" to go to the last change 41 points up and with the game seemingly in the bag.
The last term was another battle of wills and the Power controlled the play for much of the quarter. The only problem for the Power was the fact that they couldn't score goals to finish the Cannons off and by the final siren the margin was 44 points but could and should have been much greater considering how well the Power had played throughout the game. To put this into proper perspective, the Power scored 3 goals 13 behinds after the first term and will need to be far more efficient against the top sides/
Final scores Gipplsand Power 9 goals 15 behinds 69 points defeated Calder Cannons 3 goals 7 behinds 23 points. Goal kickers Dale Thomas and Scott Pendlebury 2, Ricky Delphine, Ben Fraser, Jay Neagle, Steve O'Bryan and Jeff Ryan 1. In a true team effort the better players were Ricky Delphine, Jeff Ryan, Steve O'Bryan, Brett Dore, Scott Pendlebury, Nathan Lieshout, Chris Dunne, Dale Thomas and Trent West.
As was mentioned earlier, the Power had 11 players in the Vic Country team and Xavier Ellis and Dale Thomas were selected in the All-Australian squad at the end of the carnival. This was a fantastic achievement by both boys and certainly won't harm their chances of being considered for the 2005 AFL draft. All of the Power boys in the squad made positive contributions to the teams performance and it was terrific to see how well they bounced back to make significant contributions to the victory this week.
Paul Hudson and his coaching panel have a lot to be happy about after this game and will be eager to address the minor problems that emerged with the knowledge and confidence that the side is playing some stunning team football at the right part of the season. Adding to their justified optimism is the fact that they will have the "problem" of finding places for Lachlan Hansen, Xavier Ellis and Rob Eddy for the game against the North Ballarat Rebels at Morwell next week.
Last Modified on 26/05/2008 11:53