The Kenmore Bears got a taste of division 1 football on the weekend, when both seniors and reserves teams were taught a footballing lesson by Yeronga.
In their first hit-out after promotion, the Bears learnt that a sustained four quarter performance is needed to test the competition's top sides.
Both the senior and reserve sides lead for the early part of their matches, but were overrun by fitter and more match-ready outfits.
The reserve grade started their match off in style and opened up a two goal buffer in the early stages.
With some hard running from Simon Butler and Stefan Fuller they continued their early dominance well into the first quarter.
However, Yeronga's superior fitness began to tell and the Bear's hold on the game started to slip.
By half time they were three goals adrift.
With 10 players on the bench, Yeronga were always going to have the legs in the second half and they managed to run away with the match, eventually winning by 60 points.
Reserves coach Cameron Withers was extremely pleased with his side's first performance of the year and is excited about his team's prospects.
The senior's match followed a similar pattern to the reserves.
The new-look Bears unit took to the new division well registering the first two goals through the boot of Brendan Stirling.
Young ruckman, Guy Davis, enjoyed his senior's debut with some telling possessions in the first half.
His efforts were matched by those of his team-mates and the Bears lead by two goals at half time.
However, the third term saw Kenmore's weary legs cause them to fall behind for the first time in the match and they never regained the lead.
In the end, the Bears lost by 40 points.
Overall, the Bears were buoyed by the weekend's performances and now believe they can match it with the top sides.
Last Modified on 30/01/2008 15:26
