For the second week in a row the Northern Knights were left to rue
missed opportunities as they went down to the top of the ladder Murray
Bushrangers by 15 points. Most of the scoring was done at one end of
the ground, but mysteriously there was no breeze to speak of and the
conditions in Wangaratta were good.
The Knights got off to a
great start in the first quarter, but even from the outset they were
plagued by inaccuracy, kicking 0.4 to start the quarter, but rectified
the situation to score four straight goals before quarter time.
Tindarra Hood opened the scoring for the Knights with a pair of goals,
shortly followed by majors from Ben Power and Mitch Anderson.
In
a fantastic defensive effort the Knights held the Bushrangers scoreless
in the opening term. The Bushrangers simply weren’t allowed any time
and space through the midfield and even when they were able to get the
ball forward of centre the collective effort from the Knights defence
was so strong.
The second quarter could not have been a more
stark contrast. The Knights themselves were restricted to scoring only
one behind as the Bushrangers ran rampant with seven goals. Basic skill
errors made it impossible for the Knights to achieve any real momentum,
as the Bushrangers could do as they pleased with an abundance of
runners given far too much space in the middle.
The
Bushrangers extended their lead during the early stages of the third
quarter, however the Knights showed plenty of resilience to kick the
last three goals of the term to peg the margin back to seven points at
the final break.
Once again, missed
opportunities were the killer as the Knights should’ve applied
scoreboard pressure at the start of the final quarter, but could only
manage three straight behinds before the Bushrangers replied quickly.
It wasn’t all over for the Knights and they continued to work hard
bringing the deficit back to single figures before the Bushrangers
closed the game out with a sealing goal in time on.
Michael
Still finished the day with three goals for the Knights, all in the
second half. Luke Stanton was prolific through the midfield, which will
help his cause for selection in the Vic Metro team.
Stanton
is a Vic Metro Squad Member, but was not selected for the game this
Sunday, so was allowed to rejoin the Knights. Hamish Paynter led the
team well and Steve Kelly continued to display the hardness that
embodies so much of his game.
The Knights will be back at Preston City Oval on Saturday against the
Northern Territory
at 10:45am.
Murray Bushrangers 14.8.92 def. Northern Knights 10.17.77Goals: Still 3, Hood 2, Paynter, Power, Stanton, Kelly, Anderson
Best: Paynter, Stanton, Kelly, Power, Hobbs, Woodhams
Last Modified on 27/05/2008 11:58
