The Rebels players and staff travelled to the picturesque town of Swan Hill to tackle the ever determined outfit of the Bendigo Pioneers. "The heart of the Murray" turned on the weather for the two TAC Cup sides in what was a marvelous day for football. Both sides had suffered brutal losses in the opening round at the hands of the Geelong Falcons and the Murray Bushrangers.
The Swan Hill Recreation Reserve was in terrific nick and the Swan Hill residents came out in force to cheer on the local boys on both sides. Super Coach "Wilko" addressed the boys and encouraged them to focus on their skills and winning first possession. Chris "little" McMahon gave the away side some insightful local information about the ground that the boys could use in their quest for victory.
Rebels started off the match extremely well leading the Pioneers by 3 goals late in the first term, unfortunately we went into cruise mode and allowed Bendigo to score the last goal of the quarter to sneak back into the match.
During the second quarter the rebel's team came out and kicked a miraculous 5 goals in 10 minutes to give the away side some momentum. However, without warning, Bendigo rallied to kick 2 late goals to again, creep back into contention.
During the half time break, the boys had a chance to reflect on the first half, and without a doubt we were disappointed with our work rate late in the quarters to give Bendigo a sniff.
As we ran onto the ground for the third quarter, there was a sense of enthusiasm to redeem ourselves for the first half, taking a three goal lead into the "premiership quarter". However, Bendigo was not going down without a fight. The local star for Pioneers, Chris Procktor dominated the term kicking 3 majors which forced the rebels into a dog fight for the remainder of the quarter. A clever clearance and goal from midfield dynamo Andrew Hooper set the rebels alight but it was quickly undone when some
undisciplined play brought about a reversal and a 50 metre penalty (Dave Astbury).
Taking a narrow lead into the last quarter, North Ballarat were eager to get the premiership points. This however , was not going to be an easy task as Bendigo had showed considerable fight and discipline to claw its way back into the match. The last quarter was a see-sawing affair that proved to be an epic arm wrestle until the final siren. It was goal for goal and blood, sweat and tears were being left out on the ground by both sides, yet North Ballarat gained the ascendancy and some could say "got off of the hook", to narrowly win by 11 points.
A huge thanks to all the parents who made the trip to Swan Hill to support the boys. Also to all the coaches and support staff for all their efforts in preparing and organizing everything on game day.
It is also important to recognise the fantastic hospitality by the Tyntynder Football Club and especially Jacqui Price for their magnificent after match that consisted of way too much food and the Swan Hill Football Club for the use of their facilities during the game.
Last Modified on 14/04/2009 09:56