After a well earned week off, Round 15 saw the Division 2, 4 and Under18 teams head to St Paul’s with Division 3 making the trip to Village Green.
An undermanned Under 18 side took on a high flying Sydney Uni side, with the boys looking to finish the season strongly and also try and push for starts in the senior sides. Whilst the final result did not go their way, the boys never stopped trying and the signs are very encouraging for the future of the club. Jye Brennan kicked the teams 2 goals in a best on ground display, and he was well supported by Matt Burn, John Burwood, Matt Cahill, Marco Coledan and Ethan Dean.
A number of the boys quickly recovered from their Under 18’s match and took the field for Division 4. With only 18 players available, the task ahead of them was a tough one, which was made even tougher when reduced to 17 by injury early in the 2nd quarter. The team never gave up despite this, but were unable to come away with the points. Matt Maddocks was best on ground with a tough, hard and uncompromising display. Ben Allen was once again a dominant force in the midfield, while Jonathon Stott put in a big hearted effort. Tim Haynes was solid at fullback despite being outsized, while the Fennell boys, Al and Nathaniel, put in the never say die performances we have come to expect from them.
Across town at Village Green, the Div 3 boys were hoping to keep their momentum going when they faced up to UNSW/ES. Despite not yet registering a win, the team has been improving notably over the last month and this game represented a good test as to how they had progressed. Despite a loss, the team showed that their development is continuing and they are looking forward to their match with the Power. The standout performer on the day was Ashley Mulcahy, who continued his brilliant debut season with a strong performance in the ruck all game.
On the back of 5 straight wins, Div 2 entered their game against Sydney Uni very confident, also knowing that a win would seal their place in this years finals. Unfortunately the confidence did not translate into onfield performance, as a sluggish Goannas side was caught off guard by the Students who dominated the first quarter.
The second quarter saw the Goannas lift, but any challenge was answered. The job was also made harder in the 2nd when coach Troy Balzan had his freshly repaired broken nose broken again, while Ben Dyhrberg had to rush off to the dentist after having a tooth knocked out.
After conceding 5 goals and only scoring 2 in the third quarter, the boys started the last quarter 28 points down and staring down the barrel. Knowing what a win would mean for the season must have stirred in the minds of the players, and the start of the last quarter saw the Goannas hit the ground running.,Suddenly the momentum began to swing our way and stayed with us throughout the quarter.
After kicking 5 straight and conceding only 6 behinds, Luke Mansbridge marked with 30 seconds to go, and after also receiving a 50 metre penalty, booted the ball onto City Road to put the Goannas ahead by 2 points. From the ensuing centre bounce, the ball barely came back down to the ground before the siren sounded to the delight of the Goanna faithful, who can now look forward to finals football for the 3rd straight year.
John Maniscalco and Stuart McKinley dominated the centre in the last quarter and gave the team the all important ball from the centre, while skipper Andrew Munns repelled wave after wave of attack. Grant Webb and Mark Hill had plenty off the ball all around the ground, and Luke Walsh was the star up forward kicking 4 goals.
Kristin Carville
Press Offficer
Last Modified on 20/10/2009 08:35