The night match between Illawarra and Campbelltown at North Dalton Oval was affected by the strong winds and tricky conditions. Despite the inclement weather, this match turned out to be a gripping contest that was an arm wrestle right to the end. Close contested footy was the order of the day and in the end it was Campbelltown’s ability to play with aggression, maintain concentration and show tremendous discipline over all four quarters which saw them get the points.
Illawarra kicked with the wind in the first quarter and naturally play was dominated in Campbelltown’s defensive 50m. Despite some desperate defence, Illawarra took advantage of the wind and scored four goals while keeping the Blues scoreless. It was vital that when it was the Blues turn with the wind that they worked just as hard with the wind and capitalised on opportunities. The Blues’ turn with the wind in the second term saw them rack up plenty of scoring shots; but it was difficult to kick accurately in the breeze and the Blues scored 4.9 for the quarter. This was enough to take the lead by six points at the long break.
Neither team had scored at the southern end in the first half; but Campbelltown secured the upper hand in the third term. Although the Lions regained the lead, the Blues scored two crucial goals into the wind. Like chasing down a small target in the last innings, the Blues had plenty of nervous moments in the last quarter, and would miss plenty of shots at goal. Eventually they managed to take the lead, and force the Lions into their second scoreless quarter of the game.
There were countless acts of courage on display throughout the match with players like Dutchy, Taz and Hoges inspiring their team mates. Matthew Edwins played a tremendous Captain’s knock and Bryce Joynson filled a vital role against one of the premier midfielders in the competition. Matty Withers was a great target up forward but the key to this victory was the even workload of all players who stood up when it was their turn to carry the load. Their strength of will to grind out a victory was confidence building and a great show of character.
Premier Division take on traditional rivals North Shore at Monarch at 2:10pm in what should be a cracking game.
Last Modified on 10/05/2013 17:43