Tigers claw their way to victory
In the clubs first practice match of the year, the Werribee Tigers defeated the Box Hill Hawks 8.13.61 to 8.8.56 to begin 2014 with a win. The game was scrappy early on, as you would expect for a preseason match, but both sides would have been pleased with its level of intensity.
New Tigers coach John Lamont took charge for the first time, blooding several new players. Jobi Harper, Trent Shinners, Jake Sharp, Riley Norris and Tom Gribble all had their first hit out in the Tigers jumper.
The Tigers got off to a blistering start, kicking the first three goals and impressing with their relentless attack on the footy. Box Hill slowly worked their way into the contest, but it was Werribee who had all the early running, taking a 13 point lead into quarter-time.
The match tightened up considerably in the second quarter, as Box Hill began to assert its dominance on the contest, with midfielders Billy Hartung and Ben Ross getting plenty of the ball. Both sides were unable to land a killer blow, with a number of wasted chances. However, two goals in quick succession from the Hawks reduced Werribee’s lead to just nine points at half-time.
After the break Box Hill was the better of the two sides, but wasted scoring chances too often to put Werribee under any real pressure. The Tigers steadied through a goal to new boy Tom Gribble, and finished the quarter off with three crucial goals, including a monster effort from Addam Maric on the siren.
John Lamont’s message was encouraging at the three-quarter time address, but he would not have been happy with the way his side began, giving up space in the corridor and allowing Box Hill to score with ease. A 50 m penalty saw Hawk James Sicily reduce the margin to just six points, with Werribee unable to curtail the run and carry of Box Hill.
It looked as though the Hawks would run over the top of the Tigers, but a goal late in the last quarter to American rookie Eric Wallace swayed the momentum back Werribee’s way, with the Tigers eventually running out five point winners.
For Werribee, Tom Gribble (31 possessions) and Jake Sharp (17) were excellent in their first game for the club, while Jye Bolton was classy with 20 possessions in midfield. The Tigers were well-supported by North Melbourne listed players Nathan Grima (32 possessions) and Taylor Hine (27), while Wallace showed promising signs in the ruck.
Werribee 8.13.61 d Box Hill Hawks 8.8.56
Goals: Wallace, Warren, Greenwood, Adams, Mather,Turner, Gribble, Maric.
In the curtain-raiser to the senior match, the development squad went down to the Hawks by one point in a close affair. Much like the seniors, the Tigers started well and dominated the first quarter, before the Hawks slowly worked their way into the contest. After quarter-time, Werribee were outscored ten goals to six, as the Hawks began to dominate the possession count and convert that into numerous scoring opportunities.
Impressing for the reserves were Meyrick Buchanan, Billy Henderson, Jason Robinson who all had 20 possessions in midfield, while young forward Ashlin Brown booted two goals in the first term before suffering an injury that ended his game.
Werribee fielded a young squad with plenty of new faces. It was a disappointing end to a fantastic match of football, but there were plenty of positives to take out of the team’s first hit out of the year.
Development League
Werribee 10.13.73 lost to Box Hill Hawks 11.8. 74
Last Modified on 02/03/2014 14:46