In a TAC Cup round that saw most of the competition’s top sides lose seemingly winnable games, Loy Yang B Gippsland Power overcame a dogged Eastern Ranges team that tried very hard to cause their own upset victory. Despite the fact that Power coach Nick Stevens was well aware of the potential danger of this clash, for a period of time the boys didn’t take heed of his warning and let the Eastern side put them under intense pressure. After a stern half time reminder of what was required, the Power resumed normal service and ran out comfortable winners.
Going into the game the Power had several key players missing due to injury and VFL commitment and then lost key defender Jack Johnstone due to a “corked” thigh. Conditions at Box Hill were good despite the strength of a wind favouring the southern end of the ground. The Power had this advantage in the first term and Josh Scott was on hand early to open the scoring with some clever work off the pack. Shannen Lange went long and direct to find Nick Graham who kicked the side’s second major after they had wasted several scoring opportunities by attacking the wrong side of the ground.
Another more thoughtful Lange kick up forward saw Tim Membrey mark and goal before Tom Muir took advantage of the correct side of the ground to set Membrey up for another. Late in the term and against the run of play, the Ranges were awarded a dodgy free kick and by the end of the quarter had reduced the Power lead to twenty-one points. It was a case of wasted opportunities considering the strength of the wind and the number of forward fifty entries by the Power and the Ranges seemed well prepared to cause problems for them when they kicked with the breeze.
A typically skilful snap by Alex Saunders gave the Power the opening goal of the term but for the next twenty minutes the Ranges took total control of the play. They applied pressure in most contests and kept the ball up forward for much of the time. The result was that they kicked four goals that highlighted some very lazy and uncommitted play by the Power, especially on the rebound after some errors by the Power when going into attack. In the closing minutes of the quarter Graham went long into attack and set up Ben Vardy for a vital Power goal and then Saunders and Matt Northe combined well to allow Graham to kick his second.
By the long break the Power led by fourteen points but were far from convincing in the process. Key statistics highlighted just how poorly they had played during the quarter with their nine forward fifty entries being their lowest for the season. However, the most telling fact was their tally of seven tackles that again was a low for the season and indicated how poorly they were following team rules when the Ranges had the ball. Nick was not happy with their attitude and reminded them strongly what was expected in terms of the team game plan and minimum standards of effort.
Early in the third quarter Eastern took the initiative with a clever snap on the rebound after the Power had again wasted opportunities with poor decision making. Some individual brilliance by Nick Graham finally got the Power back on track with two inspirational goals. Nick’s long-term team mate Tim Membrey then did his bit with a stunning kick from an acute angle and by the end of the term the Power lead was twenty-seven points.
They had definitely played better during the quarter but there were still things to be concerned about considering the fact that the Ranges had the wind in the last term. The most obvious was the fact that they had again had twenty forward fifty entries but had only kicked three goals. Much of this wastefulness was due to their poor decision making in terms of where to lead and use the ball when attacking. As a consequence, they were now faced with a strong challenge to their ability to win a game that should have been over as a contest by this stage.
As both sides began to tire due to the wind and the intensity of general play, the Power seemed to take control of much of the play. They were still struggling to convert forward entries into goals before Muir found Northe to finally break the drought. Both sides were struggling to create scoring opportunities but James Davidson finally was able to find Membrey who kicked his fourth for the game. The Ranges kicked the last goal of the match but by the final siren, the Power were thirty-three points up.
Final scores Lo Yang B Gippsland Power 12 goals 11 behinds 83 points defeated Eastern Ranges 7 goals 8 behinds 50 points. Goal kickers, Tim Membrey and Nick Graham 4, Alex Saunders, Matt Northe, Josh Scott and Ben Vardy 1. On a day when it was hard work to have an impact, Nick Graham was easily the best player on the ground when he had 35 possessions, 8 marks and 10 tackles to go with his 4 telling goals. His ability to work tirelessly to do the hard things all over the ground was truly inspirational.
Tim Membrey was another leader who worked extremely hard to show the rest of the team what was required in such a game. He marked strongly, kicked goals and linked up with team mates to set them up. However, his ability to win many contested possessions and put opponents under pressure was crucial. On-baller Nate Paredes has returned to the fitness levels that made him so important earlier in the season. Once again he was a key prime-mover for the team with his ability to win the hard ball and put intense pressure on opponents. He capped his effort off with long and penetrating kicking, especially going into attack.
Ben Kearns was another forward who provided the side with a continuous avenue into attack with his ability to use his pace and ball skills to telling effect. He has taken his game to another level with his willingness to do the one-percenters as well as being an attacking player. Anthony Tipungwuti has also showed the benefit of improved fitness and used this well to, not only win many possessions, but also to run and carry the ball to set up positive passages of play. His defensive work was just as effective as he soundly quelled his opponents.
Fellow defender Ryley Hall has been critical element of the side’s good form all season with his disciplined and very effective play in key positions. He again did all the team things against difficult opponents and had the confidence to back his judgement to set up attacking play as well. Jarryd Drew was another to work hard to do the team things both as a defender and as an initiator of team play. Bairnsdale youngsters Alex Saunders and Shane Jamieson showed that they were willing to do the right things by the side and rarely wasted their hard-won possessions.
The result of the set of upsets in round 15 was that the Power now found themselves one game clear on top of the TAC Cup ladder with two games to go in the 2012 season. Nick is really pleased with this situation but is well aware that the boys now need to get back to the sort of disciplined team game that saw them dominate sides earlier in the season. Their fitness and ability to follow instructions were the keys to their good form and he will now work with them to prepare themselves for the unique challenges that finals football involves.
The final two regular season game that they face sees them take on the Sandringham Dragons and the Northern Knights. On paper they appear to be easy wins for the Power but nothing could be further from the truth. Both sides had spent much of the season without half of their players due to the fact that they are unavailable because of school football commitments. This means that they will be at full strength for the rest of the year but it’s not an automatic stepping stone to success when they return.
It’s very hard for them to adjust quickly to the much higher intensity that the TAC Cup involves. Given that this has been a great strength of the Power’s play for much of the season, they are well placed to use these games as the perfect stepping stone to what should be a great finals campaign. Nick will use some of the aspects of their play against the Ranges to highlight why they need to be totally focused if they wish to win these games and go to the finals with the right mindset.
Last Modified on 15/03/2013 12:35