Media Release
By Bryan Mitchell
The 2006 TAC Cup season was on the line for the Power at Bendigo last weekend and, after some worrying moments, they opened their winning account with a 23 point victory against the Bendigo Pioneers under lights at the picturesque QEO. Gippsland had been fair in their first game against the Stingrays, pitiful against the Knights and suddenly the poise and composure that had been the hallmarks of their game were missing and doubts began to develop as to their prospects in 2006.
Given this scenario the pressure on the players and coaching staff was tangible and some "home truths were" delivered as part of the build up to this game. Training had been "amped up" and the return of Rob Eddy and Jeff Ryan gave everyone reason for optimism as they were sure to add some much needed composure and vision to the team balance. The trip to Bendigo has often been pivotal for the Power in previous season but this year the importance of a win in this game pivotal.
The boys played under lights and it was obvious early that the Power were ready to address the issues of the first two games. They were setting a fierce tempo and but for missed opportunities early, they would have put the Pioneers on the back foot. Some excellent pressure set Rob Eddy up for the first major but the Pioneers answered it immediately after a soft centre square take away. Tyson Goldsack set up Ricky Delphine for the second Power goal and then kicked one himself after some excellent teamwork form Eddy, Jostlear and Truscio. Just when the Power seemed to have the momentum going their way, the Pioneers clinically exploited some indecisive and amazingly inept Power play and went to the first break with a two point lead.
Memories of the panic and disarray of the first two games came flooding back for the Power and they needed to regroup to stop the flood of goals that was threatening to swamp them. Once again the Power raised the ante with some excellent pressure and Tyson Goldsack opened the scoring before Jaymie Youle capped off some fine work by Jeff Ryan to extend their lead and seize the momentum from the Pioneers. The Power were still off target but were playing well and Marc Truscio stood tall in a forest of Bendigo bigmen to mark and goal to give the Power a 14 point lead at the long break.
Seemingly the Power were on the boil with the first major of the term due to some more magic from Marc Truscio and looked as if they were going to blow the Pioneers out of the game. Nothing was further from the truth as the Pioneers were put back into the game after a series of decision making "clangers" that could only be described as dumb football. They were letting the Pioneers seize the initiative and it looked like the Knights fiasco all over again. By the end of the term they were trailing by 11 points and looked to be out on their feet.
It was time for the boys to respond to this challenge of their mettle and put their season back on the rails. Marc Truscio was the catalyst for the revival setting up Tyson Goldsack for the first and then scored two himself after some excellent work from Jeff Ryan and Lachlan Hansen. The Pioneers could get the ball into their forward 50 let alone score and the Power were in top gear all over the ground. The finishing touches were applied after some magic from Ben Ross and Lachlan Hansen and the Power had recorded a morale boosting 23 point win after looking "gone" at the end of the third term.
Final scores Gippsland Power 12 goals 18 behinds 90 points defeated Bendigo Pioneers 10 goals 7 behinds 67 points. Goal kickers, Marc Truscio 4, Tyson Goldsack 3, Rick Delphine, Rob Eddy, Lachlan Hansen, Ben Ross and Jaymie Youle 1. In a long-awaited return to form Marc Truscio put his stamp on the game early with some individual wizardry and strong team play. He not only scored goals but also set up others with his unique skills. Ben Ross came off the bench and had an immediate and critical impact on the match. His blistering pace and poise were the keys to many positive pieces of play. James Blaser showed the way with some excellent judgment, strength and willingness to run and carry the ball out of defence while Tyson Goldsack was lively up forward as well as doing well in the rucking duels around the ground. Lachlan Hansen dominated the aerial duels all over the ground with a dozen telling marks and some thrilling runs out of defence and Ashely Payne was under pressure in the last line of defence and once again met the challenge head on. Rounding out the better players was Tom Johnson who marked strongly, tackled hard and treated opponents with contempt.
It was a most timely performance by the Power after such inept efforts in the first two games. Paul Hudson and his coaching team were relieved to get a win and pleased with most aspects of the game. However there were some worrying features in the match and he will be keen to eliminate some of the woeful decision making that was so costly in patches during the game.
The return of hard tackling Tristan Francis after suspension and the fact that the youngsters in the team continue to adjust to TAC Cup tempo gives the Power brainstrust plenty to be optimistic about as they prepare for a clash with Calder next week. The relief and enjoyment was obvious amongst the Power players at the end of the match but they will need to continue to work hard to eliminate the unforced errors if they are going to be a threat to good teams like the Cannons.
Last Modified on 26/05/2008 12:08