by Kris Neil
Five goals from Damon Marcon weren’t enough to lift the Northern Blues Amateurs over Richmond Central in Round 14, suffering a 25-point loss to the Snakes at Ruthven Reserve on Saturday.
The clash marks the Blues’ second loss to the Snakes this season in the high-scoring 16. 12. (108) to 21. 7. (133) defeat.
Richmond led the match from start to finish, dominating the interior to take a 19-point advantage into the half-time interval.
Their well-structured defensive zone prevented the Blues from penetrating their lines effectively as their big bodies turned it the game into a contested affair.
The Blues could have done with the work of midfielder Tony Vuwai at the stoppages, however he was sent off in the first quarter following a controversial umpire’s decision.
George Wakim summoned his side into action at the major break, but a sharp shooting Richmond – 11 goals and 3 behinds in the second half – kept Northern at bay.
Richmond received stellar efforts from Luke Carland (four goals) and Sam Brown in the win.
Northern’s Matthew Holmes played his best game for the season across half-back in the contest, racking up plenty of the football to begin Northern’s counter-attacking play.
Captain Dean Calcedo also performed respectably; with the opposition supporters voicing their admiration during each of the on-ballers second half disposals.
Speaking to Northern Blues Amateurs Media post-game, injured midfielder Brady Parke said the Snake’s contested brand of football makes them a huge threat in Division 3.
“We know they play a good brand of football and they’ve showed us that twice this year,” Parke said.
“They clearly had a slump during the middle of the year, but they’re a team that has earned our respect.”
Following his five-goal haul, Marcon is now fifth in the Division 3 goal kicking table with 45-goals from his 14 matches.
Emmaus’ Chris Beluzsar is leading that tally with 50 majors in just eight games.
Northern are still sitting in second position on the ladder following the loss, however they are now on equal points with Swinburne University on ten wins and four losses.
Richmond move back inside the top six following the win, the Snakes have the best percentage among four other sides on 28 points.
The Blues will now turn their attention to a top of the table clash against Emmaus St Leos this weekend away at Bennettswood Sports Ground.
The last time the two sides met, the Animal’s prevailed in a tight 10-point win in Round 5 at Ruthven Reserve.
The Animals are currently on an 11-game winning streak spanning back to a win over South Mornington on May 3rd.
The last time Northern suffered consecutive defeats was at the conclusion of the 2013 home and away season.
In the other matches, both the Reserves and Under 19’s suffered heavy defeats in their contests.
In the Unders Jordan Hamilton did his best to lift his side to victory in a clear best-on-ground performance.
The Reserves match featured a pairing of two old Forrest teammates in Jared Matheson and Daniel Wakim who both featured prominently.
SENIORS:
NORTHERN: 3.4 6.9 12.11 16.12 (108)
RICHMOND: 5.1 10.4 17.6 21.7 (133)
Goal Kickers: D. Marcon 5, N. De Andrade 2, J. King 2, T. Vuwai, P. Sansonetti, L. Holmes, S. Maatouk, N. Parkes, M. Cigagna, D. Calcedo
Best Players: L. Holmes, T. Lehmann, J. Clarkson, J. Phelan, M. Holmes, A. Campbell
Last Modified on 06/08/2014 21:03