SENIOR FOOTBALL:
The top of the ladder Bulldogs came up against the 11th placed Magpies at Memorial Oval, Euroa in perfect conditions.
The Tatura side welcomed back defenders Jayden Young and Tom Miller, who represented the VCFL under 19s last Sunday; they replaced the unlucky Joe Conheady and Corey Mallon. Mark Simsen assumed coaching duties to replace Steve Daniel, who was at the Country Championships in Wagga coaching the Queensland Country team.
All Tatura sides wore black armbands, out of respect to Ron Alper who passed away suddenly last Thursday. Ronny was a passionate Bulldog supporter and former board member; his loss will be felt by all that came in contact with him. Home games will not be the same without Ron sitting in his beloved seat.
The senior game started with both sides applying plenty of pressure on the ball carriers. Euroa was the first side to open the goal scoring. Tatura was a little sluggish and turned the ball over as a result of the Magpies’ pressure. It took until the eight-minute mark before the Bulldogs’ first goal from Jye Warren, who relished the wide open spaces and showed plenty of dash.
Euroa showed they were in for a scrap quickly; they took a six-point lead mid way through the opening term.
This seemed to awaken the Tatura side as they got on a roll and slammed on another six goals to the Magpies two, to open up a 14-point lead at the first break.
Billy Hicks and Tim Lanyon got right on top in the centre clearances and Warren continued to run and carry the ball deep into attack. Miller and Justin Murphy gained possessions across half back and set play up with creative run and delivery by foot or hand.
Euroa maintained its attack on the football in the second stanza; luckily for Tatura, Euroa’s inaccuracy in front of goal was an issue, hence they were not able to apply scoreboard pressure.
Tom Sullivan continued his great form and ended with four goals from his wing position, along with four goals from Lanyon and three to Warren, which saw the mid field dominance take over.
Paul Kirby, who had a great battle with fellow inter-league representative from 2011 Robbie Wood, provided his small brigade with first use of the football. Rob Montgomery worked his way into some solid form with a couple of good goals to his name too.
A six-goal-to-one second quarter blew the contest apart; the Bulldogs led by 42 points at the half-way mark.
Coach Simsen set the backline a target to keep their opposition to below 10 goals for the game; a target which they ultimately achieved.
A pleasing aspect of the game was that Tatura had 11 goal kickers; evidence that they play as a team and will share the ball around.
The second half reflected a common theme as the bottom echelon teams struggle to maintain intensity. Tatura scored 11 goals to two, to run out convincing 102-point winners.
The win was pleasing and there were no injuries to cause concern. Selecting the six best players would have been most difficult as there really wasn’t a passenger in the team. The coaching staff used the final quarter to move some players around and saw Steve Shaw at fullback, a position he handled most capably. A real strength of the Bulldogs is the flexibility that is within the team.
Next week is a major challenge against the reigning premiers, Shepparton United. Played at home, a victory will almost certainly stitch up a top-three position on the ladder.
Given good conditions, a great game of GVFL football will be on display so make sure you come to support your home team.
SCORES: Tatura 24-12-156 V Euroa 7-12-54
GOALS: T Sullivan 4, T Lanyon 4, C Ryan 3, J Warren 3, C Trewin 3, R Montgomery 2, A Browning 1, L Owen 1, P Kirby 1, S Broadbent 1, T Durward 1.
BEST: T Sullivan, B Hicks, S Broadbent, A Browning, T Lanyon, T Miller.
RESERVES FOOTBALL:
Coming off a defeat last start, the side needed to get back on the winners list to push for a top-three position. In a tight opening term that witnessed some big body clashes, mostly involving coach Scotty Thorn, the Dogs put their stamp on the contest. It was only inaccuracy that kept the Magpies in the contest, as the Bulldogs had eight scoring shots to their opponent’s two; however, they only had a 16-point lead at the first break.
The second term saw the Tatura side pull away and the hard work of Steve Beale, Pat Frappell and Jayce O’Neill was rewarded on the scoreboard; the Bulldogs set the game up with a seven-goal quarter. Alex O’Reilly (eight goals) had the ball on a string and Reece Pollard (five goals) finished the work off.
Lachie Magee continues to get better each game and his skills with the football were first class to set up his team mates. Matt Pollard also returned to some good form and provided a lot of drive from the clearances.
Once again, the side finished the game off right to the final siren, booting 12-second half goals to Euroa’s three to run out comfortable 108-point winners.
SCORES: Tatura 22-9-141 V Euroa 5-3-33
GOALS: A O’Reilly 8, R Pollard 5, P Neville 4, J Conheady 2, S Beale 1, S Thorn 1.
BEST: S Beale, L Magee, J O’Neill, P Frappell, M Pollard.
U/18s FOOTBALL
The young Dogs came off a draw from their last start and needed a victory over the highly fancied Magpies if they were to push for a place in the final six. Matt Cornwall was a significant out due to injury.
The home team jumped the young pups early and set the game up with a 23-point lead at the first change. This proved to be a match-winning lead, which saw the Euroa team eventually win by 31 points.
The final three quarters showed how far the team has progressed as they matched their opponents across the ground.
Paul Kirby and Tim Lanyon took on the coaching responsibilities, with regular coach Joe Minutoli laid up at home after some minor surgery. The two senior players did a great job and the young pups are very lucky to have the experienced pair in such a hands-on role.
Mitch Elliott led the side well, winning loads of hard ball and continually driving his team forward.
James Nihill, Dylan Minutoli, and Daniel Maher also did not give up and took the contest right up to the opposition.
Damon Guy and Liam Borelli, in defence, provided a springboard to attack and moved the ball well.
The Euroa team will play deep into September so this was an honourable defeat against quality opposition.
SCORES: Tatura 5-8-38 V Euroa 9-15-69
GOALS: B Harris 2, D Argus 1, M Elliott 1, M Daniel 1.
BEST: M Elliott, J Nihill, D Minutoli, D Maher, D Guy, L Borrelli.
Last Modified on 23/07/2012 10:35