SENIOR FOOTBALL:
After a convincing victory over the Demons, the Bulldogs now move straight into the GVFL Grand Final.
Steve Shaw and Justin Murphy were key outs for the Bulldogs due to injury and were replaced by Tim Little and goal sneak, Paul Neville. The United side, also hit by injury and suspensions, had several regulars missing.
The game was played under overcast conditions and in near perfect football weather. The margin at the conclusion of the match was 18 points in favour of Tatura. In what was a hard fought slog, the Bulldogs weathered the storm and earned a spot in the main event in two weeks time, leaving the remaining two sides, Seymour and United to fight out the preliminary final to decide the final opponent.
The young United side jumped Tatura and had the best of the opening term. The Bulldogs were under relentless pressure, which caused a few turnovers and targets missed. James Sullivan slotted the opening goal after six minutes, an opportunistic rovers conversion. This was followed by the next three majors from the Demons. A great snap by Cam Trewin reduced the margin to seven points at the 14-minute mark.
Trewin grabbed another strong mark in the square and converted again and looked set for another strong display. Unfortunately, his game time was limited by a safety-first attitude with his tight hamstring.
A further three goals had the Demons up by 18 points at the first break. The United mid fielders got their hands on the ball and won the clearances. Tatura’s Leigh Owen, Shannon Broadbent and Linc Wellington were being well held with only 10 possessions for the term between them.
A stern reflection at the quarter-time break from Steve Daniel had the desired effect.The response was a five-goal-to-one second term. Chris Ryan, who continued his recent good form, marked and converted to finish the game with a match-high five goals.
The two defences, statistically the best in the GVFL, went head to head and the battle was worth the admittance fee. Led by Ryan Crawford and Andrew Browning, with the rebounding Tom Miller and Jayden Young, Tatura worked its way to a hard-earned, four point, half-time lead.
With a grand final place up for grabs, Daniel gave an impassioned plea for all 21 players to commit 100% to every contest in one of his inspiring, motivational speeches at the half-time break.
The second half started with United taking the early initiative, only for Tatura to fight back midterm and eventually take an 11-point lead into the final quarter. It took until the 14- minute mark of the third term for Buffa Ryan to register the Bulldogs’ first goal. A great soccer goal from James Sullivan arrested momentum. Some fantastic running and delivery by Jye Warren to Ryan resulted in the Tatura sides 12th major and it was starting to look as if Tatura was going to click into gear and post another comfortable victory.
The battle of the defences continued in the final term and it was clear the Demons were not going to go away. It took until the 13-minute mark for the first and only major for the term, a mark and goal to best on ground, Chris Ryan. This stretched the lead to 16 points.
Rob Montgomery and Tom Sullivan were relentless and gathered valuable possessions, it was during the final term that the cream rose to the top and experienced players such as Ryan Crawford, Rhodes Cousland, Linc Wellington, Leigh Owen and Tim Little, with some great centre ruck work and marks in defence led the way and kept their opponents goal-less.
When the siren rang at the 22-minute mark, a huge sigh of relief was to be heard as the Dogs were into their first Grand Final in eight years.
Up against a determined opponent and with key players Paul Kirby and Cam Trewin restricted due to minor injuries, the end result was appreciated by the large supporter contingent at the ground. It is expected that Kirby, Murphy and Trewin will all be cherry ripe for the big game in two weeks. Steve Shaw is battling to overcome a finger injury and may struggle to get up for the big match although he remains optimistic.
The big day is 30 of September so make sure you get along and support your team; our town, our team!
SCORES: Tatura 13-7-85 V United 10-7-67
GOALS: C Ryan 5, C Trewin 2, J Sullivan 2, P Neville 1, T Sullivan 1, B Hicks 1, A Browning 1.
BEST: C Ryan, R Montgomery, T Sullivan, A Browning, R Crawford, T Miller..
RESERVES FOOTBALL:
The Reserves, without Tim Little and co-coach, Paul Neville who were both elevated to the seniors, put up a fantastic display against raging favourite Mooroopna. With four U/18s players in the side, Matt Cornwall, Zac Brian, James NIhill and Mitch Elliott the team played finals type football and, although defeated, left every supporter proud of their performance.
Alex O’Reilly (seven goals) was a key focal point and with straight kicking was a major cause for concern for the Cats. Pat Frappell worked tirelessly in the ruck and a strong mark at centre half forward and long goal had the Dogs up by 8 points at the first break. Inaccurate kicking by Mooroopna was a talking point from the opening stanza.
The second term was a war of attrition and both defences were clearly on top. Jon Coe and Josh Harris were dominant across half back and were fearless in their attack on the ball.
The leadership from Scott Thorn and Matt Pollard was infectious and Joey Conheady lifted his game and his clearance work was inspirational. He didn’t miss a beat, striding to every contest, even when his shorts were torn from him and the umpire removed him from the ground to make himself decent again.
The quarter they call the championship one is the third and unfortunately the overall experience of the Cats got on top. The biggest margin of the match was then opened up; a 23 point lead at the last break.
Not to be outdone, the Bulldogs had one last shot and two early goals to O’Reilly regained some momentum. A missed shot on the run by Adam Brassil could have got the Bulldogs in front; unfortunately some undisciplined acts resulted in a couple of 50-metre penalties and the Cats were able to steady and register a nine-point victory.
The result, although a loss, will give the team a degree of confidence going into the preliminary final next Sunday against Rochester.
SCORES: Tatura 10-7-67 V Mooroopna 11-10-76
GOALS: A O’Reilly 7, P Frappell 1, A Poppa 1, M Cornwall 1.
BEST: S Thorn, J Harris, M Pollard, A O’Reilly, J Coe, J Conheady.
Last Modified on 17/09/2012 11:27