It was a spectacular day at No 1 with some great games of footy and close results early in the Under 18s and Reserve Grade. The First Grade proved to be even more exciting with a classic battle of the top two clubs in the competition.
Both sides came out strongly and it was a tough, close in battle throughout the game. Good hard pressure and tackling was a feature with no one getting an easy kick. But our guys edged in front early, kicking the first goal and going into quarter time with a handy lead. Terry O'Kane and Marty Dineen were good up forward early and Luke Rawnsley led the backline, along with Josh Wheeler and John Burns to hold out the Cardiff attack.
The next two quarters were a 'ding dong battle' with Cardiff getting back into the game and taking the lead during the third quarter. Our boys were looking shaky until a couple of late goals tied the scores 10.11 apiece going into the final quarter. What a game to here, the huge crowd was on the edge of its seats. Josh Nesbitt was magnificent during the third quarter, as were Mitch Knight and Ian Baker getting or keeping us in the game. Tom Hunt covered enormous ground to give our players up field a target and he didn't let them down with some strong marks and great impact in the packs.
The last quarter saw true grit, guts and determination to a level that we haven't seen in our players for quite some time. With the send-off of Burnsy for 15 mins early in the last quarter, the team was obviously galvanised into action - every one of the remaining 17 players were absolutely determined to not let their opportunity slip away. And thier attitude was typified by the young guns Matt Bailey, Josh Wheeler and Chris Anderson, with Courtney Knight, Cleaver, Stewart and Burke coming alive. Great victory boys -well done!!
From the President...What a way to finish the year! A First Grade premiership is always something special but to win two years in a row against our arch rivals Cardiff is as sweet as it gets!!! The City side entered the Grand Final as underdogs after Cardiff finished top of the table and comfortably dispatched Terrigal to go straight into the big one. However the Blues had built up a lot of self belief leading into the finals and knew they could outlast teams with their run, pressure and composure. They easily accounted for the Bulldogs in the First Semi Final, then withstood a stern test from Terrigal in the Preliminary Final to book their place in the GF. The boys started well and built up a healthy lead at the first change. Cardiff responded and it was a very tough affair in the 2nd and 3rd terms, with the scores level at the last change. From there the City boys controlled proceedings with superior run and work ethic and although the final margin was only 7 points, the Blues were the ones creating the better scoring opportunities. Congratulations to all involved in what is a fitting reward for many people. Thanks to all the volunteers who have helped to run the bar, upstairs canteen, scoreboard, cleaning and security over the past two weekends. Your contributions are very much appreciated by the club. Thanks also to the Juniors for running the canteen on those days and being a part of the finals with us. We’d like to see everyone at the Presentation Night this Friday 18th, 6pm at the Hamilton RSL to celebrate a great year...contact Tubbs on...0418680545...Go the Blues!!!!
Last Modified on 23/06/2012 04:49