ROUND #2 GAME REPORT: Hamilton Wildcats (1-0) v Etobicoke Kangaroos (NR) (@ Margaret Greene Park, Guelph, ON.)
ETOBICOKE KANGAROOS 15.17.107 def. HAMILTON WILDCATS 4.2.26
After starting their 2011 campaign with a solid team win over a tough Toronto Rebels side, the Hamilton Wildcats headed north to Margaret Greene Park in Guelph to face the perennial powerhouse, and 2008 OAFL Premieres, Etobicoke Kangaroos in Round 2.
As both Clubs arrived in Guelph, the rain also decided to join, leaving the oval at Margaret Greene Park in Guelph quite slick and turning the footy into a 3lb bar of soap. It definitely looked like it was going to be a hard fought game of wet weather footy, a brand of football the Wildcats typically love to play. Due to a couple late changes to the Hamilton roster, 2nd year ruckman, Ed "Das Boot" DeBruin was given the job in the middle all afternoon long, as fellow ruckmen Daniel Crouch and Paul Lawson were both unavailable for the Round 2 match versus the ever tough Kangaroos. Despite the lack of interchange for the big Dutchman, he did an extremely admirable job against the much more experienced talls of the Roos.
After Hamilton opened with the first goal of the game (Brendan Major), the Roos, who were playing their 1st match of the 2011 season, responded within seconds to even the score. After starting the game on their heals, Etobicoke looked to have tilted the table in their direction after kicking their first major of the match and many of the bouces around the ground also went their way. At the end of the 1st quarter, Hamilton trailed by 12 points, but knew they needed to come out firing to start the 2nd if they were o have any chance of up-ending the 2008 OAFL Champs. Unfortunately for the 'Cats, the 2nd quarter did not go the way they had hoped, and the Kangaroos capitalized on many of Hamilton's mistakes to widen the scoring gap heading into the half. The Wildcats were featuring 6 players on the day with less than 2 games of footy experience, and at times it showed against a veteran Roos side. Despite many of the Wildcats experiencing their first taste of footy against one of the league's top sides, the 'Cats rookies definitely earned their stripes on the day, and made the job for our game day Coaching Panel even tougher. Justin Hyde, Jeremy "Jizza" Taylor, Sean "Shrek" DiRago, Connor Lowry and Gary "MCG" Hessmer all played well, and looked to get stronger as the game wore on.
Despite a solid start to the game in the first 20mins, the Wildcats could not recover as the Roos took advantage of several mental lapses in the 2nd quarter to run out winners on the day and hand Hamilton their 1st loss of the 2011 season; 15.17.107 to 4.2.26. Despite the lop sided score, this was an incredibly close game at times, with lots of great tackling and some incredible marks taken in the rain. Hamilton players Brett "Nuts" Aiken, Luke "Digits" Lombardini ("Hard Hat Award" - hardest working player, Kris McKillop, Justin Johns, Eben Schaeffer, Brendan Major (3 goals) & Michael Visser all stood out for the 'Catters, and showed many who were in attendance why this year's Wildcat Club is going to do some damage in the OAFL!!!
HAMILTON GOALS: B. Major (3), C. Lowry (1)
HAMILTON BEST: J. Johns (BOG), L. Lombardini (Hard Hat Award), M. Visser, B. Major, E. DeBruin, B. Aiken
*for full GAME STATS, please click link: https://websites.mygameday.app/round_info.cgi?a=MATCH&fixture=122982105&c=1-7394-110437-142013-0&pool=1
NEXT GAME: Saturday, May 28th/11 v Central Blues (1-1), 11AM START @ Mohawk Sports Park, Hamilton, ON.
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C'arn the WILDCATS!!!
Last Modified on 14/10/2011 02:47