Men’s Division 3, Bendigo vs Footscray at Maiden Gully Rec. Reserve, 27/7/19
Perfect conditions for lacrosse greeted the Warhawks last Saturday, with an overcast sky, cool temperatures and a forecast of little chance of rain. The ground was firm. Bendigo lined up 13 to start, with key defenders, Mark Reader and Jarrod Topp-Lowe unable to take the field. Footscray turned up in dribs and drabs with an eventual line-up of 13. Footscray currently occupy the top of the ladder, and with some well-known stalwarts eyeballing us while the referee went through terms and conditions at the line-up, we knew we were going to have both hands full.
Footscray jumped the Warhawks in the first quarter. They dominated everything and stacked on seven goals unanswered and left a shell-shocked Bendigo to regroup at the first break.
The second quarter saw Bendigo apply better pressure in defence and win the ball out of the centre more often. They also kept the ball in their attack for longer periods, with good ball movement and shots thwarted only by a quality Footscray goalie. Alex Orr managed to slot home a well-aimed shot from a sharp assist from Russell Crofts, giving Bendigo their only goal for the half, while Footscray scored at a reduced rate to have four for the term and a margin of 11 to 1 at the long break.
At half time, Bendigo lost Mason Matheson through a nagging injury, but In the third, were able to put the screws on Footscray. With the Warhawk defense working like slaves and Gino Iuliano keeping out many shots, Footscray were limited to two goals and became quite frustrated, mainly with each other and some ill-feeling crept into the game and as a result, they began to give away fouls. The Warhawks were kept scoreless for the quarter, but could pat themselves on the back for holding off a barrage and they also got to listen to the Footscray coach split shingles off his players for departing from organised attack and wasting the ball with trick shots. At last drinks the score stood at 13 to 1.
In the final quarter, Bendigo held on, and Footscray became distracted by reffing and frustrated by a break-down of discipline in their forward line but were still able to score four, mainly through individuals rather than team-work. Bendigo found the back of the net once with the Footscray defense giving Russ Crofts too much room to find an angle on the right and he strolled in and snuck a good shot past the goalie, from a nice Dylan Le Clerq assist. At the final bell, Footscray had a convincing, if not a crushing win 17 to 2.
Bendigo displayed their customary fighting spirit and cool heads** under pressure and can be pleased that they could hold Footscray to a modest total, when it looked like they might end up in the high twenties at the end of the first quarter.
Votes went to Mike Bell (3 club and 1 Association) for a fantastic showing in defense and filling the traditional Wookie role, keeping the ball coming out of the backline. Alex Orr was given 2 club votes for a big day all over the ground, and Matt Saxon earned a club vote for a terrific game in the midfield and again, he and Christian Iuliano show considerable courage in the face of a rough opposition, coming in as they do most Saturdays having just played a game in Melbourne.
Thanks very much to the O’Mearas for scoring (and our half-time oranges and jelly snakes), to Lester Young for reffing for us and to Paula Saxon for running the canteen.
Certainly, Footscray were annoyed with their performance in this game, leading up to their finals campaign, and missed a chance to really bolster their percentage. Well done Bendigo!
Next week we play Malvern at home.
John Webb, Senior player.
**Except for Brett, who lost his rag and hit someone.
Boys’ U15s MCC def Melb Uni 11 to 2
Our boys Matt Saxon and Christian Iuliano were instrumental in a big win, taking the majority of face-offs. They have cemented their positions as centre specialists and are the coach’s preference when the pressure is on. They also contributed greatly to the score with Christian getting 3 goals and an assist, while Matty got one goal and 3 assists.
Women’s B grade MCC/Bendigo vs Brunswick 30 to 1
MCC/Bendigo dished out a thumping to Brunswick, despite a disparity in numbers highly favourable to Brunswick: 14 to 10. Three Bendigo players contributed hugely with Abbey Saxon scoring 4 goals and an assist and Abigail Sullivan scoring 3 goals and an assist. According to Gino, Ruby McEvoy also had a great game in both defense, midfield and up forward. Well done!!
Last Modified on 29/07/2019 17:12