With Rob Pobblestone
King’s Birthday weekend, round 7 replacement match
MDU vs Fish Creek
Fish Creek 8-13-61 def MDU 8-7-55 at Terrill Park
The standalone game over the King's Birthday weekend was billed as a clash between two very good sides, but each was coming off contrasting fortunes from just seven days earlier. Fish Creek had achieved one of their more memorable wins of 2024, defeating arch rival and the previously unbeaten Foster, while MDU had suffered one of their most disappointing losses, a shock defeat at the hands of Toora.
The Demons immediate redemption against one of the league's best was never going to be an easy task, but as tough as it was, the Demons came within a kick of achieving a reward for effort.
Jarrod Walker, Fish Creek coach, said it was a “gutsy win for us. Conditions actually stayed pretty good for the game after looking very wintery in the morning. It allowed for both teams to start using the footy better and when MDU get their kicking game on they are hard to stop.”
There was never much in the game between the two sides, and though there was an eleven point lead at quarter time, which many spectators thought would set the tone, the Demons refused to go away.
“There were ebbs and flows all day. I thought we had done enough at the start of the last quarter to kick away but MDU dug deep to get back within a kick. We were able to kill the game a bit in the end but had a lot of nerves defending for the final 5-10 minutes,” Walker concluded.
Rhett Kelly, Demons coach, was “super proud of the guys and the effort they gave something we were well short of last week. We will look to adjust a few things and continue to keep putting in the hard work.”
MDU were never far away, and even when the Kangaroos thought they had the game in their keeping, they didn’t. But good sides find a way to win, and no one questions how good Fish Creek are, not even the Demons.
“It was a great game of footy. Fish Creek was too strong a real quality team and looked very well structured. We look forward to another hit out with them later in the year,” said Kelly.
The Demons will get their chance at the reigning premiers later in the year, but between now and then, they first have to get back on the winners list after successive losses has them back to a pack of clubs all as desperate as them to climb further up the ladder.
Round 9
Fish Creek v Newborough
Fish Creek 13-16-94 to Newborough 6-6-42 at Terrill Park
With two premierships in the past two seasons, top of the table Fish Creek remain well placed for their "threepeat" attempt. Hosting Newborough was never going to be a walk in the park, with the Bulldogs desperate to continue their assault on a top six position, but the Kangaroos proved to be a bridge too far.
It wasn’t all the Kangaroos' way however, with the Bulldogs jumping out of the blocks early to lead by four points at the first break.
Jarrod Walker, Fish Creek coach said it was “an interesting day for us today. Looked threatening in the first quarter but then to Newborough’s credit they were able to get some momentum back and control the footy for a good portion of the first half. We swung the magnets around a bit at half time to try to get some more guys into the game which had a bit of an effect on the third quarter. It was then pleasing in the last quarter for the guys to stick to the task and finish the game off strongly.”
Although Fish Creek assumed control in the second half the reigning premiers found it tough to shake the Bulldogs, who despite continuing to fight an injury curse, fought well through the third term before stopping to a walk as Fish Creek took control.
Pat Frendo, Newborough coach, said that it was “a hard fought loss against a class opponent in Fish Creek today. We managed to stay within three goals for the first three quarters before ultimately running out of legs in the last. Extremely proud of how the boys went about it and for the most part stayed neck and neck with the benchmark of the competition. More injuries to our list saw another two senior debutantes on the weekend, taking the season total to eleven first time senior players which is just awesome for the clubs development. After a couple tough losses we look ahead to a month of winnable football with a refreshed attitude."
It will take a special month for the Bulldogs to get themselves back in the heat of the race, but no one yet doubts that they are capable, what most are questioning is who will be the team to take it up to Fish Creek?
Foster v Toora
Foster 22-16-148 to Toora 8-6-54 at Foster Showgrounds
A one point loss prior to the mid season bye had Foster hungry and ready to bounce back as they prepared to take on a Toora side, who had themselves provided the shock of the season by upsetting MDU in round eight.
The question was could the Magpies do it against an even better credentialled side in the Tigers? The answer was a big win by a Tigers outfit who showed little mercy to a Toora side that were a few soldiers down on their best side.
Sam Davies, Foster coach, said that they “were back to our best on the weekend for a large amount of the game - a really strong four quarter effort against a Toora team that definitely fought really hard. We had a lot of winners all over the ground and capitalised on front half turnover throughout the day.”
The Tigers did what good sides do: bounced back from a disappointing loss with a reassuring win. The Magpies, on the other hand, fought valiantly on field as they battled to get fit players on the park.
Jay Acardi, Toora coach, said “We came up against a well drilled team at Foster who were far too good for us on the day. We were out worked outplayed and out coached. We now go back to work and find a way to get ourselves up for each and every match no matter the opposition.”
Toora have been hit hard by injuries, but continue to throw what they have at the opposition. They came up short this week, but as some of their first choice players return, they are sure to cause another upset.
MDU v Stony Creek
MDU 15-17-107 to Stony Creek 10-2-62 at Meeniyan Rec Reserve
MDU had come crashing back to earth in the fortnight prior to this round nine clash, with a loss to Fish Creek followed by their shock defeat at the hands of Toora. The Demons were on the ropes and desperately needed to respond, and respond they did, taking the game by the throat early and securing the victory very early.
Rhett Kelly, MDU coach said “It was great to see the team respond so strongly yesterday after a couple of tough losses. The energy and effort were there right from the start on what turned out to be a beautiful winter day for football. Stony Creek really challenged us at a few stages of the game and looked like they might gain the upper hand, but to our boys' credit, they worked hard to win back the momentum each time."
The win gives the Demons a much needed boost of confidence after a tough fortnight that threatened to take their season off the rails, but it's amazing how a week can change the fortunes of a club and the mindset of its players and supporters.
Troy Shepardson, Stony Creek coach “We played a very well drilled Meenyian, who showed why they are near the top of the ladder. Next week we have another huge challenge in Foster, hopefully we can put in a strong performance on our home deck."
The Lions continue to bubble away, and it seems as though they will at some time boil, but at this stage it hasn't really happened, and as each week passes, time will soon also become an opponent.
Tarwin v Hill End
Tarwin 19-13-127 to Hill End 7-10-52 at Tarwin Lower Rec Reserve
It was Tarwin's turn to take on a valiant but to date unsuccessful Hill End side on the weekend.
The Sharks could ill afford to cough up this game given the tightness of the competition but welcomed the Hillsmen knowing full well that it would be far from a walk in the park. The Rovers did what they do, they fight hard, they are genuine, but they just cannot find the finish line first
Lachie Jones, Tarwin coach said, “a solid effort and three wins consecutively now for us down at Tarwin. We started the game well and were able to win that vital arm wrestle in the midfield. We were able to have all of our players contribute and play their role which is pleasing."
The Sharks won the match they were expected to win, but what they also did was kill the Hillsmen's hopes early, a four goal lead at quarter time quickly turned into eight goals at the main break, and then the game was pretty much over.
Adrian Burns, Hill End coach said, "We showed patches in the first quarter and even outscored them in the last quarter, but the damage was done, we had a handful of players out, so we are getting a look at some new faces, we all just need to remain patient."
Tarwin now march forward with finals hopes very much alive in their eyes, as the Rovers hang tough hoping that the improvements needed soon start to be rewarded with a victory.
