FOOTBALL
NORTH GIPPSLAND
Heyfield had a day out against Glengarry on Saturday, kicking six unanswered majors in the first term before securing its eleventh win for the season by 10 goals, 17 15 (117) to 9 5 (59).
The Kangaroos set the tone early in the game, heading into half-time 68 points ahead of the Magpies before taking a 60-point lead into the final term.
Heyfield coach Josh Stubbe said the game was “won in the first quarter”, adding it provided “a lot of momentum” for the following three quarters.
“We set the tone with our intensity and our tackling pressure… our ball movements across the ground were spot on, it’s something we addressed during the week following a sloppy performance to Rosedale the week before,” Stubbe said.
“Shaun Humphreys was brilliant down back all day. He played on Josh King for the first half and never really stopped fighting.”
Hayden Burgiel returned to the side following a four-week break after a calf injury, while Jesse Jackway received a notable mention up forward, the players kicking three goals each.
Glengarry coach Chris Day said it was a disappointing finish to the game, after a “pretty average” first half of football.
“We were pretty overwhelmed in the first half, but our second half was really good after we changed a few things around and started playing a more composed game,” Day said.
Ben Britten retuned to the backline for the Magpies after an eight-week hiatus with a broken jaw while Josh King was praised for his work across the centre-half-back line.
The North Gippsland ladder remains awfully tight with Heyfield second, separated only by percentage from leader Yarram.
Glengarry sits at seventh with five wins and eight losses.
Rosedale v TTU
In a game that went right down to the wire, Traralgon Tyers United walked away victorious after a one-point win over Rosedale, 11.7 (73) to 10.12 (72).
The win for the Bombers follows a tense one-point loss to Churchill in round 12 when a 50-metre penalty was awarded to the Cougars in the dying stages of the final term.
The Bombers showed form in every quarter, up by six at quarter time and two at half time before kicking six goals in the third to lead into the final term by four goals.
Incredibly, the Bombers’ fourth quarter performance almost cost them the game, as the Blues fought back to kick four goals and four behinds to TTU’s one and one.
“It’s good to get the monkey off the back a bit for the boys though,” TTU coach Nick Turnbull said.
“It was a good game of football with two very even and young sides going at it.”
“Our backline was phenomenal and there’s some pleasing results with a few young fellas down forward including Jye Neilson and Jackson Catlin.”
Brendan Chapman was confident across the centre-half-backline while Ricky Cochrane played “the guts of the ground” with plenty of “fight”, Turnbull said.
TTU sits at eight, one place behind Rosedale on the ladder, with four wins and nine losses.
Churchill v Cowwarr
Churchill has reignited its claim to a top five spot after a 39-point win against Cowwarr at home, 14 14 (98) to 8 11 (59).
The Cougars led at every break, but a determined Saints outfit maintained a close score until the final term when Churchill kicked five majors to Cowwarr’s one.
Cougars coach Brendan Holt said it was “good to get the four points” but he was disappointed with the skill-set of the match.
“The endeavour was there but the footy wasn’t very clean,” Holt said.
“Our ball use on Saturday was poor, we didn’t execute it well and made it hard to transition and get some clean inside 50s… we made it tough on ourselves.
“At the end of the day we were the better side, really. We had the better list but that’s about it.”
Big Ben Kearns booted four for the Cougars, along with Leigh McDonald who nabbed four majors as well.
Churchill sits at fourth with nine wins and five losses while Cowwarr sits sixth with six and eight.
Gormandale v Woodside
Woodside continues to hold on to a top five position following an 88-point win over Gormandale on Saturday, 18 11 (130) to 7 10 (42).
The battle of the cats had Gormandale trailing at every break, but the Tigers managed to kick four goals in the third term to Woodside’s five.
The Wildcats had a two-goal lead into quarter time before stretching the margin out to 32 points at half time.
Woodside coach Gary Jones said he was pleased with the win but conceded his team struggled to get their hands on the footy.
“It’s always a hard game playing against a team like Gormandale, you have no idea about what the mindset of your players is going to be like,” Jones said.
Alex Policha kicked four goals for the Wildcats while Todd Bryant kicked three between the sticks.
Meanwhile, Jones provided an update on the condition of Sam Hogan, who sustained a serious concussion in round 12.
“(Sam’s) been cleared of structural damage but he’s still having regular headaches,” Jones said.
“He was told two weeks by the doctors but if he’s still having issues next week we’ll obviously have to reassess that.”
It comes as the club has requested an investigation into the incident.
Yarram v Sale City
In another nail-biter that went down to the final siren, Sale City remains in the top three after a one-point win over Yarram on the road, 12 10 (82) to 12 9 (81).
It was an even contest in the first quarter before the Demons took a four-goal lead into half time.
The lead stretched out to five goals heading into the final term, the way of the Demons, before the Bulldogs kicked six goals in the last quarter to Yarram’s two.
Sale City coach Chris Pettit said he felt his team had “momentum up until three-quarter-time”.
“Then like any top side, they came out guns blazing in the fourth… it was hard to keep them down,” Pettit said.
Bulldog Abe Schuback was treated for a concussion in the first half of the game after a knock to the head.
