TOM HAYES
FOOTBALL
NORTH GIPPSLAND By TOM HAYES THE North Gippsland Football Netball League returned with a bang for season 2023 at the weekend. Rivals locked horns and upsets were had. NO, this is not an April Fool’s joke. It didn’t take long for the reigning premier to find their match, as Yallourn Yallourn North was bamboozled by a resurging Woodside outfit, 13.11 (89) to 7.9 (51). YYN returned to George Bates Reserve in hopes of continuing their premiership form, but were instead brought to a grinding halt by the Wildcats, who dominated the encounter. After a competitive first quarter, the Jets found themselves ahead by a goal, but a costly five-goal-to-one second term gave the visitors a 21-point lead into the main break. A fairly evenly-contested third term would’ve given YYN some hope, but they were once again outdone by the Wildcats. In the final quarter, Woodside kicked 3.2 (20) to 1.1 (7) to run away as 38-point winners, in a landmark victory that would have caught the attention of the rest of the league. Granted, Woodside has proven they’re hard to beat in recent years, it just makes you wonder how things were perceived from a YYN point of view. SOMETHING that we didn’t expect to see in the NGFNL this year was Cowwarr near the top of the ladder, let alone on the top rung. Granted, the Saints took on Gormandale, but the spirited side made sure to put a stamp on the game, winning 20.18 (138) to 7.3 (45). Cowwarr burst to a 21-point lead at the first break, having triple the amount of scoring shots compared to the visiting Tigers. The second term was much of the same, as the Saints found themselves with a 35-point lead at the main break. Healthy additions were made to the score in the third term by both sides, but Cowwarr extended their lead by six points to grow the margin out to 41 points. But there was no coming back for Gormandale, who collapsed in the last quarter as Cowwarr piled on 10 goals to put the nail in the coffin. The margin was doubled in the final term, as Cowwarr walked away as 93-point winners, and jumped to the top of the league after Round 1. The last time Cowwarr had a win of this magnitude was back in the final round of 2019, when they defeated Glengarry by a whopping 154 points. AN exciting end-to-end affair was witnessed at Gaskin Park, when Churchill hosted fierce rivals, Yarram, on their home turf. Yarram got the jump on the Cougars in the first term, bounding to a two-goal lead at the first break. In what would’ve been a heated footy to get your hands on, it was clearly tough to make it your own in the first term. The second term was all Churchill, as they piled on eight goals to one to assert themselves for the first time in the match. The 29-point buffer going into half time would’ve been the exact response the coaches were after. Yarram couldn’t quite get a grip on the game from thereon in, but they managed to scrape the margin back in the second half. Yarram booted six goals for themselves in the third quarter, but the Cougars also managed four, as the scoreboard grew for either side. The 19-point margin separating the two sides at the final break was enough to get Churchill over the line, finishing the game ahead by 12 points, 15.14 (104) to 13.14 (92). The first quarter lapse will want to be avoided by Churchill in coming weeks, as they have now displayed their true potential in the form of scoreboard dominance. TRAVELLING to Stephenson Park to face Sale City was last year’s runner-up, TTU. The Bombers put on a consistent performance to close out an 85-point smashing 18.20 (128) to 6.7 (43). The new-look TTU looked well put together, as they dismantled Sale City in each and every quarter. Thanks to a 28-point lead at the first break, TTU had set the tone and continued to provide good footy throughout the match. The 28-point lead grew to 38 points at the main break. Sale City were down but not out of the fight if they could prevent the run of TTU. The third quarter, also known as the premiership quarter, was perfected by TTU, as they put Sale City to the sword, kicking 7.6 (48) to 1.1 (7). Thirteen scoring shots in a quarter is sure to give your opponent enough to want to quit, especially when your opponent surpassed a ton in the third term, and the likelihood of a 100-point belting is on the cards. When the Bombers’ lead extended to 79 points with a quarter to play, it could’ve gotten ugly real quick for the Bulldogs. Both teams looked to have eased on the gas pedal in the final quarter, but TTU had six more scoring shots, and they kicked ahead by a further goal to win by 85 points. ROSEDALE got the better of Glengarry by 16 points in their opening game at Rosedale Recreation Reserve. In a game like no other this round, the team that held the lead for majority of the game fell apart in the last quarter. In a tale of two halves, Glengarry had the better of Rosedale in the first half, claiming a nine-point lead at the first change, before extending that lead to 24 points. The tempo of the game downshifted in the third term as the home side began to claw their way back. At the final change the lead was just 16 points after a goalless quarter from the Magpies. But in the last quarter, Rosedale stormed home kicking 6.2 (38) to 1.0 (6) to overrun the visitors by 16 points, 12.9 (81) to 9.11 (65), completing a 32-point turnaround in the final term. Taking nothing away from Rosedale’s comeback win, Glengarry showed signs of improvement from last year, especially with a new coach at the helm. Rosedale saved their best for last, proving they won’t die away when it gets to the nitty gritty, exemplifying how gargantuan momentum can be. HEYFIELD had the bye.
