Match One: New England Nomads 21.11.137 def Tamworth Swans 3.4.22
The first of the matches for the weekend saw a good win to the league-leading Nomads on home soil. Despite the apparent ease of the victory on the score sheet, the boys from Armidale were made to work hard for their win in the second and third quarters after a brilliant start to the match and a commanding final 25 minutes.
The first quarter was all green, as the Nomads piled on 7 unanswered goals. In fact, the Swans could not even trouble the scoreboard attendant in the first stanza, despite a couple of encouraging forays into the attacking 50. The Nomads were continually getting first use of the ball through the middle and making the most of their opportunities when going forward. The margin at the first change was 45 points, with the Swans needing to do something to get back into the game.
The Swans did exactly that in the second quarter. They showed much more desperation at the ball and started to control the tempo of the game which restricted the Nomads runners. Truth be told, they were unlucky not to have scored more than their single goal for the quarter and had the better of the opportunities for the quarter. However, the Nomads rallied late and made the most of their chances to extend the lead out to 65 points at the long change.
The third quarter had the potential to be very ugly for the Swans, however the boys from Tamworth showed fantastic determination to starve the Nomads of the footy and put themselves back in the game. The Swans had the better of the quarter but only managed two goals to the Nomads three. The margin was out to 73 points with a quarter to go with the Nomads all but home.
The last quarter saw both teams largely going through the motions as the Nomads cruised to victory. The Swans well and truly had the wind blown out of their sails when a serious knee injury held up play for 5 minutes and restricted them to just 15 players. However, they battled to the end but the Nomads were just too good and recorded a 115 point victory.
The Nomads had many avenues to goal, with James Boatfield kicking 6, Simon Stubbs 5 and Jed Ellis-Cluff 4 goals. Luke Raymond was voted their best, with Riely Connor and Hoani Morell also prominent. For the Swans Maddison Smith kicked two of their goals, with Janson Doughty the other goal kicker. Stephen Fairless was their best, with Will Priest and Dane Miller also good.
The Nomads will now head to Inverell to battle the Saints while the Swans will head to the second leg of the Bill Holder Cup against the Roos.
Match Two: Inverell Saints 24.25.169 def Muswellbrook Cats 7.7.49
The Saints made the long trip down the highway to face off against the Cats who were finally enjoying a Saturday morning where they didn’t need to travel. The newly resurfaced Werriman Field had copped a bit of rain in the week prior to the match and was looking a little worse for wear but the day itself was perfect for football.
The Saints started the match the better despite the long bus trip south, and quickly opened their account and opened up a big lead. They were hit with an early blow, with Mike Gould injuring his ankle in the first quarter and not returning to the field. The Saints however were undeterred by missing their most potent forward, as they piled on 6 goals in the opening stanza to open up a 29 point lead at the first change.
The Cats desperately tried to arrest the flow of goals in the second, however the Saints continued on their merry way, kicking another 6 goals for the period to the Cats one. The Saints were running with purpose out of the middle and only poor kicking for goal restricted their lead. The half time margin stood at 69 points with the Saints looking in command.
The second half of this match was much of the same as the Saints continued to pile on the goals while the Cats struggled to get any footing in the match up. The Saints kicked another 12 goals for the half, while the Cats could manage only 4 for the last 50 minutes with the Saints extending the final margin out to 120 points.
For the victors, Hayden Chappel finished with 5 goals, while his fellow Power teammates Hamish Bird and Russell Brien finished with 4 each. Chappel and Brien were in their best, with KJ Te Velde also very impressive through the midfield. For the Cats, Cameron Benkovic and Brian Martin finished with two goals each. Martin was in their best, with Daniel Rodgers and Mark McLaughlin also strong.
The Cats will now face the Dogs at home, while the Saints will prepare for a Grand Final replay against the Nomads in Inverell
Match Three: Tamworth Kangaroos 16..17.113 def Gunnedah Bulldogs 5.16.36
The final match of the weekend saw the Bulldogs hosting the Kangaroos in Gunnedah. The Dogs would have given themselves a big chance of causing an upset in this clash, however the Roos showed they are still a force to be reckoned with in this competition. The Dogs were left to rue errant goal kicking but were outclassed by the boys from Tamworth.
At the time of printing, no details of the quarter by quarter scores were available.
The Roos were led up front by returning big man Dean Hoy who kicked 6 goals, with Matt Hodge slotting 4 majors. Hoy was amongst his team’s best, with Christopher Rankmore and Dan Gimbert also good.
The Dogs didn’t have a multiple goal kicker on the park, but Jake Vigor, Andrew Pratt and Michael Kennedy were their best.
The Dogs will now ready themselves for a trip to Muswellbrook while the Roos head home to take on the Swans in a huge Bill Holder Cup clash.
Last Modified on 29/05/2013 17:11