At NO.1 Oval in Tamworth the Kangaroos were out for revenge against the Gunnedah Bulldogs after the Bulldogs beat them down at the Kennel in round 1. The Kangaroos had the better of the Bulldogs in the first quarter kicking 6 goals to 3 goals giving their faithful fans good reason to cheer. The second quarter was more of the same for the Kangaroos and they took a 6 goal lead into the half time break. NO.1 Oval hasn't been a happy hunting ground for the Bulldogs in the past and all signs showed that it would continue. However the Bulldogs, after words of wisdom from their Coach Dave Chapman, had other ideas. It was all about the Bulldogs in the third quarter as they kept the Kangaroos scoreless for the quarter while piling 5 goals 6 behinds themselves and levelling the score at three quarter time. Had the Bulldogs kicked straight they would have been in front at 3 quarter time. At the break the Kangaroos had to look at themselves and decide whether or not they would fight for the win or just let it slip. They decided to fight it out and in the end sent the Bulldogs home winless. For the Kangaroos Col Daye was their best and new recruit Pat Walton kicked a lazy 6 goals. And for the Bulldogs the Scott Hardy was their best player and kicked 3 goals and he was well supported by Mark Ewington with 4 goals.
Up at Varley Oval in Inverell the Saints wanted to show all that they are the real deal. Unfortunately for them the Tamworth Swans had other ideas and came away with a well deserved 16 point win. The Saints almost started the game the same way as last week, except this week their 11 second score was a behind. The Swans hit back with 2 goals before the Saints got their first major score. All in all the first quarter was a tight struggle between both teams with only a goal on the quarter time siren to the Saints giving them the lead by 6 points. In the second quarter the Swans started a little better before the Saints hit back and again got a late goal to go in at half time with a 14 point lead and the confidence that goes with the lead over a top of the table team. During the half time break Swans Coach Rick Watt talked calmly to his charges and gave them the confidence that all was not lost. It worked because the Swans took total control in the third quarter by firstly dominating the centre ball ups and converting this into goals, 7 straight goals. The Saints did kick 2 late goals to give their supporters a glimmer of hope, but it was not their best quarter of football, but the Swans lead by 13 points. The Saints kicked a goal to start the last quarter and reduce the Swans lead to 7 points but that was to be the closest that they got for the quarter. The Swans then Kicked 3 straight goals to put the game beyond doubt. To their credit the Saints did kick 2 more goals to eventually lose by 16 points. The Saints will be there about come finals time but how far they will go is a mystery, however the Swans are showing real progress as a team and will give the premiership a big shake this year.
Down at the Cattery Muswellbrook was hoping for it's first win of the year against the New England Nomads. Alas for the struggling Cats it was not to be. In the first quarter the Nomads dominated the attack on goal but could only manage a unimpressive 2 goals 11 behinds. The Nomad's wayward kicking in front of goal for the year was continuing and could have hurt them big time. In the second quarter the Cats hit back but it wasn't enough to really scare the Nomads as they went into have time with a lead of 33 points. In the premiership third quarter the Nomads finally got the goal radar on track kicking 10 goals 1 behind to the Cats 2 behinds. The last quarter was more of the same for the Nomads as they added another 5 goals to the Cats 1 goal. For the Nomads their best player was Will Hamilton with Weston Whitby kicking 8 goals. And for the Cats their best player was Grant Ellis and they had all single goal kickers.
Last Modified on 21/06/2009 10:24