AFTER an inconsistent day at Shark Park last weekend, all four New Norfolk football teams return to home territory at Boyer Oval tomorrow (Saturday) for a big day of football. The New Norfolk District Football Club looks forward to a big crowd to support the home teams.
It was all travel last Saturday with the Colts, Reserves and Seniors making the trek to Shark Park to play Dodges Ferry. The women made the journey to Queenborough Oval for a daunting task against the undefeated Hutchins women.
Results were mixed for the day at Shark Park. The Colts and Reserves recorded good wins against the home side but the Seniors could not get the job done against a strong Dodges Ferry outfit. The task was made harder by more injuries, which reduced the bench to one fit player in the final term.
The Senior side is unfortunately experiencing an inconsistent season so far. Being a young side, that will always result in some good games and not so good games. To make matters worse, they are having a poor run with injuries, and this is really testing their depth. There are now have 10 players unavailable for senior selection and this is contributing significantly. It will not be an easy game against Brighton, who will have their tails up after a good win against Claremont last weekend.
The women’s team lost by 98 points to a strong Hutchins side at Queenborough. Although it was a big loss, they did manage to score a goal and a behind against a side that had not been scored against previously this season. That, in its-self, was a great effort.
This Saturday’s schedule at Boyer Oval sees the women play OHA at 9am; the Colts play Southern Storm at 11am; the Reserves meet Brighton at 1pm; and the Seniors play Brighton at 3pm.
CHRIS LOVELL
MATCH REPORTS
Senior Report – Wayne Walker: The message was loud and clear from New Norfolk senior coach Josh Clifford in his post-match address, with a warning that he may be forced to drop players. This was after the Eagles struggled for most of the afternoon against a more determined Dodges Ferry to go down by 17 points at Shark Park.
The Eagles played catch-up football all afternoon after a fast start by the Sharks, who looked more dangerous when going forward, with key forward Cale Hooker leading the way with five goals. The home side had the benefit of kicking with a 3-4 goal breeze in the first quarter. They made the most of their opportunities, with an opening goal in the first minute through the fast-running Symmo Kennedy.
Goals from Gus Kenny, Brad Jackson and Cale Hooker followed. The Eagles booted their first late in the quarter through Tyler Ford, as the Sharks jumped out to an early 28-point lead at the end of the term. The Eagles needed to get their game going in the second term with the wind assist, but it was the Sharks through Ben McGuinness who extended the lead to 34 points.
New Norfolk spearhead Caden Wilson snapped a clever goal from a tight angle in the forward pocket. That was followed by a centre clearance from the Sharks to big Cale Hooker, who took a strong mark 40-metres out and kicked truly. Both sides were going in hard for the contested ball. Eagle onballer Jake Bearman and the Sharks’ Nathan Griffith had a great duel throughout the game with neither player taking a backward step.
The Eagles continued to gain control with more forward entries, which resulted in goals to Sokolski and Wilson which reduced the sharks lead to 21 points. Ben Lovell grabbed the footy from a boundary throw in and passed to Jack Crossin who goaled from just 20 metres out. A booming 45 metre drop punt from Jake Bearman resulted in another 6 pointer and the Eagles were back in business.
Both teams were throwing everything at the contest with tempers flaring which resulted in a big group of players involved in a melee just before half time. The Eagles added another major to their scoreline through Wilson. Some great play at the centre bounce from Tyron Bailey followed, as he grabbed the ball from the ruck and passed to
Rohan Heron at half forward. Heron took a great one-handed mark and kicked truly from 40m out to reduce the Sharks’ lead to three points at the main break.
The Sharks regrouped after the half time break and, kicking to the scoring end, added another major with a snap from the forward pocket. They followed with another goal from running midfielder Nathan Griffiths. This took the home side back out to a 16-point lead. Dan Lewis, Ben Richmond, and Jordan Dunn were causing the Eagles problems at key stages of the quarter.
The Eagles were under pressure with only two players available on the bench. Hayden Bielleman left the field just before halftime with an ankle injury. In-form backman Rhys Heald also took no further part in the game after a heavy collision resulted in concussion. The Sharks added five goals for the quarter, which gave them a 36-point lead at three quarter time. The Eagles could only manage one behind for the quarter.
It was the Eagles who had the advantage of kicking to the bottom end of Shark Park in the last term. The big question was, could the visitors reel in a 36-point deficit? The Eagles started the quarter well with goals to Van Lierop, Sokolski and Crossin. The Eagles still had a sniff of drawing closer to the Sharks, but goals to Hooker and
McGuiness kept the Eagles at bay.
New Norfolk booted five majors for the quarter while the Sharks managed two goals to get them over the line by 17 points. Eagle young gun Will Banks continues to show that he has what it takes, with another terrific game
across half back.
The Eagles have now dropped to sixth position on the SFL ladder after a chequered season when it comes to form. One positive is that the Reserves side is performing well, with some familiar faces that are no strangers to playing senior footy, playing well. There could be some changes on the way.
The next round has the Eagles facing a struggling Brighton Robins outfit at home on the big Boyer Oval. This will be an important game for the Eagles as they need to get back on track. With several rounds to go, and with consistent form and confidence and a few extra pieces in the puzzle, there should be plenty of upside for the Eagles.
Dodges Ferry 16.16 (112)
New Norfolk 14.11 (95)
Best – New Norfolk: J. Sokolski, W. Banks, C. Wilson, Jake Bearman, T. Ford, C. Jetson; Dodges Ferry: D. Lewis, C. Hooker, T. Cannan, N. Griffith, J. Dunn, B. McGuiness.
Goals – New Norfolk: C. Wilson 4, J. Sokolski 3, J. Crossin 3, T. Ford, R. Heron, J. Bearman, J. Van Lierop; Dodges Ferry: C. Hooker 5, B. McGuiness 2, J. Bullock, B. Jackson, N. Griffith, F. Hooker, R. McManus, E. Bailey, A. Kenny, J. Dolliver, S. Kennedy.
Reserves Report – Wayne Walker: The Eagle Reserves continued their good form with a strong display in the second half over the Sharks for a comfortable 44-point runaway win at Shark Park on Saturday.
The Eagles looked to have a lack of height compared to the Sharks, with regular ruckman Michael Murray out of the side along with Nic Clayton (unavailable) and Rohan Heron promoted to the Seniors. However, we did see the return of Nic Santi and the versatile Kyle Hansen to bolster the playing list. The Sharks had some talls, plus experienced veterans Brent Dolliver and Todd Kelly across the forward line. The Eagles kicked with a 3-4 goal breeze in the first quarter but wasted opportunities in front of goal. They kicked 2G 7B for the term, while the Sharks booted only 1 goal against the wind. The Sharks hit back in the second term kicking 5 straight goals to see the home side just two points down. This set up the game for a great second half.
The Eagles bounced back, kicking eight goals to two. They had the game on their terms, winning the footy from the centre clearances and around the ground stoppages, due to some great work from the in-form Torne Tangata, Tyson Eiszele and Jack Hills. The Sharks backline struggled to contain Blair Wardlaw, who booted six goals in another classy display. Strong marking from Corey Ransley across half forward and a solid four quarter effort from young Eagle utility Rohan Thomason, who had many possessions and booted three majors, caused the Sharks many headaches. Kyle Walker did a great job in the ruck against bigger opposition throughout the afternoon. Tyler Heron was also impressive booting two goals.
Assistant coach Brad Ransley had high praise for the Eagles teamwork in the second half. He was pleased with the way his players moved the ball into an open forward line, which set up many scoring opportunities. The Eagle Reserves side sits third on the ladder and look set for a promising season. The club is showing that it has a greater playing depth than the last few seasons.
New Norfolk 13.15 (93)
Dodges Ferry 8.1 (49)
Best – New Norfolk: J. Hills, T. Eiszele, R. Thomason, T. Tangata, B. Wardlaw, K. Hanson. Dodges Ferry: J. Scott, J. Chynoweth, J. Oates, P. Broad, N. Fuller.
Goals – New Norfolk: B. Wardlaw 6, R. Thomason 3, T. Heron 2, C. Ransley, J. King; Dodges Ferry: B. Dolliver 2, N. Fuller 2, l. Edwards, O. Dodge, A. Addicoat, T. Kelly.
Colts Report – David Banks: The Colts’ game began in bright sunny conditions, with New Norfolk kicking towards the clubrooms end of the Dodges Ferry ground. It was an even and entertaining game from the start with the Eagles holding a slender 4-point lead at quarter time. The second quarter began in the same vein as the first quarter as both sides gave their all. At the 15-minute mark, Bailey Wheeler started to exert his dominance in the ruck and gave his in and under players every opportunity. The Eagles finished the quarter by kicking four goals in the last few minutes to give them a 20-point lead at half time.
The third quarter started much the same as the previous half with both teams trying to exert pressure the middle of Shark Park. In what was a hard-fought quarter, Dodges Ferry outscored the Eagles by three goals to two, to bridge the gap and set up a thrilling last term. The Eagles held a lead of 13 points at three-quarter time and the final term was goal for goal until Dodges put on a spurt with two majors in a row to hit the lead in the last minute of the game.
The Eagles showed some fighting spirit to force the footy forward and scrambled a goal to hit the front with only seconds to go in the game. The ball was on its way back to the centre when the siren sounded, and the Eagles had triumphed by five points. The boys did a great job to fight back late in the game when it looked like the Sharks
had stolen the game.
New Norfolk 13.5 (83)
Dodges Ferry 11.1 (78)
Best – New Norfolk: Z. Lester, T. Lovell, C. Keleher, B. Scanlon, E. Holden, J. George; Dodges Ferry: H. Burns, E. McShane, S. Blackley, C. Chatterton, A. Newstead, B. Meers.
Goals – New Norfolk: T. Carr 4, B. Wheeler 3, Z. Holloway 2, B. Scanlon 2, Z. Lester, T. Scanlon; Dodges Ferry: E. McShane 4, C. Chatterton 3, H. Burns 2, S. Blackley, C. Double.
Women’s match – no report
Hutchins 16.9 (105)
New Norfolk 1.1 (7)
Best – New Norfolk: D. Clifford, S. Farrow, K. Boxall, K. Rainbird, M. Temple; Hutchins: R. Cavarretta, A. Burrows-Cheng, I. McVilly, G. Morris, S. Duncombe, L. Newton.
Goals – New Norfolk: M. Temple; Hutchins: R. Cavarretta 4, D. Murphy 3, G. Abel 2, S. Duncombe 2, I. McVilly 2, A. Cochrane, S. Hughes, L. Kambrin.
