WEST GIPPSLAND FOOTBALL NETBALL COMPETITION
REVIEW – ROUND 8
By Russell Bennett
Some home and away games really are worth more than just the four premiership points on offer.
Some wins have the potential to set up an entire season – to spark a side into life … to wake a sleeping giant.
And Kooweerup may just have awoken from its slumber.
Ben Collins’ men have been regarded all season around the competition as potentially ‘the best side on paper’.
Football isn’t played on paper, but it so often is played between the ears and on Saturday, as the game progressed, the Demons’ confidence and belief clearly grew. With each crunching tackle, pinpoint pass, or dead-eye shot on goal – it grew.
Koowee was clearly around the mark before Saturday’s game – entering Round 8 at 5-2. But the 38-point win over the Sea Eagles – 17.6(108) to 10.10(70) – may just have signaled their arrival on the stage of premiership contention.
Their percentage could potentially be a worry as the season progresses, but not if they keep improving and keep finding ways to beat some of the highest-quality sides in the competition.
They key for them is between the ears – it’s always been.
The right combination of discipline, focus, and genuine self-belief could carry them all the way. But the hard work is still to be done.
Saturday just marked the start – their new standard to follow.
Following a close escape against Korumburra-Bena last week, the focus for the Demons leading into Saturday’s game was all about positivity.
Collins coached from the bench, while brother Mitch (hamstring) and regular first-choice ruck Scott Houghton (foot) were also notable by their absence.
Inverloch was also missing some of their stars – including the likes of Tom Hams and Josh Purcell.
On field, some of the Demons’ key match-ups worked brilliantly. Stand-in skipper Tim Miller and young gun Nathan Voss formed the key components of a fleet-footed forward line alongside Anthony Giuliano, while Daniel Calteri served as first choice ruck.
All four were simply dominant. Calteri shone when given the main responsibility in the centre and continually gave his midfield first use, while also getting to countless contests around the ground. Voss (seven goals) and Miller (four) were practically unstoppable at stages, with Voss’ second half one of the best halves of football produced by anyone in the competition this year. Giuliano (two goals) played his best game as a Demon so far and the signs were there early in the contest when he displayed a clean set of hands presenting up at the ball, while Nathan Muratore’s reputation as arguably the competition’s best player continued to grow.
Troy Dolan was instrumental in his lock-down tagging role on Sea Eagles champion Andy Soumilas, while Sean Nicholson, Luke Walker (particularly in the first half), Ben Kerrigan, Mitchell Leek (on Shem Hawking), and key defenders Craig Dyker and Brodie Yapp also shone.
For the Sea Eagles, Will Hetherington put in a power of work, Corey Casey was constantly in and under the packs, Oscar Toussaint and Tom Wyatt (two goals) were stellar on the wing and through the midfield respectively, and Tom Bartholomew provided a real target up forward.
Inverloch had its share of momentum – particularly in the second quarter, when the side bridged the gap to just three points. The side’s game-breaking ability and sheer quality – particularly transitioning from defence to attack – can’t be ignored and will ensure the Sea Eagles will be there when the whips are cracking at the business end of the season, but if Saturday is a guide, the Demons will be right there with them.
“We put it on Vossy and Timmy today, and Calteri in the ruck,” Ben Collins said after the game.
“They were all brilliant and everything just clicked – we looked quicker, we looked sharper, and our defensive pressure is back to where it was at the start of last year. “It was as good as it’s been for a long time.”
Collins demanded more killer instinct from Voss at half-time, and the young gun full of x-factor responded perfectly.
“We spoke about having the right mindset and positivity,” he said of his side’s approach during the week.
“We kept our minds on the job and we beat the top side by six goals.
“I’ve got so much belief in this group. People have dropped off us but I’ve got so much belief in what we can achieve this year.”
Speaking of eye-catching performances across the round on Saturday, there were none bigger than Garfield’s 49-point win over Dalyston – 18.16(124) to 12.3(75).
The win, which would have surprised many, was so emphatic that it prompted Stars football director John White to describe it as “almost perfect”.
“I’ve not seen the ball move that fast in 30 years, I don’t think,” he said.
“It was just dynamic – both with our marking ability, and our ball control.”
The Stars set up their win in the first quarter with 12 scoring shots to just one from the Magpies.
Jarryd Drew (three goals) was practically unstoppable through the middle, while Daniel Helmore, Daniel Johnson (four goals), Tyson Payne, Ned Marsh, and first-gamer Jonty Bow (three goals) were also outstanding. The midfield brigade’s task was boosted by the return of big Tom Marsh in the ruck – playing his first game for Garfield in over a year.
Dalyston was again served particularly well by Kyle Kirk, Chris Graham, and Darcy Brosnan (four goals) but they missed key position players Michael Kraska and Brad Fisher desperately.
The Stars weren’t at full-strength either – missing key defenders Adam MacGibbon and Jamie Ferguson. The win, like Kooweerup’s, could be an incredible boost to the young side’s mindset.
“We’ve never lost faith – we know we can do it,” White said.
“It’s just been an attitudinal thing. During the course of the week we addressed a number of those issues and looked hard at where we’re heading and the expectations of the player group.
“When it clicked, it was just awesome to watch.
“On our day – we can match the best of the best and we’ve demonstrated that.”
Cora Lynn, meanwhile, showed it’s still very much a legitimate force to be reckoned with at the top of the competition with an emphatic win over a somewhat Jekyll and Hyde Kilcunda Bass outfit.
There’s no doubt the Panthers’ best is good enough, but when they’re not at their best, and when they’re not fielding their full-strength side they can drop right away – particularly in such an even competition as the WGFNC. They were just four points adrift of the Cobras at quarter-time on Saturday, but went on to lose by 49 – 15.16(106) to 9.3(57).
Jackson Dalton was one of Cora Lynn’s best in an even team performance, as was one of the most underrated midfielders in the competition in Nathan Gillis. Jeremy Monckton, Jason Toan, Brady White, and Jai Rout (three goals) also had a real impact while Nathan Langley (five goals) continued his brilliant form inside 50.
In the other games of the round, Nar Nar Goon put Korumburra-Bena to the sword at the showgrounds to the tune of 74 points, 17.12(114) to 5.10(40) with Tom Dovaston (seven goals), Nick Henwood, and skipper and 150-gamer Brent Hughes starring; and Phillip Island outlasted Bunyip by four goals in the battle of the Bulldogs, 13.9(87) to 9.9(63). In more bad news for Bunyip, speedster Jack Blakey requires season-ending surgery on his collarbone, which he re-injured a fortnight ago against Kilcunda Bass.
Click below to watch Kooweerup belt out their famous club song after their potentially defining win over Inverloch Kongwak.
