Cats boot last five goals, end prelim hoodoo
August 31, 2010
By
Richard Jones
Heathcote Football League...
LOCKINGTON-BAMAWM United wiped out its Heathcote District Football League preliminary final hoodoo with a stirring, come-from-behind win over Elmore on Saturday.
With a grand final berth at stake, the Cats fought back from a last quarter deficit to down the Bloods by 15 points.
Lockington booted the last five goals of an absorbing struggle at Trickey’s Diesel Oval in the Bendigo suburb of Huntly to win 17.9 (111) to 14.12 (96).
Cats’ coach Kahl Oliver booted a match-winning eight goals –two of them in the heart-stopping final minutes – to snare an appointment with Heathcote in the 2010 grand final this Saturday.
With Matt Bongiovanni, Adrian Dohnt and Leigh Deledio continually pumping the ball into attack, Lockington bounced out to a 26-point lead by quarter-time.
The Bloods, kicking to the creek end, struggled to stay in touch. Centre half-forward Brad Comer booted two majors, the second from 50m out on the scoreboard flank, to help Elmore remain in the contest.
Meanwhile, Cats’ key forwards Sean Murphy and Oliver, along with Ben McPhee and Dohnt (2), were deadly in front of goal.
When Dohnt stood in a tackle and handballed to Deledio the ball ended up in the Cats’ goal square. Oliver did the rest, snapping his second major of the day, and the Cats had seven at the first change.
Needing a big lift Elmore only reduced the gap by a single point in the second term, adding 2.4 to 2.3. Ashley Trollop was moved to full-back on Oliver, replacing Angus Parry, after the Lockington spearhead had landed his third major from a John Halloran pass.
With midfield dynamo Jason Griffin sidelined with a hamstring injury, the Bloods looked slow and disorganized. Jared Keely and Julian Lake provided some spark as they combined to find Jack Bennett within range at the town end.
Cam Cail brought the ball inboard to Adam Williams and his flying shot for the Bloods reduced the gap to four goals. Had big man Zac Perez nailed his set shot seconds before the half-time siren the deficit could have been less – but the ball sailed wide.
Nevertheless, Perez really stepped up in the third term. Moved to full-forward, he booted 3.2 as Elmore unleashed its charge. In their best passage of play for the day, the Bloods started a move from half-back with Jake Smythe prominent, capped off by Keely landing the ball with Perez.
The big Blood nailed that major then a minute later strolled into an open goal to bang home his second. Suddenly Lockington’s lead had been slashed to 12 points: 9.7 to 7.7.
When Elmore’s Williams snapped his third goal of the afternoon the big crowd could sense a complete game change. Minor scores to Perez, Tom Kuhne and Trent McInnes (the latter two ‘posters’) cut the Cats’ advantage to less than a kick.
Under siege, the Cats’ Hayden Collins found his coach on a strong lead and Oliver’s goal, followed by another shortly after, handed Lockington a five-point buffer at the last change.
Sensing a climactic last term, no one left the Huntly ground. The Bloods had moved Perez into a defensive loose man slot late in the third quarter. But now back in attack he took a screamer – the mark of the day – in a pack early on. Again, he proved to be a better kick on the run than from a set shot.
Lake and Keely were the Bloods’ prime movers as Elmore surged. Majors to Bennett, McInnes, Keely and Lake – with only Oliver able to reply for the Cats – handed Elmore a 15-point lead 13 minutes into the last term.
With Liam Main now in the ruck for Lockington, the turning point came on the boundary line close to the creek end goals. Corralled by Lockington players in the right forward pocket, Elmore defenders elected not to rush the ball through for a point.
A holding-the-ball decision was paid to Cats’ veteran Sam Newth and he calmly check-sided a vital goal.
Centre half-forward Sean Murphy, who had been busy all match at both ends of the ground, took full advantage of a 50m penalty to add another Cats’ major.
The Bloods’ lead had been slashed to three points at the 20-minute mark. Oliver plucked a great mark over Bloods’ defenders to nail his seventh and further goals to Murphy and Oliver, after Main had won the centre clearances, ensured Lockington-Bamawm United of a 2010 grand final spot.
Oliver said his team had “lost their way a bit” for 15 minutes in the third term, but had gained a bit of momentum just before three-quarter time.
“That goal to Sammy Newth late in the last got us going a bit. From there, and even though it was pretty late, we managed to get the ball inside our 50 a bit quicker,” he said.
“I think we probably wanted it (the win) a little bit more. I also thought we played better than them all day and we really deserved to win,” Oliver said.
Elmore playing coach Andy Grant said losing key midfielder Jason Griffin early hadn’t helped, but that was no excuse for giving up the last quarter lead.
“We had the momentum in that last quarter. To their credit they were able to fight back and get over the top of us,” he said.
Grant added there was no doubt when a side got in front in the last quarter of a preliminary final it should hold on but “we probably just ran out of legs”.
LOCKINGTON 7.4 9.7 11.9 17.9 (111)
ELMORE 3.2 5.6 10.10 14.12 (96)
GOALS
Lockington: Kahl Oliver 8, Sean Murphy 3, Sam Newth 2, Adrian Dohnt 2, Ben McPhee, Matt Bongiovanni. Elmore: Zac Perez 3, Adam Williams 3, Brad Comer 2, Trent McInnes 2, Jarred Keely, Julian Lake.
BEST
Lockington: Kahl Oliver (best on ground), Adrian Dohnt, Matt Bongiovanni, Ben McPhee, Daniel Lucas, Liam Main, Sean Murphy. Elmore: Brad Comer, Julian Lake, Andy Grant, Tom Longford, Kris Jermyn, Zac Perez, Ashley Trollop.
• ON SUNDAY, the Cats scooped the pool at the HDFL best and fairest vote counts.
• Midfielder Adrian Dohnt won the seniors Sam Cheatley Medal with 20 votes, from White Hills coach Matt Sawyer who garnered 18.
• Elmore hard nut Brian Westley was third with 16 votes.
• Rob Baldock won the Tom Morgan Medal in the reserves with 18 votes, while Cats’ clubmate Rhys Woodland polled 22 votes in the under-17 count to take off the David Roulston medal.
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