By Max Davies
Romsey coach Justin Sherman has called for a consistent four-quarter effort from his side after the Redbacks lost a close match to Diggers Rest on Saturday.
It was the match of round eight in Riddell District Football Netball League senior football action at the weekend, and while Sherman was confident with what he saw from his team, the home side’s third quarter proved costly.
After a strong start with seven straight goals, the Redbacks took a 10-point lead into half time.
But the Burras came out firing in the third term, with 11 scoring shots, resulting in four goals and seven behinds, to Romsey’s one goal.
A late charge in the final term was not enough to overcome the new ladder-leaders.
“It was probably the best start we’ve had all year and I thought the way we finished the game was really strong as well. It’s just that middle period that was a bit tough,” Sherman said.
“Them being a good side, they were going to have their run and we just couldn’t stem the flow. We’re still looking for that four-quarter effort and against good sides you have to do that.”
Sherman remained positive about his team’s combined effort, especially with six players on the Romsey side having played less than 30 games.
“[The young players] inject a bit of energy into the side and give us a bit of flair, and that’s what we want them to do. We want them to come into our side and play with a bit of flair,” he said.
“We got the most out of ourselves in terms of effort, it’s just a bit of polish with the ball in hand under pressure and making the right decisions. We’ll continue to train and continue to get better, but we’re doing a lot right so we’re not far off the mark.”
Sherman named vice captain Jack Jedwab as a stand-out performer, with five goals.
He said Jedwab often led training sessions and delivered consistently strong performances each round – this week working through the Burras’ defence on multiple occasions.
Ali Khalil’s performance off half back and his role in setting the ball up for attacking efforts also drew the coach’s praise.
Sherman hoped the league-wide bye would be a chance for the team to recover ahead of their away game against sixth-placed Macedon.
“We’ve got some key injuries at the moment, our skipper and a few other guys, so hopefully the bye this week will allow us to get a few back, which we can then inject back into the side to make us a bit stronger,” he said.
“We’re looking forward to the second half of the year and the two games after the bye are going to be pretty critical for us … so if we can get some good results, it will set us up for a big second half of the season.”
The other round eight matches saw losses for both Lancefield and Wallan, with the Tigers going down to Riddell by 30 points and the Magpies losing to Woodend-Hesket by 17 points.
The Western Rams were no match for the visiting Macedon, going down in a decisive 17-98 thumping.
The Riddell League will take a break over the King’s Birthday long weekend, with the season resuming on June 17 where Wallan will host Riddell, Lancefield at home against Western Rams, and Melton Centrals travelling to Diggers Rest.
Netball
Romsey’s A grade netballers had the better of the visiting Diggers Rest, recording a comfortable 26-goal victory at the weekend.
The home side’s efforts were spearheaded by a strong goalscoring effort by Emma Grech, who scored 47 to contribute to Romsey’s 54-point total, and making the most of aggressive attacking play from her teammates.
The Redbacks have now recorded two wins in a row but will face tough competition in top-of-the-ladder Macedon following the league-wide bye.
Meanwhile, Wallan was not able to build on their 10-goal victory over Diggers Rest the week before as it came up short in a 31-36 goal loss to Woodend-Hesket at the weekend.
Lancefield’s A grade side is still yet to record a win for the 2023 season, going down in a 28-goal loss to Riddell in what has been a challenging season for the Tigers so far.
Macedon was able to overcome the Western Rams to win by three points and remain at the top of the A grade ladder, tied on points with Riddell.
