By Max Davies
WALLAN’S winning streak continues in the Riddell District Football Netball League seniors following a comprehensive 139-point thumping against the Western Rams on Saturday.
The travelling Magpies were able to keep the Rams scoreless until the last quarter in extremely windy conditions at Rockbank.
Assistant coach Spencer Mathieson said the team had learned from its loss against Riddell in windy conditions at home in round nine.
“It was windier than three weeks ago against Riddell and we adapted to the conditions a lot better this time. I suppose we’ve seen similar before, so we just knew what we had to do,” he said.
“Our work rate to defend once we lost the ball was fantastic. [The Rams] got their one goal from a centre clearance as the first goal of the last quarter, which can happen with the 6-6-6 rule but we’re pretty happy with the way we defended.”
In a match that saw Wallan score 22 goals, Mathieson named Sean Morris, Steven Boyall, Corey Viani, Joshua Villinskis, Riley Gilchrist and Matthew Perri as standout performers.
The Magpies now prepare to host Melton Centrals at Greenhill Reserve this weekend.
“We’re looking forward to it, Melton beat Romsey and they’ve beaten Riddell a little earlier in the year so they’re going to be chock-full with confidence coming into our game this week,” he said.
“We’re going to make sure we’re ready for them, preparing well and try to execute like we have in the last three weeks.”
Lancefield celebrates
Round 12 was also a big round for Lancefield, who celebrated a players’ milestone game and welcomed a young debutant to the senior side but ultimately came up short against the charging Hawks.
Club stalwart Matthew Bowden played his 250th game for the Tigers, with coach Tim Bannan grateful for his continued dedication to Lancefield’s football teams.
“He’s part of the leadership group, he’s stuck through the club through thick and thin, and he could have left and chased some money elsewhere but he’s stuck with us,” he said.
“He’s been outstanding throughout the preseason with the young kids and he’s a very mature player for 31. It was a bit disappointing we couldn’t get the win, but it was good to see him get to that 250.”
Making his debut for the senior side was 16-year-old Cameron Osmond, a player for Assumption College and captain of Lancefield’s under 17 team.
Despite the side ‘lacking a bit of composure’, Bannan said Osmond performed well in his first senior match for the Tigers and his efforts drew praise from the coaching staff, alongside fellow young gun Ben Sankey.
“Ben Sankey pretty much played in the ruck all day and as a 17-year-old his second and third efforts were fantastic, so it was really good to see,” he said.
“Cam Osmond got an opportunity to come up and he played really well, so it’s great to have him in the side and hopefully a future leader of the club over the next few years.”
Bannan said it was the first game of the season where the team did not suffer any injuries, with this weekend’s bye a chance for the team to reset ahead of the rest of the season.
“It’s going to be a good break, there’s still a couple of guys with niggling injuries so hopefully having the break will get them through and then track into the last few games. Hopefully we can get a few wins in there at some stage,” he said.
Romsey thriller
Romsey fought right to the end in its clash with Melton Centrals, going down by just seven points in a thriller.
The two sides were not separated by more than two points at any of the breaks, and despite heading into the fourth quarter on 52 points apiece, the Centrals edged into the lead as the Redbacks struggled with only two behinds.
Now fifth on the ladder and tied on 24 points with Melton and Macedon, Romsey will travel to face fourth-placed Riddell for round 13 this weekend.
Netball
Romsey’s A Grade netballers had better fortune in their match against the Centrals, prevailing by nine goals in an important victory.
Strong goalscoring efforts from Hope Hamilton and Emma Grech kept the home side in the lead, and with multiple players returning from injury, a rejuvenated Romsey could pose a threat in coming rounds.
The Redbacks are two points ahead of Western Rams on the ladder, holding fourth place as the competition heads into the latter stages of the season.
The Western Rams also had the better of their opponents at the weekend, coming out on top against a Wallan side that has not recorded a win since round seven. Lancefield’s bleak season continued, going down by 31 goals against Woodend-Hesket.
