The first games of Division 2 MC Labour Seniors’ finals rounds were held at the weekend, in what proved to be an interesting match for each of the four teams that played on Epping’s Recreational Reserve.
Diamond Creek and South Morang went head-to-head in the first qualifying final on Saturday, with the Creekers kicking off the game less than 20 seconds in with a behind.
But their quick scoring was misleading, with the remainder of the quarter a slow burn as both teams traded goal for goal and behind for behind.
With a goal from South Morang’s Joshua D’Intinosante just before the first quarter ended, the Lions came off the field quietly boasting a quaint 11-point lead against the Creekers, 15-26.
The Lions kicked off the second quarter strongly with a goal from Mathew Robinson, but once again early scoring proved unfruitful, with the quarter turned into a frustrating play for both sides. While the Creekers only managed to increase their score by eight points during the match, the Lions fared little better with only a 15-point increase from their first quarter score, despite several attempts at goal. At the siren, the scoreboard showed 23-41.
Looking concerned, the Creekers left the field to discuss tactics, while the Lions looked quietly confident that they might just beat the second placed team once again, having previously beaten them in Round 9.
THE first games of Division 2 MC Labour Seniors’ finals rounds were held at the weekend, in what proved to be an interesting match for each of the four teams that played on Epping’s Recreational Reserve.
Diamond Creek and South Morang went head-to-head in the first qualifying final on Saturday, with the Creekers kicking off the game less than 20 seconds in with a behind.
But their quick scoring was misleading, with the remainder of the quarter a slow burn as both teams traded goal for goal and behind for behind.
With a goal from South Morang’s Joshua D’Intinosante just before the first quarter ended, the Lions came off the field quietly boasting a quaint 11-point lead against the Creekers, 15-26.
The Lions kicked off the second quarter strongly with a goal from Mathew Robinson, but once again early scoring proved unfruitful, with the quarter turned into a frustrating play for both sides. While the Creekers only managed to increase their score by eight points during the match, the Lions fared little better with only a 15-point increase from their first quarter score, despite several attempts at goal. At the siren, the scoreboard showed 23-41.
Looking concerned, the Creekers left the field to discuss tactics, while the Lions looked quietly confident that they might just beat the second placed team once again, having previously beaten them in Round 9.
From the ball up in the third quarter, the Creekers knew it was time to act, and a strong kick from Tyler Barnes brought their score up to 29 in an attempt to close the gap. But several behinds and a goal from the Lions saw their score creep up too, and after 10 minutes on the field, the scoreboard showed in favour of the Lions, 29-51.
With too much of a threat now to continue sitting back, the Creekers went all in, kicking a series of behinds and goals in quick succession to match the Lions’ score. As each kick closed the gap, Creekers fans held their breath, and the brows of many Lions supporters furrowed, worried the scoreboard foreshadowed an intense final quarter.
And intense the final quarter was! A mix of goals and behinds from both sides saw the Creekers and Lions’ score reverse, with the Creekers boasting a four-point lead early in the match. And when another goal from the Lions’ Joshua D’Intinosante shot South Morang’s score up to 60, the Creekers came in hot with a goal of their own.
As the end of the game neared, goals from both sides resulted in an even scoreboard twice, a true nail-biter of a match to see just who would come out on top by the sound of the siren.
At 32 minutes on the field, with just seconds left of the game, the scoreboard showed 67-67. But a goal from the Lions’ Joshua Lansfield came in the nick of time to push the team over the edge, 67-73, and declare the team victorious.
Next weekend, South Morang will take on Whittlesea while Diamond Creek will face Lower Plenty after their recent win against Thomastown, 82-38, with both games to be held at the Epping Recreational Reserve.
