The Cobras travelled out to Pitcher Park on Saturday to take on our 2015 D4 rivals in Parkside and came away with two wins. The seniors won by a huge 107 points, and at the end of the reserves game the margin was 38 points in our favour.
Reserves
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parkside | 2.1-13 | 2.2-14 | 4.3-27 | 6.4-40 |
| Canterbury | 4.1-25 | 5.1-31 | 10.8-68 | 11.12-78 |
Goal Kickers: S. Woodward 3, B. Robertson 3, A. Szabo 2, H. Lee, C. Reid, M. Kirk
Best Players: B. Robertson, S. Strater, D. Reeves, A. Stals, B. Lashbrook, S. Woodward
A ripping day for footy in Alphington saw Parkside host the Cobra’s. Despite a lot of new faces and a number of players still learning each others names the group was really focused pre-game and started strongly.
The new additions of Robbo and Kearnz started the game like a house on fire and together with our well functioning press (lead very well by Clunks) the cobs finished the first quarter a few goals up. We really got our game going in the second quarter and capitalised on our dominance across the ground to finish the second quarter 7 goals up.
The second half was a struggle as the heat and fatigue set in. We lost a few players to injury which hurt our rotations and resulted in a number of players continuing to play despite cramp and exhaustion. Parkside also dropped a few players behind the footy which hurt our scoring ability.
Despite running out of legs, we finished 6 goal winners. Really proud of the whole playing group who all played to instruction and gave everything they had. Strong performances in particular from Darcy, Robo, Arun, Stogdale, Stalsy, BJ, Scotty, and the Duck.
YNSA
Sean
Seniors
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parkside | 2.2-14 | 2.5-17 | 5.9-39 | 6.11-47 |
| Canterbury | 6.5-41 | 11.8-74 | 16.9-105 | 24.10-154 |
Goal Kickers: R. Walmsley 7, B. Johnson 5, N. Szabo 3, S. Fitzgerald 3, T. Lowden 3, M. Crawford, G. Driscoll, B. Peel
Best Players: R. Walmsley, R. Goodwin, M. Astbury, S. Murphy, J. Gillen, R. Moody
Round one is always the most promising time of the year. All things are possible. In that spirit we headed across the Yarra to North Alphington to revisit last year’s narrow escape in round one against the same opponent, and last year’s runner-up, Parkside.
Our pre-season had been notable mainly for the lack of attendance by some, and with the temperature pushing into the mid twenties, we thought we would need to get away to a bit of a lead, as we felt some of our boys might fail to go the distance.
We got under way with a couple of quick goals from Wombat before the Devils answered back with a couple of their own. As was the case in last year’s finals, they were keen to put extra numbers behind the ball. Even so we were able to get away to a four goal lead at quarter time. We were getting great rebound from defence with gun recruit Marty Astbury in charge, Rob Goodwin on top, and Murph and Gaz launching countless attacks. Our forwards were combining well with Johnno, Fridge and Tommy providing great targets. Wombat helped himself to 4 first quarter goals, as well as plenty of other possessions.
The second quarter saw us get right on top with 5 unanswered goals and before we knew it, it seemed that the game was ours to control. Our midfield was giving plenty of the ball to our forwards. Jezza’s usual grit, Gash and Jimmy giving us first use, and it was great to have our captain Ana back after an injury ravaged 2015, gathering kicks at will and giving us great drive.
We went into the half time break confident that the game was ours for the taking. But we were determined not to let them back in. The coaching panel couldn’t resist trying a few players in different spots as we looked for options that might help us in closer games. The Devils came back at us with a few goals but we steadied and easily won the quarter.
Brand new father, Moods was showing why we call him Silk, with an almost flawless display of ball usage. He may have been sleep deprived, but he was no where near ball deprived.
Johnno was providing us with a great focal point and those balls he didn’t mark, hit the ground providing opportunities for our crumbers.
The last quarter was a bit of a procession as we stuck to our structures and finished off with eight goals to one to get home by 107 points. A very even contribution all over the ground. Congratulations to our new players Marty, Jim, Dumby, Fish, Noel and Crawf on their first wins as Cobbies.
Reevesy
As mentioned above, we’re at home for the first time this week and host Powerhouse. They fought it out in two close matches against Aquinas last week, with their seniors getting up but their reserves went down. This will be the first taste we get of a D3 side from last season, it should result in two cracking games of footy!
