MORNINGTON NEWS scoreboard
Hastings embraced after huge win NEPEAN LEAGUE By Toe Punt What a week it has been for the Hastings Football Club. After beating the Frankston Bombers in a memorable Nepean League Grand Final 11.15 (81) to 6.18 (54), as you would expect, the celebrations continued through the ensuring week and were felt by the whole community. The Hastings community has always embraced the Hastings Football Club and the township celebrated as one
following their first flag since 1995. Premiership coach Brendan Dunne said the “premiership feeling” started to sink in on Monday. “It wasn’t until we got together on Monday and watched the replay of the match that it really sank in,” Dunne said. “To be truthful, I don’t remember much of the game, so to see it again and then take a walk up High Street Hastings and see tears of joy in supporter’s eyes, it was such a humbling feeling.
Dunne said on reflection that he was always confident that his side would win the flag. “The type of footy we were playing, we didn’t think any team could beat us,” he said. “Red Hill has been our bogy side and when we beat them in the Elimination Final, we gained a lot of selfbelief from that. “Leading into the finals, our form was great and the Frankston game in the final round was a dead rubber as far as we were concerned. We rested
Magnificent Mornington, final fling for Heart SOCCER
By Craig MacKenzie A PATCHWORK Mornington put up a magnificent fight against Altona Magic only to go down 1-0 in Saturday’s State 1 final at Jack Edwards Reserve. The game brought together the champions from both regionalised State 1 leagues but Mornington went into the clash without Simon and Scott Webster, Steve Elliott, Andrew Skledar and Chris Reid either through injury or unavailability. One of the two players on the Mornington bench was teenager Charlie Parker and coach Adam Jamieson was forced to completely revamp his defence with Chris McKenna and Danny Black as central defenders and Paul McEvoy and Nathan Yole full-backs. What proved to be the telling blow was struck in the 11th minute when Magic winger Adamson Ajayi cut in from the left and his deflected shot looped neatly over Mornington keeper Kris McEvoy and into the net. Paul McEvoy got free on the right of the Magic area in the 25th minute and was played in by Shane Tagliaferro only to shoot into the side netting and Magic striker Jon McShane should have scored from point blank range in the 36th minute but Kris McEvoy somehow got a touch and deflected the ball for a corner. Mornington striker Nick Waite was felled inside the area by the flailing elbow of Magic central defender Steven Thomson in the 39th minute but play was waved on as the Mornington bench erupted. Just before the break Waite robbed a defender on the left of the area and decided to shoot from a tight angle but Magic keeper Sebastien Bechaud parried easily at the near post. Mornington striker Brad Blumenthal was forced off at half-time with a shin injury and was replaced by Michael Freeman and the mountain Mornington had to climb grew even larger in the 66th minute after Black clattered into the back of McShane and received a second yellow and was sent off. A minute later Waite hobbled from the field and Parker was thrust into the action. Kris McEvoy was forced to tip over a McShane header in the 77th minute and three minutes later Nathan Yule came to his keeper’s rescue by heading off the line. A long throw by Paul McEvoy in the 81st minute was headed on by Chris McKenna but Magic was able to scramble the ball clear, McShane had a free header shortly after but headed over then Mornington’s Wayne Gordon hammered a firm strike from the edge of the area that forced Bechaud to punch clear. A mix-up between Thomson and Bechaud in the 89th minute allowed Gordon to nip in before being brought down inside the area and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. Paul McEvoy struck a low shot to Bechaud’s left but the keeper was able to get down and palm the ball wide and the 10 men had missed a glorious opportunity to take the contest into extra time. Rosebud Heart strolled into next weekend’s State 5 Victorian final after semi-final opponent Healesville forfeited late last week. Healesville held its annual presentation night on
the Friday before Saturday’s planned semi-final which was due for a noon kick-off. Heart gaffer Scott Morrison was an interested onlooker at Saturday’s other State 5 semi that saw RMIT triumph 2-1 after extra time against North Melbourne Athletic. Morrison is confident that Heart can maintain its perfect record and end a landmark season by winning next weekend’s final. Skye United blew a two-goal cushion in Friday night’s State 4 semi-final against Brandon Park at Skye Recreational Reserve going down 3-2 after extra time. Skye keeper Jonathan Crook was in the thick of the action early making some fine saves, two from long distance efforts by Brandon Park midfield dynamo Harrison Michaelis and Peter Smyth. Skye clawed its way back into the contest in the last 15 minutes of the half and a minute from the interval Matthew Wilson struck a stunning longrange volley from 35 metres that left Brandon Park keeper Joshua Green clutching at air to give the home side a 1-0 lead. Three minutes into the second half Brandon Park failed to deal with a long throw from the right and a close-range shot struck a defender and trickled over the line for an own goal and a 2-0 scoreline. But Brandon Park supporters had their hopes raised two minutes later when a lay-off set up Smyth on his non-preferred right foot and his firm low shot from the edge of the area beat Crook who was at full stretch. Fine close skills from James McNeill on the left in the 58th minute caught out the Skye defence but Crook parried McNeill’s 10-metre strike. The equaliser came in the 82nd minute after a cross from livewire substitute Mourad Sarian on the right was headed back across goal into the far corner by Brandon Park striker Kegham Aminian. The pivotal moment arrived 10 minutes into extra time when Aminian curled a superb strike past Crook to make it 3-2. Two minutes later Skye substitute Luke Camerota cut the ball back from the right to Alex Roberts whose firm shot was parried by Green. The Brandon Park keeper was again called into action shortly after when forced to tip over Marcus Collier’s header from a long throw-in. For much of the second half of extra time Skye pumped long balls forward and the final moments were frantic as Crook charged into the opposition penalty area to contest a corner but to no avail. Both coaches, Brandon Park’s Stan Webster and Skye’s Billy Armour, have enjoyed a lengthy friendship and embraced at the end of a gripping contest. Just 12 months earlier they had guided their respective sides to safety in a bitter relegation battle so their championship successes in 2016 represent a remarkable turnaround in their club’s fortunes. Peninsula Strikers ended the season by defeating visitor Noble Park United 2-1 on Saturday in a State 2 South-East catch-up game. Dejan Blanusa had given the already relegated Noble Park United a 1-0 lead at the interval but second half goals from Jack Carter and Tom Hawkins settled the issue. NEXT SATURDAY: State 5 final: RMIT v Rosebud Heart, 3pm, Murphy Reserve, Port Melbourne.
a few and tried a few things, which is what we achieved. “That’s when we tried Luke Clark in the middle and sent Jay Austerberry back – both moves that had a significant impact in the finals. “We also put it on a few blokes who had been out of form that needed to lift – they all did. “Local youngsters like Jake Hewitt and Steven Robb really stood up and gained great self belief. “Jamie Barnes, our fitness guy, had us going from November last year, all in
preparation for making the 2016 Grand Final – the timing was perfect.” And how was the feeling of winning a premiership? “You hear players talk about winning a flag and I always thought they added a bit of mayo to the story and feeling. I can tell you it’s the best feeling you will ever have in sport – beating the best when it matters with your mates – it’s a feeling I’ll cherish forever,” Dunne said. Dunne believes his side can improve again in 2017, which is a frightening proposition for other clubs.
Sudoku and crossword solutions
GOLFERS! Win D FXVWRP ¿W VHW RI LURQV VXSSOLHG E\ &HQWHQDU\ 3DUN *ROI &RXUVH Simply play a round of golf at any of the below courses between now and 10th Oct 2016, and send in your scorecard for a chance to win. Edithvale Public Golf Course – Fraser Ave, Edithvale Centenary Park Golf Course – McClelland Drive, Frankston Mornington Golf Club – Tallis Drive, Mornington Mt Martha Public Golf Course – Forest Drive, Mt Martha Devilbend Golf Club – Loders Road, Moorooduc Cerberus Golf Club – HMAS Cerberus, Crib Point Safety Beach –10 Country Club Dr, Safety Beach Bay Views Golf Course– Elizabeth Dr, Rosebud Rosebud Country Club – 207 Boneo Road, Rosebud Flinders Golf Club – Bass Street, Flinders St Andrews Beach Golf Course – 209 Sandy Rd, Fingal Moonah Links Golf Club – 55 Peter Thomson Dr, Fingal The Dunes Golf Links – 335 Browns Rd, Rye ONE SCORECARD PER ENVELOPE. INCLUDE YOUR NAME, ADDRESS & PHONE ON THE BACK OF THE ENVELOPE. ENTRIES CLOSE 17/10/16 POST TO MPNG GOLF, PO BOX 588, HASTINGS 3915 Mornington News 20 September 2016
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