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Demons put the heat on Dogs By Nick Creely It may have been cold down at Casey Fields on Saturday night, but the contest was certainly hot, with the Casey Demons avenging last year’s grand final loss with a gritty 13-point win over Footscray. With fog blanketing the ground, the two sides knew there was a lot more than just the four points at stake - it was a contest that could potentially set the tone for the remaining of their respective seasons. In a relatively scrappy yet fierce clash that featured over 20 AFL-listed players, ball magnet Jay KennedyHarris got the Dees off to a perfect start with an extraordinary banana goal from the boundary, before the Doggies gained momentum and held a narrow four-point lead at quarter time. The Dees controlled the tempo of the match throughout the second term, forcing numerous stoppages and playing a relentless, pressure-filled brand of football, eventually breaking clear to gain an 11-point half time lead.
With the reigning premiers coming out breathing fire to begin the second half with two quick goals, a brilliant cameo from Yillber Zijai in the last 15 minutes meant the Dees held sway by a goal with a quarter to play. Zijai kicked two goals in that quarter, including a miraculous banana kick, to lift the spirits of a group being seriously challenged. And under lights, the final quarter was tense - Clay Smith goaled for the Dogs in the first seven seconds of the quarter, before a stalemate between the two sides kept viewers engrossed. Zijai once again stood up in the crucial moments to extend the margin to eight, before debutant Mitchell Cox calmly slotted a set shot in the dying moments after a 50 metre penalty to seal the win and gain some payback for last year’s grand final defeat. Kennedy-Harris once again pressed his claims for an AFL recall with yet another dose of leather poisoning. After racking up 47 touches two weeks ago, the skilful midfielder was best afield with 34 disposals
VICTORIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE
REVIEW – ROUND 9
and a classy goal. Jimmy Munro relished the conditions and was stellar with his ferocity at the contest, Zijai was a constant threat in just his second match for the season, and Josh Wagner was once again classy playing on a wing. As a result of the win, the Demons have now made it four in a row after being 1-4 at one stage, and now climb into seventh spot on the VFL ladder The Demons will travel up to Box Hill to tackle the Hawks on Saturday afternoon, with the game to be televised on Channel 7 from 2.30pm. CASEY DEMONS 2.3 5.8 8.12 10.15(75) FOOTSCRAY 3.1 4.3 8.5 9.8(62) CASEY DEMONS GOALS: Y. Zijai 3, B. Fritsch, E. Morris, M. White, S. Weideman, M. Cox, L. Hulett, J. Kennedy-Harris. BEST: M. White, B. Stretch, D. Collis, C. Maynard, J. Kennedy-Harris, B. Fritsch. FOOTSCRAY GOALS: C. Smith 2, L. Webb, T. English, P. Lipinski, J. Redpath, T. Tweedie, N. Mullenger-McHugh, T. Campbell. BEST: L. Young, T. Campbell, K. Collins, M. Boyd, N. Jamieson, L. Webb.
Bayley Fritsch takes a mark during the tense 13-point victory. 169601 Picture: ROB CAREW
Victory to Eagles in a thriller Tight tussle goes Stringrays' way By Nick Creely Cranbourne has played with guts and vigour to register a six-point victory over Seaford on Saturday afternoon at Casey Fields. After breaking through for their maiden victory last round against Box Hill, the Eagles’ momentum was well and truly carrying through after skipping out to a handy nine-point quarter time lead. The big guns - Hayley Wildes, Kirsten McLeod, Breann Moody and Kim Cunico - were all looking ominous, but inaccurate goal kicking left the door open for the opposition. And the Tigers swooped, kicking three goals in the second quarter to hold some sway, before the Eagles steadied and lent on their leaders to scrape over the line in a thrilling finish. “Considering we didn’t have Bridie Kennedy, Darcy Guttridge, Holly Whitford and Jasmine Grierson out there I’m happy - the kids that came up did a great job,” Coach Sein Clearihan said. “We were a rotation down midway through the second quarter, and in the third we had more injuries so we virtually didn’t have a bench for the last quarter and a half, so it was really pleasing.” After battling through the opening month of the season, Clearihan said that their brand is now starting to take shape, and pointed out a certain aspect of their game that is starting to deliver them the wins. “I was impressed with our press and the way they’re defending now - they just kept at it all game and got the result,” he said. “We are starting to get a lot of belief happening - Kirsten McLeod is starting to get going and so are a couple of others -
By Nick Creely VICTORIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE WOMEN’S
REVIEW - ROUND 5
Nicole Garner celebrates her first term goal. 169600 Pictures: ROB CAREW Steph Cutting was also really good off a half back flank and a lot of others stepped up which was great.” Others to impress were Steph Brown and Bianca Jakobsson - who both kicked a couple of majors and looked a constant threat in attack. Now with a 2-3 record and in eighth spot, the Eagles face seventh placed Eastern Devils in a massive clash on Sunday at Casey Fields. “We’ll have a couple of changes - I’m really looking forward to this weekend and trying to get three wins in a row - we’re improving and starting to play some consistent footy and that’s what it’s all about,” Clearihan said.
Eagles' superstar Kirsten McLeod had a massive game. 169600 CRANBOURNE 2.3 3.5 5.7 7.7(49) SEAFORD 1.0 4.0 4.0 7.1(43) CRANBOURNE GOALS: S. Brown 2, B. Jakobsson 2, C. Clarkson, S. Marsh, K. McLeod. BEST: S. Phillips, B. Moody, K. Cunico, H. Wildes, A. McDonough, R. Pearce. SEAFORD GOALS: D. Lawrence 3, G. Walker 2, B. Rogan, T. Sheldon. BEST: M. Macdonald, M. Goodwin, J. Barker, K. Cox, G. Walker, J. Eberle.
The Dandenong Stingrays have survived a late rally by the Murray Bushrangers to claim a massive scalp, defeating the top four side by two-points at Shepley Oval on Saturday afternoon. With Murray coming into the clash in stellar form, the ‘Rays needed to be on their game right from the outset. It was a massive arm wrestle for the majority of the first term, with both sides looking threatening when given clear space to attack, and scores were level at quarter time. The ‘Rays then had a hot patch in the second quarter, kicking five goals in little time, and streaming to a 24-point lead that proved crucial in the outcome of the match. With the game looking relatively safe at three quarter time, Murray stormed home as the young ‘Rays tired, slamming home goal after goal. But Riley D’Arcy, who now has 21 goals this season after snaring six throughout the match, kicked the crucial goal with minutes to play that allowed enough separation from the Bushrangers to claim the four points. “We looked at this one as a really important game, and it’s good to get the result,” Stingrays stand in Coach Nick Cox said. “It was a round to play some youngsters, and some of them are not quite ready to go, but that’s the point of these development rounds. “We were really happy for the most part - we did a lot of the work earlier enough and then were able to protect the lead.” Beaconsfield 19-year-old Bailey Morrish was best afield, racking up plenty of touches
TAC CUP (FUTURES ROUNDS)
REVIEW – ROUND 10
Lachlan Young was instrumental in the tense victory. 168489 Picture: STEWART CHAMBERS and dominating with his class by foot and his ability to create attacking thrusts from nothing, While D’Arcy was a force to be reckoned with and Lachlan Young was once again nimble and creative with his disposals. D’Arcy, who was perhaps unlucky not to be selected for Vic Country, once again showed off his impressive contested marking and goal sense, but still has work to do on aspects of his game. “Riley was good - I’ve probably been the hardest on him his pressure hasn’t been great, but he is getting better and improving,” Cox said. But Cox heaped praised on his more senior players, and also said there was plenty of encouragement and promise from the under agers that strode out on the ground. “Mason De Wit, Morrish and Tom Murphy were just fantastic all day, and that’s what
you expect from your 19-yearold’s - they did make a huge difference in the end,” he said. “Riley Bowman was really impressive, same with Kyle Whitford, James Hickey and Jake Carosella so there was plenty to like from the young kids.” The Stingrays face another tough challenge this week when they face Western Jets at Burbank Oval on Sunday. DANDENONG STINGRAYS 4.2 9.4 13.8 14.9(93) MURRAY BUSHRANGERS 4.2 5.4 9.5 14.7(91) DANDENONG STINGRAYS GOALS: R. D’Arcy 6, A. Zijai 2, B. Schmidt, J. Carosella, D. Morris, C. Hustwaite, B. Morrish, J. Nanscawen. BEST: B. Morrish, J. Davies, L. Young, R. D’Arcy, M. DeWit, T. Murphy. MURRAY BUSHRANGERS GOALS: H. Garoni 3, D. Johnston 3, M. Walker 2, M. Marriott 2, J. Lane, P. Warner, J. Wilson, B. Frauenfelder. BEST: K. Clarke, A. Paech, M. Marriott, A. Hicks, D. Langlands, R. Bruce.
Contact Star Sport with sport stories and results on phone 5945 0666, fax 5945 0777 or email: sport@starnewsgroup.com.au