ROUND 9 - MATCH REPORT

NORTHS BULLDOGS 16

DEF

WINDANG 6

On Saturday the Northern Suburbs Bulldogs travelled to Boronia Park Windang to meet the Windang Sharks, but it appeared we left something behind back in the North. Not sure what it was but possibly the boys were feeling a little over confident & didn’t have their game heads screwed on…And didn’t Windang take full advantage of that!

Before we talk about how our boys went, I want to pay credit to the Windang side. They had a few players carrying injury & with only 15 players, they can be very proud of the performance that was put in for their club. It was my opinion early on in the year, that when this team gels they will get results. With an influx of new players in the off season it’s always tough to get those combinations right, it takes time. They will take a lot of confidence out of that.

The first half began with some dubious calls from the on field official, who at times was looking for the big screen to get a replay!! Certainly not laying any blame on the match officials, our boys need to take that in their stride and not let it get to them. The Bulldogs were given a penalty & the two front rowers combined to get the first points. Andrew ‘George’ Stephens tipped on a lovely ball to Luke ‘The Moose’ Shiels who crossed for first points. With our number 6 - Jarryd ‘Clifford’ Ward rested carrying the flu, this meant a shift with Ellis Hurworth playing in the 6 & Sean ‘Turk’ Johnson playing hooker. After 20 mins the Turk had to come off with a back injury & wouldn’t return.

Possession was swinging the way of Windang when Norths came up with an error inside the red zone & Windang made us pay with the a try, that was the first points scored against us in over 260 minutes of footy. It hurt, but that’s what happens when you turn over possession when already on the opposite side of the possession count. From there the Norths boys really steeled up, getting good field position & forcing a couple of errors from the Sharks. Finally there was some composure & the boys got a repeat set, our halfback Nathan “Fatty’ Potter crossed the line for his first try in the Norths Sky Blue!! Leading into the half time break the boys kept the pressure on, but in typical Windang fashion they managed to slow the game down with a few players “cramping”.

The second half started well for the Windang side, getting a penalty then a repeat set from a touched kick & backed up by another penalty. Straight after they crossed for a second try & thank god the referee didn’t have to go for the video, ruling him held up on the last tackle. From there the Bulldogs swung momentum for a brief period, earned another repeat set & Ellis Hurworth scored a much needed try for the visitors. The middle section of the half was a little disjointed with a couple of incomplete sets from both sides, including a brief push & shove when the Moose looked like crossing for his second of the day but was also held up. The discipline of the Windang side suffered as they gave away 3 penalties in a row. In previous weeks we have made sides pay dearly for this, but not today. In the end the score finished 16-6 the way of the Norths side.

A special mention for Kurt ‘Milkman’ Ridley who in a Man of the Match performance was excellent in attack but damaging & hungry in defence with 25 tackles in the second half! Taking his total to 37 for the match. Tim ‘Coolness’ Everingham also had some good carries with the ball and found gaps when running some good lines off Lloyd ‘Beaver’ Hurworth. But it was the second half from Duane ‘D-Train’ Kent that was excellent to watch, the D-Train has put in a lot of effort throughout the off-season & the entire year, he was rewarded with solid time out on the paddock & didn’t disappoint. Also a big congratulation to Josh Gunning in playing his 150th game for the Norths Club.

Unfortunately for the other sides in the competition this is exactly what the boys needed, they needed someone to really take it to them & rattle the cage. We will certainly be a better side after this match & the boys know that give the opportunities & possession to the top teams the score line would have been turned around in the other direction. We have the next weekend off, which gives us some good time to regroup, recover & really work hard. Boys it is really important that we all make a big effort to get to training over the next two weeks.

Cheers & WOOF!

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