By Beth Newman
Wilston Grange vs. Surfers Paradise
Wilston Grange 2.6, 6.7, 10.12, 14.16 (100)
Surfers Paradise 4.2, 7.6, 10.11, 12.15 (87)
A little bit of aggression went a long way for Wilston Grange, as they defeated Surfers Paradise, 14.16.100 – 12.15.87 in the Allied Pickfords Cup.
The Demons had the early ascendency in the match, but weren’t able to convert their midfield dominance in front of goals, and the Gorillas’ efficiency at their own end kept scores close.
Wilston Grange, with the wind, kicked the first three in the second to arrest momentum off the Demons, but turnovers ultimately cost them.
Down by seven points at half time, the Gorillas asserted their bigger bodies on the contest, and shut down the run of Demons playmakers, Jake Ryan and Ryan Dienjes.
Gorillas player coach, Matt Trewhella, said the side had learned from previous losses to the Demons.
“They just play a style of footy that we haven’t been able to cope with,” Trewhella said.
“It’s open footy, they run hard, they run forward and they’ve got some really good quality players,” he said.
Demons coach, Beau Zorko, was frustrated by his side’s performance, after being in a winnable position for much of the game.
“We just went so far away from what worked for us during those first three wins,” he said.
“When we executed our plans and what we wanted to do, we were able to get some scoreboard pressure on them.
“But we just let them back into the game too easily.”
Zorko said the final score was a reasonably accurate reflection of the match.
“We were still in the game with five minutes to go but I think the result was fitting,” he said.
“When we had our opportunities we didn’t use them and they went down the other end and hurt us.”
Former Richmond and Adelaide Crows player, Jason Torney, was brilliant in his first game for the Demons on the half-forward line.
Ruckman Nick Barling battled gallantly against the Gorillas’ Ben Haire and Jim McMahon all day.
“He (Barling) battled one out against two pieces of tall timber and I thought her battled really manfully,” Zorko said.
Zorko said the match could turn out to be a pivotal one in the Demons’ season.
“I think today’s either going to make us or it’s going to break us and really force us to scrap around that mid-range on the ladder that we wanted to be out of.”
Surfers play UQ on Saturday, while Wilston Grange faces Springwood.
Burleigh vs. Sandgate
Sandgate 2.2, 6.6, 12.11, 16.17 (113)
Burleigh 6.1, 7.3, 10.3, 15.6 (96)
Sandgate’s youngsters showed some more of their trademark fight, keeping Burleigh winless in 2013.
Down by 23 points at the first change, Sandgate whittled the margin down to three points at the major change.
It was a six-goal to three third term that broke the game open for the Hawks, going into the final quarter with a 20-point lead and all the momentum.
Hard-nosed midfielder, Tom Overington was once again brilliant for the Hawks, along with Corbin Dickfos and Todd Banfield.
For the Bombers, it was an opportunity lost, and they are one of two winless teams, along with Noosa
What the coaches said:
Rob Dickfos ( Sandgate):
“I’m really surprised Burleigh haven’t won a game. They were fantastic, it was a close game.”
“Our pressure in our forward line was just exceptional and in the end, we just used the ball a little better at crucial times.”
“For a side so young, I thought our composure was very good when it needed to be.”
Shane Williams ( Burleigh):
“It’s shattering. Again we totally took our foot off the pedal for the first 15 minutes of the third quarter and it cost us.”
“Their work rate, their spread and their run was amazing. They did it really well and we just failed to go with them.”
“Apart from that 15 minutes, the way we attacked the game, intensity our hardness at the football everything was almost as good as you could want it to be.”
“That’s the disappointing part, that they have improved dramatically over five weeks and they just let themselves down with a small lapse like that..”
Western Magpies vs. Palm Beach
Palm Beach Currumbin 2.3, 9.7, 16.10, 22.19 (151)
Western Magpies 4.3, 8.6, 14.6, 15.8 (98)
Palm Beach stormed home to take out the grand final rematch, against the Western Magpies, on Saturday.
The Lions reversed the result of the 2012 decider, after a six-goal-to-one last quarter.
Former Magpies, Ben Heffernan-Roper and Matt Dillon produced strong performances against their old side.
What the coaches said:
Daryn Cresswell (Palm Beach):
“It was really nice for Heffernan-Roper and Dillon to get a win against their old club.”
“We are a pretty fit side so we always think our second halves are going to be stronger than our first.”
“The most disappointing part from our point of view was in front of goal – we kicked nineteen points. We need to make better value of our inside 50s and finish off.”
“It wasn’t about revenge (for the grand final). We just wanted to play the way we’ve been playing and be disciplined. We’re looking to the future, not to the past.”
Maroochydore vs. Coolangatta
Maroochydore 8.5, 13.10, 20.19, 25.19 (169)
Coolangatta Tweed 1.2, 4.5, 4.7, 10.9 (69)
Maroochydore pulled off its biggest win of the season, over Coolangatta, on Saturday.
The Roos kicked eight in the opening term, to the Blues’ one, and never looked back.
Jared Clark kicked nine for Maroochydore and was among the side’s best, while Hayden Smoothy was solid in the forward pocket.
What the coaches said:
Brett Maloney (Maroochydore):
“It was a little bit surprising.”
“You never expect to have a win like that. You just go in hopeful that what you’ve put in place will hold you in good stead.”
“We put some heat on some players to pick up their acts and those guys responded pretty well.”
“We’ve still got a lot of work to do. We need to continue on and beat some sides above us to be genuine contenders.
Mayne vs. Noosa
Mayne 1.3, 2.10, 6.13, 11.17 (83)
Noosa 5.1, 8.3, 10.3, 11.4 (70)
After taking four weeks to register a win, it’s now been two in a row for Mayne, after a come from behind victory over Noosa.
Trailing by 29 points at half-time, Mayne kicked nine goals to three in the second half to run over the top of the young Noosa side.
Mayne’s strong finish against Noosa was a vast improvement on their early matches, when they were overrun by Magpies and Springwood.
It was a big day for the club, celebrating their annual Tiger reunion, and the win was their first ever against Noosa in this competition.
Defender Sam Paterson was the best for Mayne in his second game back after injury, earning him the Mick Nolan Medal, named after former North Melbourne player who captain-coached the Tigers from 1981-85.
What the coaches said:
Mitch Ferguson (Mayne):
“We haven’t many great last quarters so it was a huge challenge, against a team we’ve never beaten and to stage that sort of comeback.”
“It was a nice change. It was new ground for us (finishing strongly)– I guess we had a healthy list at three-quarter time we had some fresh guys on the bench.”
UQ vs Springwood
Springwood 4.4, 6.10, 10.15, 14.22 (106)
University of Queensland 3.5, 8.6, 10.10, 12.11 (83)
Springwood’s undefeated run has stretched to five games, but not without a scare from UQ on Saturday.
The Red Lions had a strong second quarter, to take a 20-point lead into half time, but the Pumas held their nerve and ran the game out well.
A red card to key midfielder, Albert Proud, made the closing stages that little bit harder for the Pumas, but they were able to hold off UQ and keep their clean sheet intact.
Pumas ruckman, Tiger Monk’s day ended prematurely after he suffered a hamstring injury, in a major blow for Springwood.
What the coaches said:
Tony King (Springwood):
“It was similar to the game the week before against Cooly and there was a defining moment for the club.”
“I thought UQ were fantastic the way they ran the ball and took it up to us physically as well.”
“We were down to basically one player in the last quarter. It was pleasing that we were able to regroup.
“With four wins and our fourth game away, it could’ve been easy to let this one slip, but they (the players) just kept rising to the challenge.”
