Logan and Beenleigh will fight for the final place in the 2011 State Association division two Grand Final at Wynnum on Saturday. Both sides are coming off very different games in the second week of finals action and will want to bring their best in what should be an interesting tussle. Beenleigh showed plenty of grunt in their 10 goal demolition of Coomera in last week’s first Semi Final. The 57 point score line gave an indication of how much heart the Buffaloes have after bouncing back from their five goal loss to Nambour the week before. Matt Kimpton and Andrew Graham provided to be as influential as ever with consistent four quarter efforts, while Kye McNaughton and Andrew Soutar kept the scoreboard ticking over with countless attacks in the forward half of the ground.
Logan have themselves to blame for their 19 point loss to Nambour in the second Semi Final last week, as their one goal first half proved to be too much of a deficit to make up in the second half. Nambour came out all guns blazing and piled on a 44 point lead at the main break to put the game out of reach for the Cobras. Logan didn’t lie down, however, and continued to have a red hot crack until the final siren but time was not on their side. As disappointing as the first half was, the Cobras showed plenty of ticker when the game was all but lost. Cam Fitzpatrick was superb for Logan and was named as his side’s best for the second time against Nambour this season. Skipper Dan Milligan had another great outing in the loss and midweek received the State Association Division Two medal as the league’s best and fairest player.
With everything on the line this is sure to be an eventful game of football this weekend. Past matches have been very interesting although Logan have come out on top in both outings this year. The Cobras have only been tested by Beenleigh and Nambour, so the result is never a sure thing and the Buffaloes have provided plenty of outstanding performances late in the season. Important players for Logan will be Milligan, Dylan Witney, Ash Witney and Chris Fletcher, while along with Kimpton and Graham, Beenleigh will expect big things from Chris Greaves and Clint Robson. There is no bigger prize in football and both of these sides are just one week away from 2011 Grand Final. A big first quarter will go a long way to helping book that spot, but the importance of sustaining that pressure for four quarters is crucial to a victory at this stage in the season.
The Last Five Weeks:
Beenleigh – WLLWW
Logan – LWWWW
Head to Head This Year:
Round 14
11.7-73 Logan City def. Beenleigh 10.10-70
Round 5
17.7-109 Beenleigh def. by Logan City 18.13-121
