Spill Crew A Grade
University 3.14 defeated by Trinity Aquinas 10.6 66
The Uni A Grade had a tough outing against the top of the table TA’s. The theme of the game was an inability to convert hard work and effort onto the scoreboard.
It was a much-improved start to the game in comparison to last week which saw Uni applying a great deal of pressure on TA’s in the first. Repeat i50’s and some great ball movement building from half back had TA’s defending hard however none of this was reflected on the scoreboard with TA’s registering 3 goals to Uni’s one at first change. The 2nd quarter was played heavily in Uni’s half for little success with the Uni midfield applying strong will and effort in the contest. Some lapses in concentration and goals against the tide had Uni trailing 1.6 to 6.2 at halftime.
The second half repeated the first. We were unable to generate any momentum throughout the game and the pressure of the scoreboard was felt.
Despite a 6 goal loss, Uni can take confidence in the fact that they were not beaten in general play. To continue to put a positive spin on things, through the hard work and effort previously mentioned, Uni put up 17 scoring shots for the day, which was a good effort against the well drilled TA’s defensive structures… however 3.14 will not have you in a position to knock off 10th place let alone the top of the table.
Ben Fitzgerald was once again fantastic down back alongside Kyle Lim and Nath Stewart who set up a lot of D50 rebound. Isaac Barton applied strong pressure and speed around the ball and despite the forwards having an off day conversion wise, they worked hard to create opportunities which they will no doubt capitalise on going forward.
The boys should remain confident with where they are at as a group and as a club we should all be really pleased with how our young core of players are developing.
Goals: Barton, Evans, O’Hara
Best: Barton, Fitzgerald, Lim, West, O’Hara, Colvin
Steinepreis Paganin A Reserves
University 7.5 47 defeated Trinity Aquinas 4.8 32
The Ressies have continued our great start to the season with a strong 15 point victory against TAs out at the Shoebox on Saturday afternoon. Coming into the game there was recognition that Trinity is one of the contenders in the competition and that we would have to be at our very best to come out with the victory.
From the outset we demonstrated an aggression only feral bushpigs could apply with Charlie ‘Bali’ Stapleton getting us on the scoreboard early. We continued our strong start with Quincey Howard continuing his very good vein of form adding another, as we took an 11-point lead into QT. From there our mids continued to get on top with Snicko (in his 2s return game) proving very effective in the midfield, Cass demonstrating his continued growth, Willo returning into some form and the great man Pat Don just doing what the great man does.
This midfield ascendency gave us a 4 goal lead at the main break with the message at halftime to not let up and build from here.
To TAs credit they demonstrated their status as a contender with constant pressure on the backline throughout the third. However, Kuta demonstrated his ability as a backman and blanketed his direct opponent. This, in addition, to the forwards rolling up in great support of the defenders limited TAs to just one goal in the quarter.
The last quarter played out similarly and in the end, we ground out a 15-point win. It was a game of two halves for the lads Saturday, with the first half demonstrating what this group looks like in full flight and the second showing us what it takes to grind out a win.
We move onto the toughest challenge in ammos footy this week, Beach at Beach. Being on for 4 quarters will be key, but if we bring the mindset and approach we did to the first half next Saturday I have no doubt we will give them everything they can handle
Finally, a special congratulations to Captain Tom Gajewski for reaching the 100 game milestone on Saturday. A very popular player across the A stream, Tom has been a very good player across both A grade and Ressies. In his newfound role as captain he has stepped up in critical situations throughout the season already and I have no doubt we will see more of that as the season goes on. From the entire club Tom, congratulations for reaching the milestone.
Goals – Quincey (4); Chooch, Chuck & Bali (1)
Votes – Kuta (5); Quincey (4); Snicko (3); Blackers & Willo (2); Cass, Great Man & Justy (1)
Red Cloud A Colts
University 15.15 105 defeated Trinity Aquinas 4.1 25
Another big win for the A-colts which keeps us a game clear on top of the ladder sitting 7-0. A strong start in the first quarter in regards to contested ball around the contest saw us jump out to a 29 point lead at qtr time. Our ball movement from the back half of the ground was impeccable, beating the opposition with speed around the ground.
In the second quarter they came out firing, attempting to beat us at the coalface through tough footy. Luckily, our midfielders also enjoyed putting their head over the ball as they continued to dominate around the middle of the ground. They snuck two extremely lucky goals in the second quarter, as one was from a high free kick and another from a disgusting bounce that evaded our player and landed in their lap. It didn’t matter much, as they scored 2 we piled on another 6 to give us a 54 point lead at half time.
Much the same story in the third quarter with Trinity Aquinas once again making skill-based mistakes as we kicked away to a big lead against the premiership contenders from last year.
In the final quarter you could see the chaps were happy with the margin as we slowed the ball right down and possessed it cleanly. Overall, very good game from the Uni gentlemen, onto a very tough challenge this week out at North Beach as they are sitting 6-1 and second on the ladder. A win this week would see us two games clear on top, which would be extremely valuable heading into the Europe break.
Goal scorers: Woolfe (3), Cooper, McConkey, Crump (2), Toovey, Rava, Hyatt, Giles, Carrington-Jones, Bailey (1)
Best: Carrington-Jones (5), Cooley (4), Williams, McConkey (3), Giles, Welsh (2), Crump (1).
Bike Bar Stormers
University 5.1 31 defeated Warnbro 2.2 14
GPA Engineering Peacocks
University 6.10 46 defeated Warnbro 1.0 6
The Peacocks continued their outstanding start to 2023 with a 40 point victory over Warnbro. In front of a passionate University crowd out to celebrate the annual Neil Donaldson Memorial Round, the girls put on an impressive performance!
A tough affair over the 4 quarters, the Peacocks dominated around the contest from the first bounce. Neil Donaldson medallist Bebe switched between the middle and forward and was huge around the ball. Christabel was dominant in ruck – in the air and on the ground and gave us first look with Rog, Phub, Eloise and Bash providing clearance after clearance. Bunny was moved forward after the quarter time break and provided a great target, and Bree and the G Train put in consistent efforts to give us multiple options to goal. Despite not making the most of our opportunities, the Peacocks took a 4.8 to 0.0 lead into the half time break.
Going into the second half, Holly was thrown into the ruck and performed admirably, Sahara worked into the game and Krystie and Pilot worked hard up and down the wings as the game tightened up. The defence saw a bit more of the ball in the second half, and held up really well – a goal line mark by Carla the highlight. Despite conceding a late goal (courtesy of a free link in the goal square) the Peacocks walked away with a well deserved victory and celebrated as the evening kicked into another gear post game.
Special mention to the tireless work done by many to deliver what really was an amazing evening / night, and a great recognition and celebration of the life of Neil Donaldson.
Goals: Rog, Bland, Sahara, G Train, Bebe, Pilot
Best: Bebe, Rog, Christabel, Phub, Pilot
4 Pines Pirates
University 8.5 53 defeated Trinity Aquinas 3.9 27
The Pirates faced a must-win game at home against Trinity Aquinas with their season hanging in the balance. Aware that the season was at risk of slipping away from us, the boys entered the match determined to improve on some disappointing results. Mitchy Fraser showed us all what he’s capable of when given a license to get inside the forward 50, delivering a first quarter performance that left the boys in awe. TAs didn’t know what hit them as he amassed an incredible 15 possessions, 4 tackles, 3 contested marks, 4 clearances, and 2 goals. His impact set the tone for the Pirates’ early surge.
TAs made some adjustments after quarter time, positioning their half-forwards higher up the ground to provide extra support around the ball. The attempt to limit our midfield dominance and slow the game down led to a tight arm wrestle through the second and third quarters with a noticeable reduction in the quality of our inside 50s. The Pagans paddock tactic was futile however, as our defence continued to win the ball back and give us crucial drive from the back half.
Our physicality was a feature of the game, with notable moments like Ric and Frenchie’s equally bone-jarring stiff arms, mini Dyl’s (Bylf) tackling pressure to win back the ball in our forward 50, and Benno’s relentless gut running in defence.
Special mention goes to Alex “gecko hands” Donaldson playing his first game of the year for the pirates, mopping up ground ball after ground ball and providing some well overdue precision from the kick-outs. His ability to take on the corridor injected momentum into our game, breaking open the play at crucial moments. Despite his lack of match fitness, he persevered and made it through the entire game, shedding plenty of water weight on the boundary along the way.
Looking ahead, we face another significant challenge hosting Maddington next week. We’ll set our sights on levelling the win tally and rejuvenating the season as we move into the tricky mid-season uni break period.
Best: (5) Donny; (4) Slick Ric; (3) Skinner; (2) BossJoe, Col O’Frenchy, and Skaz; (1) Vel, Byl, and Frase
Goals: (2) Skinner, Ricky, and Frase; (1) Byl, BossJoe, and Heavy
Byfields Dingoes
University 8.6 54 defeated Trinity Aquinas 6.3 39
It was a picture-perfect day at MCG2, with the Dingoes facing TAs in an intriguing Round 7 clash. An uncharacteristically efficient ground set-up had the boys raring to go, and they needed to be, with the TAs side being far stronger than their early season results suggested. It was a close game throughout, with the Dingoes never leading by more than 2.5 goals. The game was temporarily stopped due to a scary fall from Harps; with the 3rd quarter abandoned due to the ambulance being called. The boys hung on in the last quarter in a gutsy effort, in what was a really impressive win given the circumstances.
In some good news post-game, Harps was discharged from hospital with some of the best painkillers money can’t buy, Credit and thank you to the TAs coaching staff and players for their care and concern after the injury, a real classy team and club.
VOTES: 5: Harps, 4: Chun, 3: Luca, 2: Mac, Jerk, 1: Evan, Jun, Jedi
Subiaco Hotel C-Gulls
University 20.13 133 defeated North Fremantle 0.1 1