By RUSSELL BENNETT
YARRA VALLEY MOUNTAIN DISTRICT FOOTBALL LEAGUE
EMERALD’S fairy-tale run at the business end of the Yarra Valley Mountain District Football League (YVMDFL) Division 1 season has come to an end, defeated by reigning premiers Woori Yallock in an elimination final at Alexandra on Saturday, 8.11 (59) to 5.8 (38).
There is still plenty of conjecture as to why its elimination final was even scheduled for the Alexandra Football Ground – given the home side Rebels are a Division 2 club, and Emerald and Woori Yallock both had to travel well over an hour to get there.
After leaving their Chandler Reserve base at around 9am, the Bombers still had plenty of time to acclimatise themselves to the conditions before the first bounce.
And they were switched on in the early-going.
The Tigers led by just four points at the first change in a contest that would be decided by each team’s back six.
The perennial powerhouse Woori side was unable to gain any real ascendency in the second term either, as Emerald’s midfield brigade – including player-coach Josh Taylor, Caillin Porter, Matt Steer, Nick Jansen and Matt Livermore well and truly held their own.
The Tigers led by just five points at the half – 4.2 (26) to 3.3 (21) – but they did seem to have more avenues to goal than the Bombers, who were forced to rely heavily on Chris Jones (four goals).
The heavily-favoured Woori put its stamp on the contest in the third – adding another 2.4, which seemed to have the potential to burst open the floodgates in the context of such a dour struggle.
The Tigers’ defence held strong in the ‘premiership quarter’, restricting the Bombers to just one major. While spearhead Nick Tennant slotted three goals for his side, he wasn’t the sole focal point – with Jake Matthews, Daniel Mock and Shane Kennedy also getting in on the act.
The run of play of the third term continued into the fourth, with Emerald again only managing the one goal and ultimately going down by 21 points.
Strongly-built utility Mitch Bonuda was the standout for Woori Yallock all day, with ruckman Daniel Ryan also proving too big and too strong for the Bombers.
For Emerald, Steer was nothing short of sensational. He never gave up, despite the relentless pressure dished out by the finals-hardened Tigers. Jones, Porter, Livermore, Taylor and young Casey Thomsen also stepped up to the plate on the big occasion.
Despite the disappointment of a finals loss, the Emerald boys can hold their heads high – knowing that for much of the season their biggest battle was staving off relegation.
The Bombers will return in 2014 a different beast entirely – playing on a resurfaced Chandler Reserve that will no longer dish up a home ground disadvantage.
