By DAVID NAGEL
SOUTH EAST FOOTBALL NETBALL LEAGUE
PREVIEW – ROUND 5
BERWICK v CRANBOURNE
FOR players, coaches and supporters it’s the glorious uncertainty of sport at the highest level that makes it so attractive – and so we head to Edwin Flack Reserve on Saturday for our grand final re-match between Berwick and Cranbourne.
Both teams learned a huge lesson in that premiership-decider from last year, with the number one lesson being if they lose concentration for 15 minutes they’re going to get burnt.
Berwick kicked six unanswered goals to take a 26-point lead, five minutes into the second term, before the Eagles responded with a magnificent 15-minute burst, kicking seven of their own.
The Wickers then hit back with ultimate reply, nine of the last 11 goals to take a five-goal victory and their first premiership in 16 years.
That’s the truly exciting thing here – both of these sides are capable of absolutely breathtaking displays of football if they’re allowed to run.
Cranbourne coach Simon Goosey is excited by the challenge but says the fall-out from last year’s grand final will play little part at all.
“It’s a tremendous challenge, we’re both undefeated and both playing good footy, it’s a big game and we’re not going to play it down,” Goosey said.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity for our players to get better at playing in big games, mentally more than anything else, so it’s important they embrace it and enjoy what’s ahead of them. Last year is done and dusted, we can’t change anything about that, and we’re a completely different side now.”
The Eagles have certainly added more pace, with Aaron Bower, Zac Roscoe and Dylan Cavalot injecting the leg-speed, while Shaun Marusic is a big-bodied midfielder with a CV to match.
“We’ve got seven changes from the grand final team from last year and Berwick has some new faces as well,” Goosey said.
“I know it sounds boring, but we just have to control what we can control and just follow the process.”
That process involves playing a particular brand of football, pressing hard, something that fell apart late in the big one last year.
“Take nothing away from Berwick, they were terrific, but it wasn’t them that stopped us from going away from our brand of football,” Goosey said after the match.
That’s the key here; both sides have proven they dominate the other -who can do it for longer?
Berwick coach Rhys Nisbet said his players know what to expect.
“The football is always quicker, harder and faster against Cranbourne and that’s the great challenge that our new and younger players will have to deal with this weekend,” Nisbet said.
“We can’t wait, the challenge is huge against a club that we have the ultimate respect for. They’re a great club Cranbourne, they’ve been at the top for a very long time and you just have to dip your lid and respect that.”
Nisbet said his Wickers were out to win, but remained focussed on the bigger picture ahead.
“We go out to win every game of footy we play in, especially these big ones” Nisbet said.
“The result will have a big influence on where we finish, there’s no doubt about that, but we just want to finish top three which gives you a better shot come finals time.”
So who wins?
Without doubt these are the two most talent-laden sides in the competition.
Berwick has class on every line, with Ash Smith and Michael Riseley leading the defence, Madi Andrews, Michael Harold and Jake Wilson taking control through the midfield, while Ben Kearns and Mark Weekes need only a slither of opportunity to make you pay.
Standing behind the Berwick goals you get to appreciate how hard this forward line is to stop – it’s organised chaos.
But Cranbourne has some serious silk of its own.
Champion full-forward Marc Holt lives for the big stage, while Luke Bee-Hugo, Ryan Jones, Zac Roscoe and Michael Theodoridis only need half-a-dozen touches to be effective.
But it’s the work those forwards do without the ball that will play the biggest role in the match.
The Wickers run-and-carry out of defence has become their trademark, so Cranbourne needs to pressure, pressure, pressure, to limit that impact.
This is going to be one out of the box – it’s Cranbourne by 3 points.
PAKENHAM v DOVETON
WE’RE about to find out a lot more about Pakenham and Doveton when the two teams square off in a real season-definer at Toomuc Reserve on Saturday.
Both teams are coming off surprise losses, the Lions down to Officer before the bye, while Doveton lacked penetration in its four-goal loss to Beaconsfield last weekend.
Doves’ coach Steve O’Brien is having the same trouble as his predecessor Shannon Henwood, with a constant turnover of players making it impossible to get his best team on the park.
The Doves have already used 35 players this year to be the clear front-runners in that regard.
The biggest problem for Doveton is its lack of ability to convert.
The Doves have played five games this season with small-forward Mitch Pierce leading their goal-kicking tally with seven. And no other player has kicked more than three goals for the season.
And that task won’t be helped this week with the Lions expected to regain their star defender Nathan Brown for his first game for the year.
The loser of this clash will fall right behind the eight-ball, and it’s that desperation in front of a large home crowd that will get the Lions home in the end.
It’s the other Steve O’Bryan to claim the choccies by 17 points.
NARRE WARREN v HAMPTON PARK
NARRE Warren will look to add further glue to a bond that is building within its new group when the Magpies roll out the red carpet for Hampton Park at Fox Road on Saturday.
Heath Black has done an amazing job of bringing two halves – one old and one new – together to get a two-one start to the season.
Names unfamiliar to SEFNL supporters like Tait Sabec, Jack Wheeler, Michael Milivojevic and Nathan Reid have started their journeys in fine style, while regulars like Dylan Quirk, Col McNamara and Michael Collins have led the fusing process from the front.
The Magpies can’t take their foot off the pedal this week … because Cranbourne and Berwick loom large on the horizon.
Matt Shorey is doing his best with the Redbacks, who are struggling on the scoreboard but showing some individual signs of improvement. Cory Phillips and Jordan Derbyshire have had terrific starts to the year while Luke Nunan and Lionel Beniot played their best games of the season last week against Berwick.
The Redbacks will start well, but fade to a 74-point defeat.
OFFICER v TOORADIN
THE late Divinyls’ lead singer Chrissie Amphlett said it all when it comes to this week’s clash between Officer and Tooradin at Starling Road.
It’s a fine line between pleasure and pain.
Expect a really tight contest between two teams that are desperate to keep their season’s on track. The Kangaroos are looking to make a giant leap ahead of their round seven bye while the Seagulls simply need to win to restore some confidence.
They’ve been terrible of late the Seagulls, but have the quality to turn things around.
Nick Lang, Matt Livermore and Josh Muling will need to lift their team to new heights this weekend with upcoming games against Berwick, Beaconsfield and Doveton set to define the Seagulls’ season.
As for the Kangaroos, well they can really emerge over the next fortnight.
Their round three victory over Pakenham has set them up nicely, while a win here and another against Hampton Park next week would leave them feeling pretty satisfied with a three-three start to the season.
Players like clearance-king Chris Larosa, Sean Roach, Blair Allan and Jesse Longmuir won’t let this one slip – it’s the Kangaroos to inflict some pain with a one-point victory. Beaconsfield has the bye.
