By JARROD POTTER
VFL – ROUND 7 REVIEW
UNITED, hard-edged and determined – this is the new look Casey Scorpions.
The days of alignment in name only are done. Whether Melbourne top-brass, Casey up-and-comer or anything in between – the Scorpions and Demons have turned the page and are finally pushing in the same direction.
Results are speaking to that unity and them some as the Scorpions fought back to take a seven-point victory over Box Hill on Saturday night.
Even with late outs to Lynden Dunn and Ben Newton – held over as emergencies for Melbourne’s match on Sunday against Brisbane – the Scorpions’ arsenal was well-stocked and able to handle the best Box Hill efforts.
Box Hill’s ferocious first term attack caught Casey off-guard as the visitors’ surge from half-back generated huge overlaps and punched holes in the Scorpions’ defence.
But the second term flipped the script as the Hawks struggled to contain the expansion Scorpions’ sting. A six-goal onslaught looked like killing off the visitors, but neither side could deliver the final blow … until right at the end.
Box Hill fought back through the third term and had their chances in the fourth to take the victory – especially an out of bounds attempt on goal from Brendan Whitecross – but it boiled down to time in forward half and Casey locked in it doggedly.
Angus Scott got a snap out of the bottom of a huge pack to give the Scorpions the lead, but Box Hill rebounded immediately to goal through Teia Miles (four goals).
One last surge was going to win it and for the home-town brigade, it fell Casey’s way. Mitch White booted it long to the square where Chris Dawes ran onto the loose pill and slotted the match-winner.
The in-and-under work from Jack Grimes and Jack Trengove showed the way and the rest of the side rallied behind the Scorpions’ leaders James Munro and Jack Hutchins from the last line.
Dawes (three goals) had his best game in the Casey uniform – presenting and marking well in the dewy conditions as well as breaking open packs and brushing aside would-be tacklers.
Casey was well served by Tim Smith (three goals), as the former Demon held onto every half-chance and marked superbly, especially in the fourth quarter when a turnover would’ve spelled disaster.
“It’s hard not to get excited about it but we want to keep improving – I think the more time we spend together the better we’ll get,” Casey coach Justin Plapp said. “With alignments it’s a little ‘lady’s luck’ at times with injuries and we’re really lucky that we’ve got a healthy list.
“Those little hurdles along the way show that we’re becoming a lot more resilient as a club – our Casey-listed players again, two weeks in a row now, have really contributed.
“We’re really happy with we’re we are at as a club, and need to celebrate and really enjoy it, but the first thing I do is go ‘right, we’ve got the break ,where are we going to get better, what’s coming up in the next three weeks’ so it’s good for our club.”
Plapp said the side had to counter Box Hill’s hard running approach and make sure the game didn’t become a shootout.
“The one thing they do really well – when they get through you on offence they really worried us at times,” Plapp said. “We weren’t going to have a shootout with them – they’d beat us every day of the week – but late in the game I thought we lost a bit of composure, and I know I lost a bit of composure in the box and blew up, but to their credit they stuck fat and were able to keep playing the game.
“We didn’t go into a negative type of game that clubs can get into, so that’s a strong sign of maturity.”
Dandenong Stingrays/Beaconsfield Tommy Glen, Aaron Vandenberg and former Garfield/Noble Park midfielder Dylan Collis made their VFL debuts and impressed.
Casey takes a week off for the state-game bye before it hosts Port Melbourne on Sunday 5 June from 2pm in another high-calibre showdown.
Tim Smith is the only Scorpion to make the 25-man squad, after he was a late-call up to the VFL side to take on the SANFL at the Adelaide Oval on Sunday 29 May.
VFL SCOREBOARD
CASEY SCORPIONS 3.1 9.4 10.9 12.11 (83)
BOX HILL HAWKS 4.5 6.6 10.8 11.10 (76)
CASEY Goals: C. Dawes 3, T. Smith 3, D. Terlich, J. Spencer, A. Scott, M. King, L. Hulett, T. Glen. Best: J. Grimes, C. Dawes, T. Smith, M. White, A. Scott, J. Trengove. BOX HILL Goals: T. Miles 4, J. Summers 2, J. O’Rourke, P. Lawlor, R. Schoenmakers, D. Willsmore, B. Whitecross. Best: T. Miles, A. Litherland, J. O’’Rourke, D. Mirra, M. Spangher, B. Whitecross.
