By Nick Creely
SOUTH EAST FOOTBALL NETBALL LEAGUE
REVIEW – ROUND 9
In the context of the season, just how important will these two points prove to be?
Tooradin-Dalmore and Officer shared the points in a tense afternoon down by the Westernport, and looking at the current state of the SEFNL ladder, it could be a game to look back on with significant interest.
The Kangaroos still sit in fifth with 18 points, but as a result of a Pakenham win over Doveton, the Lions are just six points behind in sixth and within striking distance if Doug Koop’s side has a slip-up in the coming weeks.
The rain certainly played a factor in all football played over the weekend, but it was Lachie Gillespie’s side that got the jump on the Kangaroos, skipping to a six-point quarter time lead after goals to Julian Suarez and Andrew Dean got the home side in a strong position.
It was the lead that the Seagulls managed to maintain despite the Kangaroos getting their running game up and running in the second term, taking in a five-point quarter time lead in a low-scoring first half in the rain.
Highly rated Will Hanson was superb in the first half as his side slowly worked its way into the contest, while for the Seagulls, the likes of Suarez, Nick Lang and Nick Schumann were having an impact for the home side.
The stalemate continued on into the third term, with the Seagulls slotting two goals and the Kangaroos three in another evenly poised 30-minutes, but the visitors slashed the margin back to just a single point.
It was a tough, unrelenting final 30-minutes, with Luke Smaluch slotting a set-shot to give the Kangaroos the lead for the first time of the day, but Jason Kestle responded not long after from a tight angle to steal the lead back.
Both teams threw their bodies on the line at every contest, and the score – unlike the ground – completely dried up as the home side managed just one more point, while the Kangaroos couldn’t muster up another goal, having many opportunities to win the game in the final moments.
In the final seconds of the game, the ball was locked deep in the Kangaroos’ forward line, but a resolute Seagull defence battled out a draw despite being on top most of the day.
Big ruckman Sean Roach was a major presence – particularly in the last quarter – to be among the best players on the ground, while the emerging Dylan Sutton played arguably his best game in the Seagull jumper.
Tooradin-Dalmore 6.11 (47)
Officer 6.11 (47)
