By Russell Bennett
WEST GIPPSLAND FOOTBALL NETBALL COMPETITION
PREVIEW – GRAND FINAL
PHILLIP ISLAND v KOOWEERUP
Grand Final – Saturday from 2.10pm at Garfield Recreation Reserve
Ladder positions: 1st (14 wins, 4 losses) versus 3rd (14 wins, 4 losses)
Earlier this season:
Round 1 at Cowes: Kooweerup 13.8 (86) d Phillip Island 11.13 (79)
Round 10 at Kooweerup: Kooweerup 8.11 (59) d Phillip Island 6.9 (45)
Semi Final 2 at Cora Lynn: Phillip Island 14.14 (98) d Kooweerup 5.8 (38)
Phillip Island players to watch: Brendan Kimber, Zak Vernon, Hayden Bruce
Kooweerup players to watch: Jason Wells, Nathan Voss, Nathan Lieshout
When the Demons walk out on to the Beswick Street ground for the first time on Saturday, no doubt some of them will be thinking of the number 37 – 37 long years since their club’s last senior flag.
But under no circumstance can they let that be a distraction that takes their focus off the job at hand – trying to topple the West Gippsland Football Netball Competition’s most in-form side on its biggest stage.
They’ve already done it twice this season – in the opener under sunny skies at Cowes courtesy of a barnstorming finish, and in Round 10 at Denhams Road.
But in their most recent encounter, the second semi-final in a wintry slog at Cora Lynn, the rabid Bulldogs proved far too good. Their intensity and their attack on the contest clearly set them apart, and that’s not lost on Demons coach Ben Collins or his group.
Koowee’s stirring preliminary final win over the Goon did bring with it a couple of hours of celebration for the players, coaching staff, and fans alike but it wasn’t long before the focus turned straight to the next task at hand – the Island, back at Garfield in just a matter of days.
“Usually I’d be like ‘don’t celebrate, we’ve done nothing’ but that was a really hard-fought win with the injuries we had and no bench so I decided to let them enjoy it for what it was,” Collins explained to the Gazette in the build-up to the grand final.
“We limped over the line on the weekend – we won with our two best players not playing (Luke Walker didn’t line up, while Dom Paynter went down with a knee early).
“When it comes to our injury toll – having no bench in the last quarter – it was a massive character-building win.
“We went back to the rooms and did some recovery that night and had a good chat afterwards and the focus was back on the job at hand.”
As for the 37-year drought, Collins was very matter-of-fact about it.
“We definitely aren’t putting an emphasis on it because that’s not our drought – we’re just one of the teams that’ve been a part of it, and we’ve just got the chance to break it,” he said.
“We’ve had missed opportunities along the way and we’ve spoken about that as a group. I still feel we could have won it in my first year at the club – I feel we were the only club that could have beaten Cora Lynn, but we lost to Nar Nar Goon by a point (earlier in the 2016 EDFL finals series).
“Last year was a disaster (missing out on the inaugural WGFNC finals series by percentage).
“But we’ve got our opportunity now – if we can get it done on Saturday.”
Collins has always been particularly strong on his group’s chances for success – right from the outset – and the players have shown why.
“I’ve got extreme confidence in my group, and I’m sure Beau is the same with his,” Collins said.
“When it comes down to it – it’s the 21 out on the ground that matter.
“We can make positional changes and try to motivate them, but it comes down to our 21 versus theirs. If I had the choice to coach any team in the competition, Kooweerup would be the team. I think we’re the best team in it, and they think they are.”
The Bureau of Meteorology’s forecast for Saturday is 10-15 with a high chance of showers – not too dissimilar to the conditions in which the second semi-final was played.
But the surfaces of the grounds at Cora Lynn and Garfield can’t be compared, and the weather can’t be controlled by anyone.
Undoubtedly, Kooweerup’s biggest keys for success this week will be its work-rate and defensive mindset.
“They clearly outworked us at Cora Lynn two weeks ago,” Collins said.
“They deserved to win. We have to lift our work rate, particularly in the midfield.
“If we can fix that I think we’ll go a long way to winning.”
Phillip Island coach Beau Vernon said the overwhelming feeling surrounding his group at the moment is, simply, one of excitement.
“We had a great year in terms of the enjoyment of it,” Vernon said.
“We’re just excited for the opportunity this weekend, and we can’t wait.”
Vernon has returned to the club he grew up playing for after a premiership-winning stint as coach of Leongatha in the Gippsland League.
His father Daryl, a former Richmond player, also coached both Leongatha and Phillip Island – leading the Bulldogs to the flag in 1990.
Having already experienced the feeling of coaching a side to premiership glory, Vernon wants it back again – this time at the Island.
“I just love working hard with a bunch of blokes you really admire, and trying to achieve something together,” he said.
“Everyone’s up and about to be playing at this time of year.”
But Vernon admitted the grand final build up for his side didn’t really kick into gear until it was clear who their opponent would be.
“They’re a hard, tough side and they’re good at the contest,” he said of the Demons.
“We pride ourselves in that area as well.”
Vernon said his group had learned from each of its previous encounters with the Demons, but their focus would be on themselves.
It should come as no surprise that their main focuses for this week revolve around winning the contested ball at the coalface and getting the ball going their way.
“And we pride ourselves on stepping up in big moments in different games,” Vernon said.
It’s a trait both the Bulldogs and the Demons will be looking to produce this Saturday just after 2pm, and we can’t wait to see how it all unfolds.
