By David Nagel
We asked a pretty simple question of Justin Stanton and his Nar Nar Goon outfit after last week’s disappointing loss to Cora Lynn.
Is the Goon a genuine contender for the 2023 WGFNC premiership…or merely making up the numbers like previously seasons?
The answer to the first part of that question is an affirmative yes after the Goon rolled the previously undefeated Inverloch-Kongwak by 18 points at Spencer Street on Saturday.
The Goon overcame what initially appeared a slow start…but their 0.1 to 2.1 beginning to the contest would soon become a trend with just three of the 17 goals being slotted at the Spencer Street end of the ground.
Inverloch’s 2.1 in the first quarter would be the lowest output of the two teams kicking to the far end of the now beautifully manicured surface.
But this was not a day where a howling breeze made it impossible to score at one end, more a one-to-two goal wind that should not have had much say at all.
But it did, with the scoring end being a crucial factor in the contest.
Both teams went in missing some important talent in key positions on the ground.
The Goon welcomed back Tex Marsham, Jed Smith and Flynn Parker for the big clash, but still has important stock such as Brendan Hermann, Eamon Trigg and Luke Bettio sitting on the sidelines.
The Sea Eagles also reintroduced some talent, with Will Hams, Jarvis Pryor and Marcus Toussaint all key inclusions, but the visitors still have five players missing from their best 22.
Toby Mahoney, Nick Baltas and Dylan Clark were absent from the forward line, with Mahoney and Baltas their two leading goal-kickers this year.
Michael Eales is a team of the year full-back, while Oscar Toussaint is one of the best mid-forwards in the business.
Inverloch won the territory battle in the first term, playing their uncontested marking game to perfection.
The Goon did well to keep the margin to 12 points, with the likes of James Cairns, Aidan Pipicelli, Jake Blackwood, Riley Murphy, Sam Blackwood, JJ Peni and Parker holding up well in defence.
It was the second term when the Goon made its move!
With Nate Pipicelli having a big influence in the ruck, and skipper Trent Armour playing a typically strong role through the midfield, the home-side kicked five goals to one to open up a 13-point lead at the main break.
Armour, Deon Boavida, Paddy Cross, Matt Homfray and Troy McDermott all kicked truly for the Goon, while Will Hams had two, and Bailey Patterson one, for the visitors as the players hit the sheds for half time.
The premiership quarter, the third, was a genuine high-class tussle.
Lachlan Scott got the visitors back to nine points, after six minutes of play, before Dermott Yawney capitalised on a great tackle from Sam Blackwood to kick the margin back out to 15.
Pryor, usually a mainstay in defence, then answered for the Sea Eagles, before Will Hams slotted his third for the day from close range to cut the deficit to two points at the final break.
Inverloch coach Tom Hams implored his team to be aggressive.
“We’ve put ourselves in a position throughout the year, that allows us to take this game on,” Hams began.
“Let’s roll the dice a bit more than we normally would…link up through hands and take the game on a bit.
“We’ve called it resilience month, I reckon this quarter is going to really see how resilient we are.
“We’ve got some sore boys, we’ve got some cramping, but we’ve got the opportunity to take the game on and be aggressive.
“This is chapter four in a thriller; so what result do we want?
“Let’s do it then boys.”
The Sea Eagles missed an early opportunity to take the lead, and were soon punished by Goon stalwart Brent Hughes.
The veteran found space, 35 out from goal, and delivered a clinical kick that expertly pierced the big sticks with just three minutes ticked off the clock.
It wasn’t so much the goal, but who kicked it…that gave the Goon the inspiration to finish off the job.
Marsham then strolled into an open goal to make it 13 points, before Tom Hams kicked an absolute beauty from the scoreboard forward pocket to reduce the deficit to six.
On the wrong side for a left-footer, Hams aimed the Sherrin at the left goal-post, and watched it fade back perfectly to keep the door ajar with 17 minutes ticked by.
But a right-foot snap from Boavida and a Clancy Pope floater just a minute later nailed the door shut to give the Goon its biggest and best win for the season.
Skipper Armour said the victory was just reward for a lot of hard work.
“We’ve just had a big buy-in over the last few weeks, all the boys have put in a fair bit of hard work, and it’s flowing on down through our twos,” Armour said from a buzzing change room post-match.
“We’ve changed a few things, with game-plan scenarios, to try and take things to the next level.
“All the work ended up coming together today…it was a good effort from the boys.”
This victory followed a disappointing 29-point loss to Cora Lynn that put some real question marks over the group.
But Armour was confident it was just a matter of doing the good things for longer.
“A lot of that game was pretty good from us, we applied good pressure, but we just had little lapses and then they kicked a couple of goals and we dropped our heads a bit,” he said.
“In the end they just got the better of us.
“It was just about doing what we did well, but doing it for longer.
“We just needed to work hard for four quarters, and that’s what we did today.”
Armour said the Gooners would gain plenty of confidence, and important self-belief from the victory.
“100-percent, I think we’ve always been in it, we just haven’t had that next level to beat a top side,” he said.
“Now we’ve done that and that’s probably going to give us a bit of confidence going forward.
“We need to be hungry now, coming into the main part of it, and hopefully we can continue the sort of footy we played today.”
The proud skipper praised the defensive unit for keeping his side in contention, with IK winning the F50 count.
“Our backs were hammered today, but even when they were cooked they were spoiling every ball and making it difficult for them to break free,” he said.
“Our new ruck Nater (Nate Pipicelli), he’s been filling in while Triggy is injured and he’s been doing an awesome job for us as well.
“But I wouldn’t say there were many major standouts, we just worked as a team really well.”
The Goon heads to Dalyston this week, while IK will have a much-easier time of things on a similar round trip to Bunyip.
NAR NAR GOON 0.1 5.5 6.8 10.9(69)
INVERLOCH-KONGWAK 2.1 3.4 6.6 7.9(51)
Nar Nar Goon Goals: Deon Boavida 2, Trent Armour, Paddy Cross, Matthew Homfray, Brent Hughes, Tex Marsham, Troy McDermott, Clancy Pope, Dermott Yawney. Best: Trent Armour, Nate Pipicelli, Jai Hamilton, Jeconiah Peni, Brent Hughes, James Cairns.
Inverloch-Kongwak Goals: Will Hams 3, Tom Hams, Bailey Patterson, Jarvis Pryor, Lachlan Scott. Best: Will Hams, Bailey Patterson, Kairon Dorling, Jordan Tomas, Tom Hams, Tate Short.
