By Marcus Uhe
A two-minute period said everything you needed to know about Officer’s contest with Narre Warren in Outer East Football Netball Premier Division Football on Saturday.
Hemmed in on the Social Rooms side of the ground, it felt as through Narre Warren had possession of the ball for two minutes, such as their control on proceedings at the time, as they dictated terms entirely to their opponents.
In reality, however, they were trying to win the ball back.
Brenton Hillard won a free kick at a stoppage in defence in front of the scoreboard and kicked laterally, with four short kicks finding Zack Charles at half back in front of the Officer bench.
Charles looked for options ahead of the ball, but was forced backwards to Jake Brady at full back.
Brady tried to dodge the closing Will Howe, and just got his kick away back to Charles, who held on under immense pressure from Sam Toner.
Toner then smothered the kick while standing on the mark but Officer was first to respond, chaining handballs together to clear the defensive 50.
Ryan Hutton kicked long up the wing while pressed against the boundary line, but straight into the hands of Magpies skipper Trent Papworth.
Papworth kicked down the line, where a contest ensued, and Jesse Davis kicked inside 50.
The Kangaroos rebounded, only for Lachlan Ward’s kick to sail out of bounds on the full.
Logan Hiscock took the resulting free kick, where Howe was far too strong for Josh Westra in a one-on-one in the left forward pocket.
As easy as you’d like, Howe stepped around on his right to open the angle, and snapped truly to extend the Magpies lead.
It was uncompromising and relentless from Narre Warren and a lesson for Officer, on the Magpies’ way to a comprehensive 98-point win, 19.12 126 to 3.10 28.
Officer was only slightly off, but a slight edge is all the Magpies require to make life incredibly difficult for their opponents.
Give them an inch and they’ll take a mile, with Officer found out on Saturday afternoon.
It started with a handful of dropped marks in the first quarter that conceded possession and paid costly prices at the other end.
The Magpies had six on the board before a much-needed steadier from Brenton Hillard saw Officer register its first major, courtesy of a free kick in the middle and a 25-metre penalty that advanced him into the forward 50 on the stroke of quarter time.
Outside of that, the Kangaroos lacked avenues to goal, while Narre Warren had the entire Melways to choose from.
The moment they acquired possession, there were Magpies in space everywhere, and with the foot skills required to capitalise on the abundance of options.
The embedded continuity in system and personnel was abundantly clear, with quick decisions executed to perfection time and time again overwhelming the Officer defensive group.
Howe was the primary target, with Sam and Daniel Toner also making an impact on the scoreboard.
The ease with which the Magpies moved the football would have caused alarm bells to ring in the Officer Coach’s box, and the difficulty going the other way wouldn’t have ease the tension.
It wasn’t that Officer was poor with ball in hand, but they couldn’t extract any reward where it mattered for good patches of football, often coming unstuck around halfway.
Officer coach Daniel Charles demanded his players lift the intensity and get physical with their Magpie opponents in the second term, and Antonio Quach nailing the first of the second period provided some hope.
But that would be the final time they sent the ball through the big sticks for quite some time.
Narre Warren was near flawless in its execution, opening Officer up time and time again in identical fashion.
From kick outs, they’d work the ball wide before cutting inboard from around halfway, with wingers and forwards streaming down the outer wing into bevies of space.
On turnovers, eyes would immediately dart inboard to take the quickest path to goal, chaining with hands or taking short, pinpoint kicks that rattled the opposition.
45 points separated the two at the half, before the Magpies slammed seven goals to none in the third quarter to pile on the pain.
Daniel Toner kicked the opening two of the term from Officer turnovers and soon enough there were players queuing up for their turn at getting on the scoreboard.
Tom Toner, Peter Gentile and Riley Siwes all got their licks of the ice cream while Officer forwards grew frustrated at the lack of opportunities afforded their way.
The setting sun brought with it a bitter chill and while spectators clamoured for extra clothing and shelter from the biting breeze, there was nowhere to hide from the Narre Warren onslaught for the Kangaroos.
Byron Neale kicked Officer’s first since the early stages of the second quarter to open the last term, but the heat was well and truly out of the game.
Narre Warren sent Papworth forward to enjoy some junk time ahead of the ball, kicking two, as the Magpies fell just short of a triple-figure result.
It’s often said that teams learn more from their losses than their wins, and the lessons are plentiful for the Kangaroos, offering their worst performance since making the leap to Premier Division.
Officer coach Daniel Charles described the afternoon as a “speed hump”.
“There were a few things to take out of it, the main thing is that it was probably the best team to learn from,” he said.
“We didn’t get the win but if we can take something out of it on the way Narre play and the way they move the ball, then at least it won’t go to waste.
“They have a team that works together and play their role really well.
“Narre (Warren) put us under a lot of pressure and our blokes were really fumbly right from the start.
“You can’t play the game style you’re trying to play when you’re fumbling and not aggressive, and our blokes were a little bit timid today.
“Having a young side, our confidence was down a little bit.”
Unable to attribute why the nerves were on show, Charles believes the psychological hurdle of playing a vaunted side laden with stars and premiership players, may have gotten into his players’ heads.
“Maybe it was the fact that we’re playing Narre Warren and they’ve been the benchmark,” Charles said.
“Our blokes were a bit scared, is probably the way to put it; scared of making a mistake, scared of doing the wrong thing, scared of getting a touch up, which Narre certainly did today.
“I don’t think we’re as bad as what we showed today, we’ve had four solid games and we’re two and two.
“Hopefully we can bounce back next week and get back on track.”
Hillard and Jake Gains continue to make an impact at their new clubs, with Kyle Hagger Jeremy Monckton, Brent Moloney and Zack Charles others to shine on a tough day for the club.
Narre Warren finished with five multiple goal kickers, led by Howe, (five), Daniel and Tom Toner (three each), Sam Toner and Papworth (two each).
Nothing so far in 2024 suggests that the Magpies will be anywhere but at the pointy end of the ladder when they need to be, despite the concerns around their list and departures during the offseason.
Gentile has played himself into contention for the Shane Smith medal after just a few weeks, a welcome inclusion since stepping away from VFL commitments.
Kurt Mutimer, and Trent Entwistle were excellent in the middle, with Hayden Johnson and Papworth brilliant behind the ball.
