ROUND 7– Home Against Last Years Premiers
From the President
This report comes to you from Spain were I am currently completing studies in the MBA of Sports Management. Much hotter over here I can report and they are crazy over their “football”. I can report that I have had some success in converting some over to our code.
I hope to bring fresh ideas to the club to help us on our upwards trajectory. Unfortunately some match reports lost in the transit between there and here. Enjoy what we have.
Hope to see you around the grounds soon.
From the President
Todd Williams
President
Match Reports:
Premier Division Men's Match Report with thanks to ARA Group
Premier Division Men Vs University of New South Wales- Eastern Suburbs Bulldogs
(PH 15.9.99 Defeated UNSW 4.9.33)
Round 7 would see us pitted against last years premiers UNSW on our home deck in which was a perfect day for footy. We would welcome back in key players, Connor Matthews (congrats on your new son) Nick Eynaud, Wilson Mudge, Lachlan Willey & big Jimmy Carroll who would play his first prems game in nearly 2 years.
UNSW have had some mixed results so far in 2024, losing to wests last game but leading both North Shore & Manly for most of their match ups. We would come out hard after losing in the prelim final to them last year. Our midfield would get on top from the get-go, with Mitchell Blow providing Josh Boag, Cam Mitchell & Tom Edmonds firs use. With Nick Eynaud brining his own footy it seemed. Our runoff half back was the best its been all year, we would kick 4.1 to 2.2 in a high quality game with lots of swans kids on show.
The 2nd qtr. would be our best for the year, our movement was something to behold. Endless attacks that resulted in a 6 goal to nil quarter. Pitt, Hey, Mudge all dangerous. We would take a comprehensive lead of 8 goals into the main break. The 3rd qtr. would become more contested with UNSW trying to slow us down, our backline held strong all game with Mikey Carroll, Jackson Potter & Connor Matthews all stand outs.
We would go on to kick 3 goals to none in the last to win by 66 points. Jimmy Carroll would create a great combo with Mitchell Blow, giving our midfield first use all game and impacting down forward. Nick Eynaud showcased his elite ball use, Pitt would finish with 5 to cement his place in the top 3 leading goal kickers, while Edmonds, Mitchell & Boag were the dominant mids all game.
We now sit at 5-1 with 5 wins in a row with another home game vs an improved St George coming up.
Ben Roberts (Head Coach)
Best: Michael Carroll, James Carroll, Nicholas Eynaud, Harrison Pitt, Thomas Edmonds, Cameron Mitchell
Goal Kickers: H. Pitt 5, N. Hey 2, M. Blow 2, O. Nockles 1, J. Boag 1, J. Roberts 1, T. Moraitis 1, S. Wray 1, C. Lee 1
Premier Division Women's Match Report with thanks to Ritera Electrical Wholesale
Premier Division Women V’s University New South Wales- Eastern Suburbs Bulldogs
(PH 2.3.15 Loss to UNSW-ES 5.3.33)
We were playing an opposition that had played 1 more game than us to date and had only kicked 1 more goal than us in total. Hopes were high.
We started extremely well in the first qtr. Where our structures were holding up well. We dominated inside 50's in the first qtr. But just couldn't put them under enough pressure to take the lead into the 2nd qtr.
Our 2nd qtr. was indifferent they had 2 shots on goal for 2 goals we had 1 shot on goal for a behind. Whilst we trailed on the scoreboard by 2 kicks. It was an up and down qtr. of football.
The 3rd qtr. was probably not our best for the year. Injuries started to take there toll as we had 3 of our best out for the rest of the game from about 5min mark in the 3rd qtr.
Jesse was concussed and will miss the nest 3 weeks and Haley had hurt her shoulder badly and couldn't return on field. Our structures were placed under extreme pressure throughout the qtr.
The opposition had 4 shots on goal for 2.2 return. We had zero.
Under these circumstances most teams/players would have just given in and played out the last qtr.
Well in the last we showed how far we have come as a group as we played some of our best football to date. We had 3 shots on goal to zero. (A first this season)We dominated the qtr. defensively and our ball movement started to hit the targets. It was a total turnaround Well done all a terrific effort.
We are making in roads into how we want to play and l can honestly say we are not far away from upsetting other teams leading into the back half of the season. Like all good teams we need to work and stick together. Now is the time when we set our commitment for each other.
Best: Katilin Quinn, Natalie Pajor, Elly Rudd, Mia Hartley, Amelia Bennett, Emmerson Squires.
Special mentions: Lucy Boyd (terrific first half), Alex Williams, Sheridan Baker Terry Mudge (Head Coach)
Goal Kickers: E. Harvey 1, E. Waters 1
Under 19.5 Division 1 Men's Match Report with thanks to Tyrepower Dural
Under 19.5’s Division 1 v UNSW-ES (PH 13.9.87 Defeated UNSW-ES 9.4.58)
“BRING PHYSICAL PRESSURE”
Today was our best team performance of the year so far with a hard fought win against quality opposition. We had trained well and recognised this game as an important turning point for our season. UNSW had knocked us out in the preliminary final last year and they would come at us hard.
The first qtr was a fast paced and even battle, with scores level at the end of the quarter 2.1.14 a piece. Both teams in an arm wrestle and high energy contest giving nothing away. We were up and about and confident, and I sensed in our group a strong belief in each other with good energy and intensity. First goal went to the Dogs but we were quick to respond. Our rebound intensity off half back was amazing and we were looking to open up corridor scoring opportunities. The message at ¼ time was don’t let everyone get sucked to the ball at stoppages, hold our shape and nominate one at the ball and balance across the ground.
We also wanted to be in control. To dictate the pace of the game, and decide how we wanted to go forward. Our tackle pressure was fantastic and in the second term we took the heat off a little and slowed things down to make good decisions.
Q2 was when we broke away with 10 forward entries and 5 goals. Oscar and Ryan Bon were in the thick of it creating forward opportunities and kicking goals. Jack D and Hawesy were working great together with Jack taking pack marks and Hawesy with his pace off the mark giving their defenders some challenges. I loved the way we challenged in the 50/50 contests, slowed to make good decisions then exploded through the corridor taking calculated risks and being rewarded for our efforts. It was poetry to watch.
Q3 was another even battle with Dogs coming back at us and holding us even again. A bit of momentum disrupted by their intensity at times but not enough to throw us. We kept our heads, and it was clear our focus and collective energy was positive and confident. At no stage did UNSW get in front. Lauff at full back was sensational taking contested marks and dominating their forward entries. Spida was gutsy with his tackling pressure, and I was super impressed with Bens attack on the contested ball and forward moves, and both Bill and Romans work in the ruck and at contested marks doing a fantastic job. Q3 was our best with tackling pressure – 11 effective tackles making it difficult for them to get forward. A great lock down team performance.
Q4 Este off half back was containing their dangerous forwards well, and whilst they got outside of us a few times with good team play, we were not threatened. We outscorded them in the last quarter for a consistent 4 quarter team performance where they could not stop our relentless forward moves. Oscar finished with with a bag of 4 for the game, Hawes with 3. Oscar came off in the 3rd with a meniscus injury. Muz was also strong in the first half at CHF before he came off with a wrist injury. Sticks was courageous in the contest and did a great job with tackling and defensive pressure, as did Lunna with his superb tackling pressure. So many great players today. Our depth and consistency shone through for a wonderful team performance. We had 29 forward entries for 13 goals – almost 50% which is a fantastic result.
Justin Kerley (Coach)
Best: Ryan Bonham, Riley Hawes, Ryan Lauff, Liam Everett, Oscar Irwin, Benjamin Waring
Goal Kickers: O. Irwin 5, R. Hawes 3, R. Bonham 2, J. Dwyer 1, l. Pauly 1, l. Hardman 1.
Division 1 Men's Match Report with thanks to Pennant Hills Toyota
Division 1 Men V’s UNSW-ES (PH 7.13.55 Defeated UNSW 4.3.27)
Our first home game of the year saw us taking on UNSW in a challenging hit out. We started the game well keeping the pressure on and surging from the contest locking the ball in our forward half. Plenty of movement and space let us put 5 goals on the board in the first half but due to some inaccuracy we also kicked 9 points. Even though our scoring was a bit off we were very happy with our efforts going into the half and extremely happy with our forwards efforts.
We went out after the halftime break to a rallied UNSW who came back firing. Catching us off guard they won the quarter by a couple points and making sure we were paying attention.
We assessed at the final break and went out determined to continue our first half style of footy. The backs held the UNSW forwards scoreless in the final quarter working themselves to every contest and not allowing an inch. The mids kept up their dominance and worked the ball strongly forward allowing our fwds to do the work. But unfortunately inaccuracy was our issue only kicking 4 points.
Warren Atwell (Coach)
Best: P. Witt, T. Cousens, D. Poletto, Z. Elliott, M. Carey, M. Trenaman.
Goal Kickers: M. Carey 3, D. Poletto 2, S. Zikman 1, M. Weathers 1.
Division 2 Women’s Match Report
Women’s Division 2 v Southern Power (PH 3.8.26 Loss to Power 5.2.32)
The Div 2 Women hosted Southern Power on the bottom oval on a beautiful Saturday morning.
We started well with Jazz and our midfield of Jodie and Sally winning lots of the ball. Alannah had a good first quarter as did Emma D and Kellie ( good to have you back ) Repeated entries finally saw us connect with Remy who took a good mark and went and slotted her first senior football goal. What a debut. Our backline was strong, particularly Steph, and Soph, with the Wiz also attacking off half back. Power had one clear drive forward and through a good sequence of kicking and marking also kicked a goal. We went into qtr time with a 1point lead.
The second qtr was a repeat of the 1st with us gaining lots of drive forward from our mids, however we were inaccurate kicking 4 points . Emma D was again dangerous in the forward line. Again, Power went forward a few times but they used the open space well and were able to score 2 goals. So, despite having more of the ball and more inside 50s we were down by 7 points at halftime.
Unfortunately, in the 3rd qtr we lost Jodie to a bad ankle injury. Zoe, Charlotte and Bridgette stepped up to help Sally in the mids. Jazz was still dominating in the Ruck, and we got the ball forward many times but could only convert 2 points. Power were again clean with their ball use and kicked an end to end goal. We went into the last qtr 11 points down.
Everyone continued to improve and in the last quarter we applied a lot of pressure to Power. Our backline and mids continued to be strong and goals to Sally and Remy saw us peg the difference to one straight kick. It was a frantic last couple of minutes to the game where we had opportunities but could not get the bounce we needed.
Well done girls, we continue to improve every week.
Mark Carroll (Coach)
Best: Sally Faehrmann, Emma Dunn, Jasmine Blow, Sophie Pendlebury, Stephanie Martin, Alanah Arnold.
Goal Kickers: Remy Ally 2, S. Faehrmann 1
Division 3 Men's Match Report with thanks to Eylex Pty Ltd
Men’s Division 3 v UNSW-ES (PH 7.7.49 Defeated UNSW 2.3.15)
Round 6 saw a 9:20am start at home against UNSW/ES. Both teams had only experienced the one loss so far in season 2024 prior to this meeting.
Having to kick the dew off the ground made for slippery conditions early however these improved throughout. A dominant first half by Anthony Brawn, where he kicked 4, had us up by 5 goals at half time. We were able to hold this lead throughout and ran out convincing winners - final score was 7.7 to 2.3.
Better players were Harry Gregor across the wing and half forward, Luc White who didn’t lose a contest and provided great voice down back, Regan Pinker in his first game for the year whose cleanliness was obvious to see, Tino Manfre up forward with his pressure work, Brandon Buyink on ball with his relentless attack whilst Dom Pyne was a standout with his aggressive and controlled attack on both the footy and opposition.
Good result with 22 contributors.
Sebastian Parker (Coach)
Best: D. Pyne, B. Buyink, T. Manfre, R. Pinker, L. White, H. Gregor
Goal Kickers: A. Brawn 4, J. Douglass 1, l. Boyd 1, H. Gregor 1
Under 19.5’s Division 2 vs UTS Bats
Under 19.5 Division 2 v North Shore Bombers (PH 4.8.32 Loss to NS 12.13.85)
First Quarter: The Bombers took control early. Slick ball movement & clean skills made it hard for the boys to stop the momentum. The forwards capitalized on their opportunities, kicking 3 goals and 1 behind. Jake Condon laid a nice tackle by the coaches wing to give us a bit of spark but we struggled to convert, kicking 1 goal, 3 to be down ten at the break.
Score at Quarter Time:
North Shore Bombers: 3.1(19)
Pennant Hills Demons: 1.1 (7)
Second Quarter: The second quarter saw the Bombers extending their lead. Their forwards continued to press hard, adding another 4 goals and 3 behinds to their tally. The Demons, despite showing moments of brilliance, could only muster 1 goal and 1 behind, struggling to match the Bombers' pace and precision on transition.
Score at Half-Time:
North Shore Bombers: 7.5 (47)
Pennant Hills Demons: 1.4 (10)
Third Quarter: After the half-time break, the Demons came out with renewed energy, but the Bombers’ defense held firm. North Shore's extra players on the bench showed and their workrate just proved tough to match. We really ratcheded up our pressure in their forward 50, resulting in North Shore starting to miss and kicking 3.6 for the term.
Score at Three-Quarter Time:
North Shore Bombers: 10.11 (71)
Pennant Hills Demons: 3.7 (25)
Final Quarter: In the final term, the Bombers maintained their pressure and added another 2 goals and 2 behinds to seal their victory. The Demons fought valiantly, scoring 1 goal and 1 behind, but it was unfortunately not our day today. This team is more than talented to go with the big boys of the competition, we’ll work hard get to training and show a much improved display against UTS this coming Saturday.
Key Players:
- Toby Conway: Toby is going from strength to strength this year. A dominant presence in the ruck, when tasked with taking away the best opposition player at half-time he did just that – the player was not seen again. Great game from Toby today.
- Leandre Pandoulis: Easily our most consistent player this year – Leandre had his best game of the season. He consistently wins individual matchups and organizes our defence game after game. He doesn’t get enough love in these reports, but that just speaks to his consistency, doesn’t have a bad game.
- Max Newley: Great game for Maxy today. Starting to get back into the flow after re-joining the team a little later in the year. His athleticism on transition is a joy to watch –silky skills and strong marking ability make him a rock wherever he plays.
- Jacob Adams: Jacob was strong in the middle for us. Our midfield more than matched North Shore for talent – not having enough bodies on the park is what hurt but Jacob should hold his head high. Consistently won it out of the pack and made his disposals count.
- Jake Condon: Great game from Jakey. Showed a lot of ticker when it counted. Laid some hard hits and was always at the contest. Made his oppositions day a living hell which is exactly what I want from him. Keep it up mate.
- Lincoln Kellett: One of our 17’s boys backing up, we couldn’t do it without these lads. Lincoln was a livewire in attack – we always looked dangerous with the ball in his hand.
Keep up the running and go getting it mate and you’ll be a very good player.
Best: Toby Conway, Leandre Pandoulis, Max Newley, Jacob Adams, Jake Condon, Lincoln Kellett
Goal Kickers: L. Kellett 2, J. Adams 1, J. Protogeros 1.
Division 5 Men's Match Report with thanks to Conveyancing at Pittwater
Men’s Division 5 v UNSW-ES Bulldogs (PH 4.9.33 Defeated UNSW-ES 3.6.24)
Weil, it wasn’t quite a ‘must win’ game, but for continuity of our season, it was important to get a result against a side featuring a former Sydney Swans grand finalist (1996), Troy Luff - more on him later.
The squad worked hard on the training track all week and came prepared to have a big impact. Unfortunately, our start wasn’t as blistering as we had hoped with only a solitary goal to celebrate at the first break. Hayden Mitchell is one man who just never gives up, and through his tenacity of 2nd and 3rd efforts, we were able to build some momentum in Q2, but still, our hard work wasn’t yielding the outcomes we deserved.
We injected Cal ‘I feel like a’ Toohey into the midfield which proved to be the jab we needed. This kid is pure excitement. I don’t say this lightly, but he is built like and runs like Chad Warner, only with a better jink and sidestep. He destroyed their mids, and, along with a great defensive role played by Jack Crampton and Morgan hide on the UNSW best player, we managed to keep UNSW down to just 3.5 at the final turn for home. The issue was we kicked poorly with a return of 2.8, and we needed to correct that imbalance.
The forward line group had a chat and words were not minced - they knew what they needed to do, and someone even mentioned “this is why you get paid the big bucks, to kick goals”.
From then on, the midfield delivery to the forward line was bullet like and gobbled up cleanly by Josh Mott and Oskar Raue. They created chances for themselves and were unselfish in their play bringing their teammates into the frame.
With about 8 minutes left, Trot Luff fluffed his lines. Kicking from 35m out and directly in front, we expected the worst. That would have put UNSW 9 in front and left us a mountain to climb. But no, this group is made of sterner stuff. We rebounded with pace a precision and landed 2 goals in the final term to run out 9-point winners, our first consecutive wins of 2024.
This group is so tight and building nicely. There is so much more to come from the lads and we cannot wait to take on Penrith next weekend and aim for a 3rd straight win.
I will see you in the next one.
Nigel Blow (Coach)
Best: B. Rohr, R. Kelleher, A. Rashleigh, J. Mott, N. Breen, G. O’Rourke.
Goal Kickers: J. Mott, O. Raue, M. Morris, B. Rohr
What’s on This week
Club Thursday: This week we are back in the club rooms for a pie with mash, [pees and Gravy. Fantastic meal for the winter evenings. Thanks to Sue Blow, Carol Hare and team enjoy a great value meal and fun times with mates.
