Kangaroolz
Debutant
In a season that saw the Senior group retain its Premier B position, the U19s have also given the Fitzroy faithful reason to be proud by making the u19 Section 2 Grand Final and propelling them back into Premier division and giving the whole Club a reason to look to the future with some real anticipation.
Vic Park was the stage for the Semi final clash against Werribee. We all began to appreciate how important it had been to win the home ground advantage. I couldn’t even imagine how much harder this game would have been at Soldier Field. It was a picture perfect Melbourne day and the ground was in great condition. The aroma of Kerry’s burgers was irresistible. We really wanted, no, we really needed to win this and go straight through to the Grand Final. We were only playing with 23 today after the late withdrawal of Fraser through illness but we were now very accustomed to playing with low numbers. The message pre-game was “no regrets”. Senior player, Michael Cussen spoke to the boys about his days in the Under 19s. He was part of the team that took us to Premier last time with a Grand Final win over Werribee. You could see how much it meant to him. Steve Hurl was good enough to provide the pre game warm up and that was gold too. The boys were looking really up for this game.
The start was a nervous one for both sides but Werribee seemed to settle first. As you would expect from a finals game, it was tight for a long time. Some time towards the end of the second though, there was a sense that Werribee were just beginning to tire. It was a warm day and it was a big ground. At the main break, Fitzroy led by 3 points.
The crowd numbers had really started to swell, certainly bigger than anything the boys had played in front of before. The faithful had travelled across from Sportscover Arena. They had been over there to watch the Ressies win through to the Preliminary. (Commiserations to the Tim and the Thirds who fell short after a great season). The boys came out looking refreshed and really took the game up to Werribee. The third quarter was superb; it is not called the Premiership quarter for nothing. Woody had been great all day. His second and third efforts were inspirational and warmed the Coaches’ heart! Jacob McCormack, although inaccurate, was excellent. Luke Baker was Luke Baker – brilliant. Dalts was good, especially in the midfield. Matters and McDonald ran all day, until the cramps set in! In all truth, I could name every player because they all played well. They all did their job, which is what has to happen in a finals game. By the end of the 3rd quarter Fitzroy had gone out to a 33 point lead. The 4th quarter was a bad one for Werribee. An ugly head high tackle on Dylan Leech saw one of their players red-carded and they added only 1 point to their score while Fitzroy added 4 goals to take out the 2nd Semi Final by 57 points!
Interesting to note that the 3 remaining sides in Section 2 are all Community Club teams, all School teams have been eliminated. I mention this because it puzzles me. The School based clubs have amazing resources available to them - the grounds, the clubrooms, the coaching staff, the seemingly endless supply of clipboards and the depth of the playing squad. Lets take Collegians, just as an example. They started with a list of around 40. They have a U18s team and, of course, the School team that competes in a very high quality competition. To qualify a player for the u19s finals, he just needs to have played 2 games, provided the player hasn’t played any at a higher level, i.e. Seniors. I assume that is what they meant by the statement on their website during the week where they describe their Unders as a “slow cooked roast” simmering in a casserole dish, “adding a bit here and there”. They did hope to serve this dish “in a silver cup” but sadly Parkdale turned the heat up in their clash at Parkdale and it seems that the whole “roast” has been ruined! Collegians are out and Parkdale live on to meet Werribee in the Preliminary Final.
We will watch the result of the Preliminary Final with great interest. There is no preference amongst the group. Neither side can be taken lightly; actually no side in this competition can be taken lightly. Every game this season was a hard fought contest and of a high standard. So, we look forward to the break this weekend and then build for the big one!!
Go Roys!!!!
Vic Park was the stage for the Semi final clash against Werribee. We all began to appreciate how important it had been to win the home ground advantage. I couldn’t even imagine how much harder this game would have been at Soldier Field. It was a picture perfect Melbourne day and the ground was in great condition. The aroma of Kerry’s burgers was irresistible. We really wanted, no, we really needed to win this and go straight through to the Grand Final. We were only playing with 23 today after the late withdrawal of Fraser through illness but we were now very accustomed to playing with low numbers. The message pre-game was “no regrets”. Senior player, Michael Cussen spoke to the boys about his days in the Under 19s. He was part of the team that took us to Premier last time with a Grand Final win over Werribee. You could see how much it meant to him. Steve Hurl was good enough to provide the pre game warm up and that was gold too. The boys were looking really up for this game.
The start was a nervous one for both sides but Werribee seemed to settle first. As you would expect from a finals game, it was tight for a long time. Some time towards the end of the second though, there was a sense that Werribee were just beginning to tire. It was a warm day and it was a big ground. At the main break, Fitzroy led by 3 points.
The crowd numbers had really started to swell, certainly bigger than anything the boys had played in front of before. The faithful had travelled across from Sportscover Arena. They had been over there to watch the Ressies win through to the Preliminary. (Commiserations to the Tim and the Thirds who fell short after a great season). The boys came out looking refreshed and really took the game up to Werribee. The third quarter was superb; it is not called the Premiership quarter for nothing. Woody had been great all day. His second and third efforts were inspirational and warmed the Coaches’ heart! Jacob McCormack, although inaccurate, was excellent. Luke Baker was Luke Baker – brilliant. Dalts was good, especially in the midfield. Matters and McDonald ran all day, until the cramps set in! In all truth, I could name every player because they all played well. They all did their job, which is what has to happen in a finals game. By the end of the 3rd quarter Fitzroy had gone out to a 33 point lead. The 4th quarter was a bad one for Werribee. An ugly head high tackle on Dylan Leech saw one of their players red-carded and they added only 1 point to their score while Fitzroy added 4 goals to take out the 2nd Semi Final by 57 points!
Interesting to note that the 3 remaining sides in Section 2 are all Community Club teams, all School teams have been eliminated. I mention this because it puzzles me. The School based clubs have amazing resources available to them - the grounds, the clubrooms, the coaching staff, the seemingly endless supply of clipboards and the depth of the playing squad. Lets take Collegians, just as an example. They started with a list of around 40. They have a U18s team and, of course, the School team that competes in a very high quality competition. To qualify a player for the u19s finals, he just needs to have played 2 games, provided the player hasn’t played any at a higher level, i.e. Seniors. I assume that is what they meant by the statement on their website during the week where they describe their Unders as a “slow cooked roast” simmering in a casserole dish, “adding a bit here and there”. They did hope to serve this dish “in a silver cup” but sadly Parkdale turned the heat up in their clash at Parkdale and it seems that the whole “roast” has been ruined! Collegians are out and Parkdale live on to meet Werribee in the Preliminary Final.
We will watch the result of the Preliminary Final with great interest. There is no preference amongst the group. Neither side can be taken lightly; actually no side in this competition can be taken lightly. Every game this season was a hard fought contest and of a high standard. So, we look forward to the break this weekend and then build for the big one!!
Go Roys!!!!
