By Chris ‘Yeendy’ Yeend
WILSTON GRANGE v BROADBEACH
Broadbeach has celebrated one of its best wins of the 2021 season with an impressive 27-point win over Wilston Grange at Redland-Victoria Point on Saturday.
The Cats went into the contest as slight under-dogs having just edged out Palm Beach Currumbin and Noosa for a place in the finals; with the Gorillas were one of the must- see teams of the Colts division after a string of quality performances and a star-studded line-up.
Perhaps the one key factor that had Broadbeach have the edge over its opponents was its 90-point win back in Round 15. That proved to to be the catalyst for a very strong performance on the weekend.
Wilston Grange held a narrow six-point lead at quarter-time and looked settled to take the fight right up to Broadbeach.
Both teams had four scoring shots each in the second quarter which perhaps dictated how the rest of the game was set up. With Wilston Grange holding a six-point lead, it kicked 1.3 as opposed to Broadbeach who kicked 4.0 to hold a nine-point half-time lead and record a crucial 15-point turnaround.
The Cats hit the ground running in the premiership quarter, as they continued their brilliant goal kicking with 5.1 in the third and held Wilston Grange goal-less to set up an insurmountable 38-point lead.
As much as the Gorillas tried to fight back in the last stanza, it was too little, too late as the Cats soared away to a 27-point win and keep its finals’ hopes well and truly alive.
For Broadbeach, Kye Reynoldson was impressive; and Connar Robson and Harrison Tonks each kicked three goals; while Lachlan Zakaras and Jackson Simpson impressed.
Broadbeach 12.5 (77) defeated Wilston Grange 7.8 (50)
Goals: (Broadbeach) C. Robson 3, H. Tonks 3, C. Parkes, J. Semmler, J. Bowen, T. Dawson, J. Denny, K. Baines 1.
(Wilston Grange) K. Thok 2, J. Mills 2, N. Stevenson 2, S. Pettigrew 1.
Best: (Broadbeach) J. Denny, J. Rogers, K. Reynoldson, J. Semmler, T. Dawson, J. Eckersley.
(Wilston Grange) L. Zakaras, J. Simpson, R. Mcmillan, D. McCabe, N. Stevenson, O. Beattie.
MAROOCHYDORE v MT GRAVATT
In last week’s previews, it was stated that if Maroochydore has six goals or less on the board at half-time, it’s game on. The Roos had seven goals on the board at half-time in its clash with Mt Gravatt and went on to win by 20-points.
Maroochydore kick-started what would prove to be a great day for the club. It enjoyed the first of three wins for the Sunshine Coast team and on Gold Coast soil.
The Roos held a narrow 11-point lead at half-time before kicking four straight goals in the second term to edge away to a 27-point lead. The Vultures battled back in the third and threatened to close the gap in the third term, and it did so marginally by cutting the gap to 20-points heading into the final change.
As much as the Vultures tried to press forward and secure more opportunities, it just couldn’t break the dam wall open. Dakota King kicked the last of his three goals at the five-minute mark of the term to cut the margin back to 15-points, providing a glimmer of hope. Riley Matheson snuffed those chances out several minutes later to pump the margin back to 20-points and ice the game.
Jordan Michael was one of the stars to watch and he delivered in great value for the Roos with two goals in a best on ground effort while Jae Bath was relentless in defense; countering many forward thrusts from the Vultures and denied countless marking attempts.
Jake Torney at full back and Marcus Khoo at centre half back tried hard for Mt Gravatt.
Maroochydore 11.5 (71) defeated Mt Gravatt 7.9 (51)
Goals: (Maroochydore) D. Faulkner 3, J. Michael 2, H. Moore 2, B. Hahn, M. Lefevre, D. Eastwell, R. Matheson 1.
(Mt Gravatt) D. King 3, C. Harrison 2, O. Doyle, Z. Borrelli 1.
Best (Maroochydore) J. Michael, J. Bath, C. Silva, A. Johnston, T. Cuthbert, B. Eva.
(Mt Gravatt) J. Torney, R. Priestley, C. Harrison, S. Carmody, M. Khoo.
