COACH David Martin is harbouring concerns that his Wilston-Grange Gorillas seem to have lost their way a little in team ethic.
By Terry Wilson
As the Gorillas chase a top-three finish for the finals, they had to work hard to see off north Brisbane rivals Mayne under the lights at Hickey Park on Friday night.
The Grange scored by 18.124 (122) to 16.8 (104) against the still-winless Tigers, but it was far from smooth sailing for the fourth-placed Gorillas who are one of four teams with three losses for the year.
Martin praised Mayne for their effort.
“They weren’t too bad, they’re a lot better than they were in the past and it’s funny they haven’t won a game this season,” he said.
But there is something bothering Martin and it has all to do with the fact his players have gone away from what was working so well for them early in the season.
“I think we just haven’t got any flow like we used to have,” he said. “We’ve gone a bit conservative somewhere along the line.
“We’re playing a lot of stop-start footy and have gone into our shells a bit.
“It’s probably a confidence thing.”
The Gorillas dominated the third quarter when they kicked 4.5 yet failed to reap rewards of a domination with reward on the scoreboard.
The Gorillas, who have a favourable draw of Springwood (home), Burleigh (away) and Surfers paradise (home) before the finals, were best served by crumbing forward Mathew Stevens, centre half-forward Dan Collins, defender Scott Wood and Lee Smith in the midfield.
The frustration continues for Mayne player-coach Luke Faulkner, who was best for the Tigers under the lights.
“We had a crack, but skill errors hurt us,” he said. “We outscored them in the last quarter but leaked a couple of goals.”
Mayne had a winner in Matthew Jones, a regular defender who was used as a forward last round.
On Friday night, placed on a half-forward flank, Jones kicked seven goals to give the club hierarchy something to think about.
And veteran Andrew Housego, playing occasionally up forward but mostly on-ball, was also a strong contributor.
