De La Salle vs St Bedes / Mentone Tigers

Match Report

Nothing better than chasing a score for the whole game, then hitting the front just before the final siren. The Blues got to experience a euphoric win today against St Bedes at their home ground.

With a 2pm start today, the Blues battled through South East traffic congestion and trekked their way down to Mentone. With a hostile local crowd perched on the balcony, our boys kicked against a steady breeze in the first quarter. The wind was a factor, but it was St Bedes attack on the ball and centre clearances that caught us out. They smashed us with their constant entry into their forward line, which resulted in four goals to zip. Not a great start, however the positive from the opening quarter was that our backline were once again very resilient.

Second quarter saw the Blues peg back a few goals. Our forwards were starting to come into the game, but St Bedes were still looking dangerous around stoppages. The home team looked to be controlling the game, and headed into the sheds at half time with a spring in their step. The message to the Blues was simple – work harder, and be confident. As long as we’re in the game and give ourselves a chance, you never know what can happen.

With a few positional changes, DeLa started the third quarter well. Again we were against the wind, however our intensity had lifted and strength around stoppages had dramatically improved. Our on ballers looked to have purpose, and this attitude quickly spread throughout the team. Plenty of inspirational contests were being won, and we could sense that the opposition were looking a little worried. Three goals to their two against the prevailing breeze was a massive improvement. Momentum had definitely swung in our favour, but we still had a 15 point deficit to overcome.

Well the boys saved their best to last……..they kept on putting their bodies on the line, tackling, hunting in numbers and playing with intent. Goals from both Russell and Healy were inspirational, the players were riding high, and you could smell the belief. The game lifted a notch and both teams were going in hard. A quick rush kick into our forward line resulted in a mad scramble, Russell emerged with the ball and snapped truly. The Blues were now slightly in front for the first time, with only a couple of minutes to run on the clock. The last two minutes were hectic, but DeLa showed composure with ball in hand and got over the line to record a memorable win. Plenty of cheers and jubilation appropriately followed for the Blue and Gold.

Goals: P. Russell 4, J. Pickles 2, A. Liakakos 1, S. Filipovic 1, L. Healy 1
Best: S. Filipovic, J. Pickles, P. Russell, T. Martin, L. Liakakos, C. O’Meara