Well it was a true winter game of footy…..freezing cold with frost on the ground and all of the mums rugged up including beanies. This is the weather for the Rovers under 9 team!
The first quarter began with Kitty Kat streaming down the wing and a perfect kick to the forward line. Next we saw a great defensive effort from Eddie P and little Ashton was in everything. We saw a great example of linking the footy with handballs from Kai to Charlie to Lincoln and finally to Jackson N – the end result was a GOAL. Rovers were already on top and looking menacing. Cruz down back was dominating with one stretch of play involving a beautiful spin turn and a clearing kick to Kitty Kat who marked a difficult swirling ball. Next Kai did a Dusty with a fantastic fend off which resulted in Lincoln snagging a goal just like Jack Higgins. Eddie was everywhere in the quarter and Cruz was Rance like with a goal saving tackle. The quarter was all Tigers….I mean Rovers!
The second quarter continued in the same vein with Lincoln showing us his silky under 10 skills. Boston laid a great tackle which lead to Dusty (Kai) kicking to Jackson B who marked truly. Will got his hands on the ball, handballed to Lincoln who got it to Jackson N and another goal was on the board. Seb took a great mark and pushed it forward which lead to another goal to the Rovers. Strangely Dimma (Jules) was losing his marbles despite the domination….Again we saw Lincoln feature with the ball ending up with Jackson B who snagged a goal for the Rovers. The ball continued to surge forwards play after play, with Jackson N dodging 3 of his fellow teammates and snagging another. Will also snagged a goal….domination was the theme….but yet Dimma was still scowling…
The Rovers came out after the break with no sign of easing off with snags to Dusty and Kitty Kat. Charlie E laid a tackle and cleared with a handball to Seb who kicked it long. Jackson N decided he was hungry and tried to eat rather than mark the ball….cold mornings and heavy footballs to the chin never goes well…..The new recruit Jeffrey featured heavily in the quarter with many touches and clearing disposal. Another saving tackle by the Rovers and superb passing by Jackson N to Caelen to Eddie P to Cruz to Josh =GOAL. Yet the Rovers were still hungry and Dimma was still stomping along the boundary line. Dimma kept the pressure up by asking Cruz to use his Lethal Weapon in the last quarter!!
Unfortunately for East Malvern the last was a repeat with goals to Josh and Dusty….the runner was busy but celebrating….and wondering when Dimma was going to take his foot off the pedal. Another goal to Kitty Kat and more snags for Dusty….it was now a domination. Dimma was finally smiling and out of superlatives for his little Tiggies.
After the match Dimma shared some wonderful messages for his team:
He described the game as the best performance for the year
Most importantly Dimma was proud of the way the team played
Teamwork was at its strongest with constant passing to teammates in the best position
The team maintained respect for the opposition right to the end with good sportsmanship and no boasting despite the domination
Awards for the day went to Charlie S for his listening / Jackson N for his best outing for the season / Lincoln for his dominating first half / Sebastien for his consistency
Well done Rovers !
