BOTH Woorinen and the Mallee Eagles are looking forward to testing themselves against a fellow finals contender ahead of tomorrow’s top of the table clash at Woorinen.
The Tigers and Eagles remain undefeated after the first three rounds, with both clubs having passed their first tests of the season with flying colours last week.
Although there wasn’t much to be learnt from Woorinen’s 21-point win over reigning premiers NNW United given the atrocious conditions, the manner in which the Mallee Eagles dismantled the previously unbeaten Koondrook-Barham by 114 points sent an early warning across the competition.
With the Eagles clearly one of the form teams, the challenge that awaits Woorinen isn’t lost on their senior coach Tim Free, who is acutely aware his team will need to be at their best in order to maintain their unbeaten start to the season.
“It’s a big game for our club and the Eagles have played some really good footy in what is a fairly limited sample size,” Free said.
“I had a good look at them last weekend out at Lalbert and they certainly hit the ground running, they have some very capable players and we’ll need to be at our best to measure up with them.
“Their ball use is quite good so our pressure will need to be at a high standard to try and minimise their efficiency by foot and to try and turn the footy over and keep it inside our front half as much as possible.”
The midfield looms as a clear battleground for both teams, with the ability to get first hands on the ball around the stoppages set to be a key metric used for success by both coaching hierarchy’s.
For Mallee Eagles co-coach Brent Macleod, his team’s ability to win the ball on the inside will be a priority tomorrow, especially against a Woorinen outfit that has strengthened up their midfield over the off-season.
“They (Woorinen) have a good balance of rotating midfielders and I feel they have good depth with guys that go through the middle,” Macleod told The Guardian this week.
“From our game last weekend, our contested work, our pressure and our stoppage work was good for the first half, but according to the stats it turned out to be a pretty even contest in the second half.
“While it didn’t hurt us in terms of the result, it showed that we need to prioritise our inside and contested work.
“We elite at taking the footy away from contest, our pressure and winning contested balls in dispute, but in terms of an overall performance, our contested work on the inside is something that we’re going to prioritise.
“It also appears to be a strength of theirs (Woorinen) as well, so it’s going to be good test to see if we can get that right in the middle, especially around playing our role when it’s not our turn, when they are winning the contest and we aren’t getting the take-aways from stoppage and how we go about influencing the game that way.
“I feel we have the outskirts of the stoppages covered with our structure and our ability to win the ball back in transition under pressure, so the challenge is for us to not give them the footy at the source.”
Free agreed with his Mallee Eagles counterpart, with the Tigers coach acknowledging the need of his team to get their hands on the ball first to not only win the territory battle, but also take away one of his oppositions big strengths.
“I think the midfield battle will be really important, both sides bat fairly deep in that area of the ground, so we’ll need to gain the ascendency early to give our forwards some good looks and kick a winning score,” Free said.
“They (Mallee Eagles) have some dangerous players that we’ll be wanting to put some time into in order to restrict their ball movement with a greater level of pressure.
“They have a really balanced midfield, with some elite inside ball winners as well as some outside class that we’ll need to put some time into, in terms of their delivery inside forward 50.
“We’re just looking forward to the challenge of trying to take some of their strengths away from them and getting it played on our terms as much as possible.”
In a boost to the home sides chances, dangerous utility Kane Reid will come into Woorinen’s line-up for his first game, with Zach Ryan (elbow) set to make way.
The Tigers won’t be the only team with a big name addition however, with Darcy Hourigan set to return for the Eagles after missing last Saturday’s win, with Jacob O’Meara expected to miss with a finger injury.
Although the midfield will be where the match is likely to be won and lost, the Eagles ability to hit the scoreboard will also be another key factor in the result, with the blue and gold army averaging 148 points per game this season.
Andrew Mead-Harding (13 goals) has shown himself to be the main man up forward, with strong contributions from Hourigan (eight goals) Ethan Pinchen (seven goals) and midfielders Harry Allen and Brent Macleod (six goals each).
With the Eagles finding the big sticks as often as they have been, it’s hard to see Woorinen toppling the Eagles provided they bring their current form.
Tip – Mallee Eagles to win by nine points.
KEY MATCH UP
Matthew Gardner v Andrew Mead-Harding
THE return of Ben Booth for the Tigers this season has had a two-pronged positive affect on Woorinen’s back six, with Booth not only slotting seamlessly back into his customary full back role, but also freeing up Matthew Gardner to float across half back.
As such, Gardner has been one of the most influential players for the Tigers, with his ability to read the play and intercept mark combined with his defensive capabilities as a stopper.
With Gardner helping to generate many of Woorinen’s attacking plays, he is now a vitally important member of their back six – even more so than last season.
The best way for the Eagles to keep Gardner quiet might be to keep him honest and not allow him free rein in defence, which means playing someone such as Mead-Harding alongside him and keeping Gardner honest.
THE BURNING QUESTION
Is Lachlan Gardner the best ruckman in the Central Murray?
HARD to argue that the official owner of that title is the guy who won last year’s Jack Betts Medal (Connor Mcdonald) but it’s fair to say that in terms of having an influence on his team, Gardner isn’t far behind.
Was huge in wet conditions last Friday night against the Demons and will be a key player for the Tigers again tomorrow, with the Eagles priding themselves on winning the ball around the stoppages and getting the ball moving in their direction.
That makes Gardner’s performance all the more important, especially with Mallee Eagles ruckman Kieren Bourke in for only his second game of the season.
