WOORINEN have moved into second spot on the ladder after roaring to a 45-point win against Lake Boga.
From the first ball-up, each side made sure their opposition knew they were up for the fight. Woorinen coach Marcus Demaria said his side had expected a hard-fought game.
“We were prepared for them to come out hard at the ball, and try to intimidate us a bit,” he said.
“We tried to get on the front foot and bring it as well.”
“I think we pressured really well, the heat and intensity was there for us early.”
In the first quarter a strong breeze across the ground kept the ball to the northern side of the ground.
Lake Boga’s joint coach Angus Monfries said the conditions led to some hesitation from his side.
“I think I would’ve liked to win that toss,” he said.
“They piled a few on early, and we were probably put on the back foot and became less brave with our ball movement.”
Once they got a handle on the conditions, Woorinen’s kick-and-mark game quickly gave them the upper hand on the scoreboard.
Young forward Otto Conlan kicked the game’s opening goal before Douglas Beames added two more.
The second of Beames’ goals was a gift, the forward being brought to the goal line after a Boga defender was penalised with two 50-metre penalties to end the first term.
As the conditions began to settle, Lake Boga worked their way into the midfield battle. Magpies Jacob Simpson and Jake Warren battled tirelessly all day to try to eke out any advantage for their side.
Both ruckmen gave their all, but although undersized against Simpson, Lachlan Gardner was integral to the Tigers getting first use of the ball.
Gardner won multiple centre clearances from his and his opponents’ taps, cannoning the ball forward to gain meterage.
After David Gourdis kicked Lake Boga’s first goal halfway through the second term, Woorinen again kicked two late goals to lead by 33 points.
Woorinen fiercely held this lead for the rest of the game, their defensive structure across the ground making it tough for Lake Boga to transition the ball into attack.
Demaria said defending was something the side had a strong focus on.
“We focus on defence and how we work to try and win the ball back,” he said. “We made sure to get numbers back in defence and force turnovers.
“Once we got the ball back, we were able use those numbers too.”
With nothing to lose, Lake Boga fought hard in the final term, Monfries applauding the effort of some of their younger players.
“It’s really good to see young players like Xavier Sherlock and Koben Ryan coming in and having a crack in an intense, high-quality game against Woorinen,” he said.
Lake Boga next face Koondrook-Barham, while Woorinen will face a tough test in undefeated Kerang.
FINAL SIREN
| LAKE BOGA | 0.1 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 3.6 | 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WOORINEN | 3.5 | 6.5 | 9.8 | 10.9 | 69 |
VOTES
3 – Lachlan Gardner (Woorinen)
2 – Taylor Cameron (Woorinen)
1 – Josh Domaille (Woorinen)
