THE Cohuna Kangas have solidified themselves in the top five with a hard-fought 13-point victory over Nyah-Nyah West United at the weekend.
A six-goal to two first half put the Kangas 24 points up, before the margin was extended to 36 with a quarter to play.
The Demons fought back over the final 30 minutes with 10 scoring shots to two, but it was too little too late, with the Kangas holding on to record an 11.9 (75) to 8.14 (62) win.
With two more scoring shots, NNW United had their chances throughout the match but inaccuracy in front of goals was again costly, particularly in the final minutes, when several crucial shots at goal missed.
After three straight victories, Cohuna coach Tyson Findlay was impressed with his team’s performance and confident it was the start of big things to come.
“I felt we played the best footy we have all year for the first three quarters to be honest,” Findlay said.
“Our pressure, intensity and ball use all over the ground was back to the Cohuna of old and the way we’ve played the last few years.
“Full credit to (NNW United) as they really lifted in the last quarter and surged with numbers, but I still felt it was one of those games that we were relatively in control of.
“They played surge football and got mass numbers around the contest, hunted the ball and got some goals purely through work rate in that last quarter.
“Jarrod Stokes was all class and is a game-changer for them, he was huge and we honestly had no answer for him in that last 30 minutes.”
While the visitors had winners across the ground, particularly in the midfield with Joel Helman and Daniel Coates controlling stoppages and Daniel Paterson providing drive off half-back, Findlay reserved special praise for hard-working forward Dylan Johnstone, who kicked three goals.
“(Johnstone’s) work rate across the half-forward line was just sensational,” Findlay said.
“He took some really strong contested marks and really stood up in some vital moments for us.
“We had plenty of guys contribute though, it was a solid team effort in the end, but I also thought ‘Ando’ (Christopher Anderson) in the ruck was fantastic – his tap work gave us plenty of first use in the midfield.
“Our pressure on their ball users, and not allowing them to get that forward handball and run and carry the ball which they like, was a massive factor in us getting the points.
“Our ball use when we had it across half-back and through the middle of the ground was better than it has been too – I thought we used the ball well going inside our forward 50 which helped our talls as well.”
While Stokes was instrumental for the home side in dragging them back into the contest, so too was Riley Daniels, who moved into the midfield with immediate effect for the Demons.
Joel Campbell was also among NNW United’s better players, along with midfielder Kayne Davidson, Zack Threadgold and the in-form Joel Walsh.
FINAL SIREN
| NNW UNITED | 0.4 | 2.6 | 4.8 | 8.14 | 62 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COHUNA | 2.4 | 6.6 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 75 |
VOTES
3 – Dylan Johnstone (Cohuna Kangas)
2 – Jarrod Stokes (NNW United)
1 – Daniel Paterson (Cohuna Kangas)
