KEYSBOROUGH is sitting in fifth spot after a barnstorming 79point win over Cranbourne at Casey Fields on Saturday.
As the cliche goes, the game was played in two halves with the young home side finally capitulating after a spirited start.
Playing with only 19 men for the third time this season (due to the player points system), the Keysborough bench was forced to limit its rotations through the midfield and had trouble adjusting to the big ground in the first two quarters.
The visitors lost gun centre halfforward Stuart Nagle in the first minute of the game with a finger injury, further limiting their options.
Cranbourne defender Matthew Rus blanketed leading goalkicker Luke McGuinness and while Keysborough players fiddled with the ball, Cranbourne wasted little time getting it to talented teenager Troy TharleAdams who slotted five goals at fullforward.
Keysborough trailed by nine points at halftime and coach Paul Jeffries reminded his side of the importance of the game and the mistakes they had been making during the break.
“I didn’t rant and rave, I just told them to go direct,” he said.
“They were playing stupid football. Credit to Cranbourne in the first half they forced us out wide, but then we realised this and played through the centre corridor and that was that.
“We kicked 10 goals in the third quarter and should have kicked 15.”
The difference after halftime was Keysborough’s experience under pressure, with players such as Clinton King, Shaun Daly and ruckman Shaun Witherden dominating their younger opponents.
The Burra slotted 13 goals to one in the second half and cruised away to win with something to spare.
Greg Walker finished the day with five goals, while Chris Capsalis, Kane Tucker and Matthew Freeman were in great touch for the victors.
Rus was joined by Josh Eden and Leigh Horsburgh among Cranbourne’s better players and Jeffries agreed that the potential at Casey Fields was exciting.
“We played well after halftime but before that they were good,” he said.
“They are coached very well and if they stick with their kids they are going to be a very good side in a couple of years.”
NARRE WARREN dominated its game against Devon Meadows at Fox Road, running away to win by 121 points.
The Magpies were boosted by the inclusion of Dandenong Stingray players Darren Sheen and Trent Shinners, whose effort in the ruck excited supporters who have been concerned about the club’s bigman stocks.
From the first bounce it was obvious that the home side was a class above its battling and undermanned opposition, with topclass forward Lee Clark looking dangerous and inform onballer Shane Brewster also on target when running forward.
The Magpies banged on eight majors and kept their opponents goalless in the opening quarter and the rest of the game became a procession, with the margin increasing steadily at each break.
Clark and Brewster booted 14 of their side’s 27 goals and were joined on the bestplayers list by Shinners, Glenn Hamilton, Danny Brewster and Shane Dwyer.
There were few highlights for Devon Meadows supporters, but Rhyse Shortis, Craig Taylor, Robert Baumgartner and David Grose battled their hearts out against the odds all day.
The Panthers have dropped away significantly over the past few weeks with a number of senior players either injured or unavailable and most of the club’s talented under18 prospects playing in the early game in an effort to lift the junior team into the five.
DINGLEY copped a 30goal thrashing by a pumped up Berwick at the Edwin Flack Reserve in a result that surprised nobody.
Ryan Donaldson booted 14 goals to shoot to 74 for the year, while talented aboriginal player Chris Kickett snared six majors.
After Berwick booted 11 goals in the opening term and kept the Dingoes scoreless in perfect conditions, the game became a predictable affair.
The lead increased steadily as the game progressed and most of the interest centred on how many Donaldson would kick, together with the performance of Berwick under18 prospects Paul VanSchilt and Shaun Barnes.
For Dingley the result was disappointing, given the players thought they could be competitive against the Wickers.
Their better players included Chris Morgan, Rohan Watson, Lazaros Iliopoulos and Mark Harrison.
The struggling Dingoes meet top two sides Narre Warren and Pakenham in the final two rounds before bidding the Casey Cardinia League farewell.
Wicker president Peter Jensen said that the gate was by far the worst for the season and, although the young Dingoes tried as hard as they could, the gulf between them and the rest of the league was great and their move to the Southern Football League next year appeared to be the right decision.
