Casey back on track

By Marc McGowan
THE Casey Scorpions are back on the winners’ list after a 36-point victory over a weakened Geelong outfit at Casey Fields on Sunday.
There was little doubt in the result all day after the Scorpions jumped out to an early lead and held the visiting Cats at arm’s length.
But Casey’s recent goalkicking woes were still apparent and Geelong threatened to cause a boilover when it booted the first two goals of the final quarter to edge within 16 points.
The Scorpions ultimately kicked five of the next six majors, including two each to Melbourne forwards Liam Jurrah and Russell Robertson, to run away with the win.
Robertson hauled in 12 marks, including five contested, but kicked just 3.6 despite having several straight-forward set shots inside 50.
Casey coach Peter German admitted his side was wasteful again, but was happy to pick up his third win of the season.
“It’s probably been the story of our last three weeks, where we’ve actually controlled the bulk of the game, but haven’t been able to kick a winning score,” he said.
“It looked like the same thing was going to happen this week but, to the boys’ credit, they persisted and worked hard enough to limit the opposition.
“We’ve just got to keep working on making the most of our opportunities … (but) we’ll take any win at the moment.”
The Scorpions’ first five scoring shots were behinds, while former Werribee star James Podsiadly broke free of Alex Silvagni early to kick truly for Geelong.
Podsiadly has always been a thorn in Casey’s side, most notably when he helped eliminate it from last year’s finals with an outstanding eight-goal haul.
The Cats’ skipper was nowhere near as dominant on the weekend, but did beat Silvagni in his limited opportunities to finish with four majors.
The Scorpions finally managed their opening six-pointer when Jurrah handballed out of heavy traffic to Michael Newton, who snapped a goal from close range.
Newton followed that effort with a big mark and major only minutes later before Robertson slotted another before quarter-time.
Casey was in complete charge, but should have led by more and appeared to have lost ruckmen Jake Spencer (groin) and Tim Mohr (left shoulder) for the rest of the day.
Mohr returned to the field and the Scorpions’ advantage was 30 midway through the second term until impressive Geelong forward Ben Johnson kicked the first of his two goals.
The sides traded majors until half-time, leaving Casey with a 23-point buffer.
Cats big man Trent West and, to a lesser extent, Dawson Simpson were dominating the makeshift ruck duo of Mohr and James Wall, but the Scorpions’ midfield was still well on top.
Shane Valenti (28 possessions), Lynden Dunn (28) and Clint Bartram (21) were the best of Casey’s onballers, with captain Kyle Matthews still unusually struggling with his disposal.
Geelong registered two of the first three goals of the second half through Taylor Hunt and Podsiadly to draw within 17 points, but the Scorpions lifted again.
Hard-working defender Kyle Cheney (32) and Valenti enjoyed strong quarters and willed Casey to a 29-point break at three-quarter-time.
Cats Jarrod Westwood and Podsiadly, after shaking off Silvagni and running inside 50, booted majors to start the final term.
But Newton and Jurrah combined at the 10-minute mark of the last quarter for a vital goal and Casey never looked back.
Demoted Demon Ricky Petterd booted his second before Robertson kicked consecutive majors.
Jurrah gave the Scorpions a match-high 42-point buffer, but Johnson kicked a consolation goal in the dying minutes.
German was most impressed with his team’s work-rate.
“We knew it was a pretty important game for us today,” he said. “We feel we’re better than where we are on the ladder (ninth), but the result is what counts and we’ve got to continue to keep working on a lot of aspects.”
The Scorpions face Werribee in the ABC-broadcast match at Casey Fields from 1.10pm on Saturday.