By Brad Kingsbury
IF NARRE Warren starts this Sunday’s preliminary final in ‘idle mode’ as it did on Saturday, their gallant push for another shot at Doveton in the grand final will be over swiftly.
All the rhetoric in the world about how competitive the Magpies were after quartertime last week means nothing, because the fact is they were scoreless and trailed by 52 points at the first change.
No opponent will allow a team to recover from that, least of all this week’s young challengers from Pakenham.
The Lions are on a mission and basically have nothing to lose and a grand final berth to gain. Most admit they were lucky to make the top five, but coach Michael Holland has maintained that the talent is there to worry any opponent.
“It’s like a rollercoaster as a matter of fact the season has been a rollercoaster,” he chuckled.
“We just scraped into the finals, but I still believed we were good enough to make it and as I’ve said all along, we could be competitive if not beat sides above us if we play to our potential.
“Pakenham has a reputation of rising to the occasion and so far we’ve done it, but we have to bring our game to another level this week.”
While the pressure is off at Pakenham, the opposite is the case at Fox Road after all three teams were unceremoniously dumped in last weekend’s second semifinals.
Senior coach Paul Hamilton has injury worries with several players starting to show the effects of finals’ football.
A key to the Magpies onball brigade is Michael Collins who missed last week and Hamilton said he was no certainty to play on Sunday.
“He tried to come up on the weekend, but we chose to leave him out. He will be considered next week, but we’ll have to see how he comes up again,” he said.
“We’re not thinking any further past this weekend now and to make a grand final we have to win. It’s simple.”
Narre Warren is expected to make amends for last Saturday’s capitulation to Doveton and does look to have the class across the ground to cover the Lions.
Pakenham’s backline is workmanlike, but covering Lee Clark, Shane Dwyer and Brett Evans for the whole game will be a battle.
Glen Wouters and Simon Ponter will have little respite from Narre Warren’s key defenders Steven Kidd and Brendan Kimber, but the key to the game will be the centre duels.
Pakenham has a distinct edge in the ruck with Justin Sutherland, George Morgan and Wouters teaming up, but the Magpie midfielders are smart and have experience roving to opposition big men.
Again it will be the twin powerhouses of Lincoln Withers and Holland who will have to do the bulk of the heavy inside work for the Lions, but eventually they have to reach their limit and Narre Warren have the rotations to force that this weekend.
This will be no walkover and the sentiment will be with the young Lions, but the Magpies have the forwards to kick a winning score and should progress to the 2005 grand final.