Plenty to crow about

By Ken Moore
PERENNIAL finalist, Longwarry, appears to be peaking at the right end of the season after it accounted for Lang Lang by 57 points on Saturday.
However, the end margin was not a true reflection of what transpired for most of the game because the Tigers had the equal of play until three-quarter time when they only trailed by 13 points before the Crows finished full of running with an eight-goal-to-one last quarter.
The Crows have now consolidated sixth spot and will play finals football for the sixth consecutive year.
Longwarry, the home side, led by 10 points at quarter time and while it looked the marginally better team in the second quarter, both teams traded three goals apiece and the Crows went into the main break with a 12-point advantage.
The second quarter was a scrappy affair, too often punctuated by the many turnovers from both sides.
Key Crow defender Ken Towt, ruckman Luke Tymensen and Ben Cuckson, at centre half-back, were all prime movers for the home side in the first quarter.
In the second, wingman Danny Wells, captain Tye Holland, half-back Andrew McKenna and change ruck Jason Voumard were all prominent and Luke Serong and Beau Runnalls, with two goals each, were the pick of the Crow forwards.
Until half-time the Tigers were well served by the hard-running ruck-rover Adam Baxter, half-back David Williams and Kurt Batt, who scored four goals and lurked menacingly across the forward line.
In the third quarter the standard of the game rose and both teams moved the ball with far more fluency and purpose.
Strongly built Lang Lang forward Luke Muirhead potted the first goal of the second half, but it was cancelled out less than two minutes later when fleet-footed Longwarry wingman Danny Wells snapped a wonderful goal.
Tiger half-forward Dale McIntyre reduced the margin to nine points before Runnalls steered through his third at the 10-minute mark.
The Tigers then produced a sustained period of attack and were rewarded with majors by Baxter, with a clever overhead snap, and soon afterwards Clint Fulton to trim the deficit back to only three points.
In spite of this all their hard work to get back into the game was undone when another goal to elusive Crow Beau Runnalls was followed by two in quick succession by Luke Serong to give the home side a 19-point lead.
Tiger star Kurt Batt bagged his fifth goal and the last of the quarter to keep his side within striking distance and only 13 points down at the last break.
At the five-minute mark of the last quarter, the cagey Serong got his hands on the ball close in and with a nice spin to shake off his opponent, conjured the vital first goal of the final term and gave the home side a 20-point lead and some breathing space.
Thereafter the Crows proceeded to dominate and with goals by Runnalls, Voumard, Holland and Runnalls again, Longwarry closed in on victory well before the halfway mark of the final term.
Mid term Batt marked and ran around Crow ruckman Luke Tymensen to post the Tigers’ only major for the quarter in a very disappointing finish.
In the latter minutes, Runnalls booted his eighth goal and Voumard added two more to make it three goals for the match.
In a good Crow team effort, Beau Runnalls (seven goals) starred in the second half and made the difference with his clever finishing skills.
Ken Towt and Ben Cuckson anchored the defence and had tremendous support from Blair Weller and Mark Light.
Fellow stoppers Andrew McKenna and Tim Milner read play well and ran the ball out of defence on a number of occasions and set up many forward plays.
Mat Campbell, Tye Holland and Danny Wells pumped the ball forward regularly and relief ruckman Jason Voumard was a focal target across the forward line in the second half.
After a difficult season Longwarry coach Graeme Jose was a relieved man after the match.
“At last we’ve concreted a spot in the top six,” he said.
“If we lost today we were in trouble.
“ I thought we played steady football today and it was good that we could turn it on when it mattered in the last quarter. ”
He added that it was an even more satisfying win because in their first encounter this season the Tigers won.
Lang Lang forward Kurt Batt (six goals) proved a constant threat with his strong hands and leading, midfield Sean Dwyer got plenty of the ball and Jason Kelly, Ricky Caddell and half-back David Williams offered plenty of resistance in defence.
Corey Dowson did well in the midfield, but tarnished his game by being sent off in the last quarter.
Midfield Hadley Tomamichel was busy and big-bodied veteran ruckman Brendan Boulton tried hard and has given the Tigers sturdy service over the past two months.
A disappointed Lang Lang captain-coach Clint Evans, sidelined with a leg injury, lamented his team’s turnovers and lack of discipline.
He told his team that they were only a middle-of-the-road side because of the disappointing efforts they put in like the last quarter when they badly fell away.
“For three quarters we had a crack and kept coming, but in the last quarter poor kicking and two send-offs proved costly.”