Pies keep dream alive

By Brad Kingsbury
SUCCESS over the past three years has not diminished the hunger at Narre Warren and the Magpie faithful left the Toomuc Reserve with their dreams of a fourth consecutive grand final berth firmly in tact on Saturday.
The Magpies put the final touches to a season of domination over neighbouring rivals Berwick with an all-the-way 26-point elimination final victory and set up a huge first semi-final showdown with Cranbourne at Pakenham next Saturday.
Narre Warren went into the no-tomorrow final without star midfielder Daniel Boninkhof, but was still favoured to win after accounting for the Wickers by a total of 100 points in their two meetings during the year.
The return of experience in Jarrod Anderson, Glenn Hamilton, Steven Kidd and Cole Harvey also boosted the Magpies’ line-up.
Berwick selectors added Andrew Pybus to the line up but put their faith in the team that went within three points of downing undefeated Doveton the week before.
Narre Warren opened the game in typical 2009 fashion with talented teenagers Jackson Parker and Justin Marriott joining star team-mates Michael Collins and Chris Lee in the midfield, against more seasoned opponents including Brett Robinson, Jason Rahilly, Andrew Tuck and Adam Mott.
The Magpies took advantage of every spillage and fumble and used their pace to expose the Wickers, who chased valiantly but were simply out-run.
When Berwick did go forward they lacked penetration and direction, which allowed Magpie defender Lee Boyle to run off lumbering Wicker spearhead Grant Noonan time and time again, turning defence into attack.
The Wickers were kept goal-less in the opening term despite entering their 50-metre arc 15 times, while the Magpies made them pay with two goals to Parker and one each to Collins and veteran full forward Brett Evans.
The margin at the first change was 23 points and, except for a patch in the third quarter when Berwick reduced the lead to three goals, Narre Warren held sway from that point on.
There were casualties throughout the afternoon on both sides with Berwick losing vice-captain David Van Diemen to an ankle injury at the start of second quarter, and the Magpies suffering a double blow with captain Glenn Hamilton (shoulder) and reliable defender Jarrod Anderson (knee) exiting the game in the third term.
Berwick coach Glenn Dale had a minor victory when he swapped Brad Miles from defence to attack after quarter time, with Miles being the only Wicker forward prepared to lead up the ground and present.
Strong-marking centre-half forward Jason Heath was swung back to defence after half time and picked up Kidd, leaving a big hole in the Berwick forward line.
One of the more puzzling tactics from Berwick was the decision to allow Collins a tag-free afternoon and he made them pay with two goals and a near best-on-ground performance.
Evans and Marriott also finished with two majors while Parker slotted home four in an exciting performance.
Parker was sensational in bursts and his clash with Page after half time was a highlight, while Boyle is a very smart player and does not have to rely on players up the ground. He was brilliant all day.
Triumphant Magpie coach Matt Shiners was thrilled with the victory but also warned his side had plenty left.
“When we stick to our game plan and instructions we do well but there were a lot of times that we went away from it so there’s improvement there,” he said.
“I thought we overused the footy after quarter time and we probably gave Berwick a chance to get back into it.”
“In the third quarter our inexperience started to have a little bit of an effect. We lost a couple of experienced players and it was down to the younger blokes to put their hands up.”
“They forced us to play catch-up footy and the momentum did change (but) I was pleased with our reaction to that.”
“We’re playing some good footy and we look forward to next week.”
For Berwick, none were better than hard-working youngster Paul Vanschilt on a wing, while Rahilly, Tuck and Heath also flew the flag throughout the afternoon.
Dale was philosophical after the game and said simply that his side was beaten by a better team.
“We got enough of the ball but we just don’t know how to use it. I can’t knock our intensity, the boys always have a go but we let ourselves down with our use of the ball,” he said.
“They were too good and congratulations to them.”
Dale agreed that there had been many positives during the season culminating in the Wickers first senior finals appearance in 10 years, but said the job had only just begun.
“The highlight was blooding so many kids. There were a lot of times that we had six to 10 guys under 21 year old in the team this year,” he said.
“The culture and feeling around the club was good and a vast improvement.”
“Our next step is to get some good young talent through the side and add them to the base that we’ve developed this year.”
He added that the down-side to 2009 had been the performance of the reserves and the consequent depth but that would be addressed as the club moved forward.
“We are at the crossroads and we’ve started now and need to keep progressing.”