Seniors – Slaughter opponents before precipitation pummels players
Last week Uni Blues took the points against bottom side Marcellin. This week they took the points against top side Collegians. The margin against Marcellin? 156 points. The margin against Collegians? 108 points. And at the beginning of the third quarter it looked like the Blues would win by much more. The rot started in the first quarter as the Blues flew out of the blocks. The level of intensity was high
and the skills were crisp. Pat Hayes and Tim Hunt were welcomed back into the side and demonstrated why they are so highly-rated by many astute judges. The Blues were winning the ball all over the ground, and feeding it out to their many runners who did not disappoint with their disposal. When the siren sounded, the Blues were up 38 points to 12. Collegians looked to improve their accuracy in the second quarter, but unfortunately they hardly got within range to take a shot. The Blues lifted in the second quarter thanks to some superb tandem ruckwork from Tim Muhlebach and Jack Watts. The ruckmen gave players like Mark Paterson, Ben McConnell, Dan Nicholson and Hunt first use to put the Lions to the sword. To compound problems for the purple menace, Watts and Muhlebach drifted forward to kick four and two goals respectively. During the second term, Watts took a stunning pack mark that typified the skill, intent and aggression of his side. As supporters gathered around a warm cup of tea in the Pavvy, the Blues led 100 to 19. An amazing performance, especially considering Collegians’ unbeaten status coming into the game. In the first ten minutes of the third stanza, it looked as though it would be a continuation of the impressive procession of the first half. Pat Smith and Sam Chadwick continued to pepper the goals as all of the play was in the Blues forward half. Then the rain came down. A collective sigh of relief came from the Lions players and supporters as the downpour of rain put an end to the downpour of goals in their leaky defense. From the point that the ran came, only 2 more goals were kicked for the game, 1 each. The game descended into an old-fashioned muddy slog and as the difference was over 100 points, there was not a lot of point to most of the last half. Paul Butko’s stunning soccer goal had Pim Verbeek on the telephone looking at a foil for Tim Cahill up front, but that was the only highlight. Smith finished the game with 4 goals, and Chadwick 3 as the Blues sent a clear message to the rest of the competition with their annihilation of the trend-setter in 2010.
University Blues: 20 – 15 – 135
Collegians: 3 – 9 – 27
Best: T.Muhlebach, J.Meagher, D.Nicholson, B.McConnell, T.Hunt, J.Watts
Goals: J.Watts 4, P.Smith 4, S.Chadwick 3, P.Butko 2, T.Muhlebach 2, H.Vickers-Willis 1, D.Nicholson 1, B.McConnell 1, P.Hayes 1, Q.Gleeson 1
Reserves – Play inconsistently but come away with a win
Another week, another five changes to the Mighty Uni Blues Twos. They welcomed in Ed Clark for his first game in the Black and Blue for a number of years. The changes mattered not, as the Blues Twos juggernaut rolled on, notching up their seventh win for the year. It took some time for them to get rolling, as Collegians got the jump on them in the first quarter. Jackson Brooke played his first game ever for the Blues Twos, and he started well, gathering numerous possessions early. Damon Byrne was also working very hard through the middle but it wasn’t enough as the Lions went in at quarter time up by 11 points. Coach Maddocks implored his side to lift their intensity and they did during the second term. The Blues attacked the goals with 10 scoring shots while keeping Collegians to 2. Unfortunately, they were not accurate enough to go out to a greater half-time lead. Jack Townley was welcomed back into the side and was providing a solid target up forward. Steen Balodis and James Van De Pol were accumulating possessions through the middle of the ground, and were using the ball well with their sublime skills. At the main break, the Blues were up by two goals and they needed to lift in the second half to keep the purple men at bay. The Blues were again inaccurate in the third quarter, but managed to keep Collegians at bay thanks to some great defensive work from the ever-reliable, Ben Millard. Millard continually repelled Lions’ attacks, and returned the ball to the midfield run of Van De Pol, Balodis, Byrne and Brooke. The last term was the Blues’ best. They kicked away thanks to some hard work from Dirk Heinz. Heinz showed a return to form as he patrolled the half-forward line like a hungry tiger. Tom Girdwood kicked two for the game and again provided a target while resting up forward, as full-forward Townley kicked four for the game. It was a pleasing win for the twos, but they are ever-aware that they will need to be better than that to win future games against top-four opponents. The win leaves the Blues Twos with seven wins from nine games and in third position on the ladder at the half-way point of the season. The race looks to be between the Blues, Old Melburnians (1st/win), De La Salle (2nd/loss) and Old Xaverians (4th/loss), and it could be a very tight and interesting second half of the season.
University Blues: 11 – 15 – 81
Collegians: 7 – 4 – 46
Best: J.Van De Pol, S.Balodis, D.Byrne, D.Heinz, J.Brooke, B.Millard
Goals: J.Townley 4, T.Girdwood 2, J.Brooke 1, J.Van De Pol 1, B.Merriman 1, N.Taylor 1, D.Heinz 1
Thirds – Blitz opposition with sterling second half
After an easy week against the bottom side, the Blues Tertiary Team returned to the familiar surroundings of Princes Park to do battle against Collegians of Crawford Oval. After some slow starts early in the season, the focus was to begin well against the reigning premiers. The Blues did begin well, consistently winning the ball around the ground and moving forward. Some dubious forward entry work meant that the Blues did not capitalise as they should have, leaving the door open for the Lions. Jason Clifford began the day well across half-back, winning plenty of the ball and kicking the Blues forward. Will Hartnell was also collecting the ball at will from his wing and sending the Blues deep into attack. The Blues went in at the first break leading by two goals and well-aware that some solid challenges lay ahead. The Blues returned to the fray and attacked the ball with ferocity. They kept on winning the ball and maintained possession but could not find a regular avenue to goal. Ralph Wilson was doing a sterling job across half-back and Dom Vincent was irrepressible while winning the ball in contested situations. In stark contrast to the Blues, Collegians had two forward entries for the quarter for two goals. Still, the difference between the two sides remained at two goals during the long break. The message to players was clear as they discussed where they could improve, kick to more dangerous positions in the forward line. Jack Eastman was an immediate beneficiary at the beginning of the third quarter as the Blues kicked toward their full-forward in Billy Girdwood. Girdwood contested strongly, the ball spilled and Eastman strolled into an open goal. Jack Heinz continued to work hard across half-forward as he threw himself at the ball and was rewarded with three goals for his efforts. Girdwood also got amongst the action as he continued his good form with three goals. Liam Quin started slowly but a left foot goal from a tight angle sparked the big forward, as he lifted his efforts late in the game. The difference was only 5 goals at three-quarter time but the Blues blew their opponents away in the last quarter. Quin kicked three for the quarter with many thanks to his mid-field kicking to the hot spot. Rory Kennedy continued his hard mid-field running and slipped forward to kick his third for the game, while Andy Christensen played very well off his wing and kicked a pair. Wilson took an incredible one-handed mark in the last which was inexplicably not paid, but he was still a stand-out in his efforts on one of Collegians’ dangerous forwards. The win leaves the Blues in third position on the ladder at the half-way mark. As with the reserves, this leaves an exciting run home for Coach Baumgartner’s men as they do battle with other finals aspirants, Old Xaverians, De La Salle and Old Melburnians.
University Blues: 19 – 16 – 130
Collegians: 6 – 7 – 43
Best: J.Clifford, W.Hartnell, R.Kennedy, J.Heinz, R.Wilson, D.Vincent
Goals: L.Quin 4, J.Heinz 3, R.Kennedy 3, W.Girdwood 3, A.Christensen 2, J.Eastman 2, D.Marshall 1, K.Laws 1
Under 19s – Fall short against league leaders
Uni Blues Under 19s came up against powerhouse De La Salle at Crawford Oval in an exciting clash. The Blues were fresh of a moral-boosting win and were keen to take it up to De La Salle who sat unbeaten on top of the ladder. The Blues ran out full of vigour but De La were too strong early and kicked five of the first six goals. Llewyn Butler was prodigious in his efforts and won the final centre break of the quarter to give Charles Shaw the ball for a fine running goal on the bell. The Blues looked to plug away at De La in the second and Corey Somerville set a great example. Unfortunately they were only able to score one goal for the quarter as their opponents proved to classy. Star-midfielder Angus Nice was working his way into the game but he didn’t have quite enough team-mates at his level. The bell sounded for half time with the Blues 39 points down. The third quarter saw De La Salle really assert their authority on the game, kicking 8 goals to 2 to pull away to an insurmountable lead at the final lemon break. As the rain came down during the final quarter, the Blues could have been forgiven for thinking that their comeback hopes were shot. But, to their credit, they continued to work hard and create opportunities for themselves. Daniel Zambon continued his fine mid-season form along with Henry Hanlon. Tom Emmett was another who battled out the game and moved the ball forward where Max Allen and Somerville were each able to convert two goals for the game. De La Salle ran out the game 64 point winners, leaving the Blues disappointed with the result. At the half-way mark of the season, the Blues have four wins, four losses and a draw. They sit fourth on the ladder, half a game and percentage out of the four. The loss gives Coach Embling a lot to think about over the Queen’s Birthday break as the June holidays can be a tough time for the Uni team. However, the Blues often start the season slowly due to the enormous turn-over of players during each pre-season and many players not knowing each other at all, let alone their playing styles. The Blues often come home with a wet sail late in the season as their team begins to gel. So despite a tough upcoming month, all is not lost for Embling’s men and they will remain confident heading into the back nine. Go Blues.
University Blues: 9 – 8 – 62
De La Salle: 21 – 10 – 136
Best: L.Butler, C.Somerville, T.Emmett, H.Hanlon, A.Nice, D.Zambon
Goals: M.Allen 2, C.Somerville 2, S.Bryce 1, L.Butler 1, A.Dugdale 1, A.Nice 1, C.Shaw 1
