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Rod Boyd - General Manager STEREO 974 (03) 9318 0930 or Mark Stone on 0409 384 619
For Collingwood fans, attending Williamstown games gives us a great chance to get a close look at our up and coming stars and senior players returning from injury.
The intimate surrounds at VFL grounds present a great contrast to the large AFL venues.
This week:
VFL Grand Final
Williamstown vs Box Hill, Sunday 21 September 2.10pm
Optus Oval, Royal Parade, Carlton
Tram #19 from cnr Flinders/Elizabeth Sts. Tram proceeds up Elizabeth St, past Melbourne Central station and up Royal Parade directly to ground
Last Week:
Preliminary Final, TEAC Oval, Port Melbourne
Williamstown 4.6, 9.9, 15.10, 17.11 (113)
Pt Melbourne 2.4, 7.8, 10.11, 15.16 (106)
Goals: Mahoney, Molloy 3, Holland, McKee 2, Baldwin, Betheras, Cloke, Davis, Maxwell, Richardson, Swan
Best: Cranage, Mahoney, Molloy, Holland, King, Fletcher, Davis, Betheras
Reserves Preliminary Final:
Williamstown 6.2, 13.7, 19.9, 29.12 (186)
Pt Melbourne 6.1, 7.2, 13.2, 18.8 (116)
Goals: Hill 4, Runnalls 4, Uhi 4, Ralph 3, Taylor 3, Jarrad 2, Ramsay 2, Sheehan 2, Butler, Lawry, Mullins, Rippon, Theodore
Best: Sheehan, Ralph, Hill, Crow, Taylor, Butler.
The Williamstown Seagulls alliance with Collingwood is a resounding success in only its second year, after the club’s two VFL teams reached their Grand Finals on Sunday.
The reserves, featuring Collingwood listed player Luke Mullins and rookies Justin Crow and Steven Eichner, dominated Port Melbourne to win their way into a Grand Final against home and away ladder leaders the Northern Bullants.
Later on a cold, wet afternoon at Port Melbourne, the Seagulls seniors led all day to overcome the Burra.
In a wind-affected game, Williamstown struggled to put a score on the board early on, but they eventually converted their dominance in general play through goals to Molloy and ex-Magpie Josh Mahoney.
The lead of 14 points at the first change remained the buffer between the sides for much of the game, after the Seagulls matched Port Melbourne’s five goals whilst kicking into the breeze in the second term.
The Gulls again took time to convert with the breeze, but a late 70 metre goal to Cameron Cloke sparked a scoring burst and they led by 29 points at the final change.
The breeze became a gale at the start of the last quarter, but when elevated rookie Nick Maxwell marked bravely and kicked truly in the opening minutes, Williamstown seemed home.
Port would not be denied, however, and came with a rush, on the back of huge goals from well beyond fifty metres. In the end, the break was too much to bridge and the hard work of Williamstown earlier in the game paid off with a 7 point win.
The ‘Gulls thrived on the back of hard work from VFL players Cranage(ex-Carlton), Mahoney (Collingwood and Western Bulldogs) and Fletcher ( Brisbane, Geelong, Fremantle, St Kilda), but the performance of the Collingwood listed players was crucial.
Rupert Betheras set the tone with a prolific first quarter on the wing and he was hard at the ball throughout, finishing with 26 possessions and a goal. The only mark against him was that his opponent, Kangaroo Michael Stevens, also gained plenty of the ball by game’s end.
Brodie Holland was slow starting in the AFL-like tempo, but was a creative, speedy and damaging midfielder for the last three quarters, amassing 30 constructive touches. Coach Bradley Gotch was keen to rest Brodie, but he ended up thriving on the hard work, gaining a second wind and running out the game strongly. Holland played all but 20 minutes and pulled up well.
Steve McKee had limited time in the ruck, but provided an excellent, skilled and mobile presence up forward, kicking two goals, then put out some spotfires when pushed back on to dangerous Port talls later in the game. When positioned at centre half forward, Steve nabbed 10 possessions and kicked two goals, providing the main target with Baldwin and Richardson struggling.
Nick Maxwell did not have a huge influence, but showed his quality late in the game with his gutsy mark and skilful goal into the breeze. He played all but 17 minutes and was ‘solid, not outstanding’ according to Bradley.
Glen Freeborn was his usual tight, efficient self, minding the small forwards and mashalling the kick-outs, but he won only 10 touches.
David King showed plenty of dash running from the back pocket. Built like a tank, he showed great initiative and poise under pressure, was not stopped once he got going and generally used the footy well with his 21 disposals.
Guy Richards was good in the ruck, up against another touted prospect in David Hale and took a couple of convincing grabs under pressure. Bradley would have preferred him to win more than 7 possessions, but is convinced the larger Optus Oval will suit his game in the Grand Final.
Leon Davis, 16 touches, 4 marks, 1 goal, continued his excellent form as a roaming forward, setting up and kicking a brilliant goal into the wind in the second quarter, and keeping the ball in Williamstown’s forward line with his skill and pace during a tense last quarter. His form has been excellent for weeks and being ‘genuinely at the fall of the ball’ and giving a good contest will ensure his name stays before the senior selectors.
Jarrod Molloy was again a match winner, first busting into packs as a ruck rover, then taking big marks and kicking three superb goals as a forward. He is fit, firing and ready if called upon. His experience and vital attack on the ball proved crucial in the final minutes. ‘There’s not much more he can do’ said Bradley Gotch of his senior chances. ‘It just depends on whether there is a role for him, given the match-ups against Port.’ Jarrod had 20 possessions, took 7 marks, and kicked 3 goals.
Dane Swan started slowly, with a few fumbles and a couple of missed opportunities playing up forward, but showed his usual vigour as the game progressed, and booted a crucial, more difficult major in the second half. He ended up with 21 touches and 9 marks.
Mark McGough was not as prolific as he can be, and spent longer periods than expected on the bench. He was far from disgraced and perhaps suffered from the surplus of in-form, similarly nuggety midfielders such as Fletcher and Lloyd, who played well.
Exciting young midfielder Luke Shackleton didn’t take a backward step, but like Mark, didn’t have a huge influence, despite finding conditions to suit. He had 13 touches and 7 handball receives.
Bo Nixon was competitive in a defensive role: ‘pretty tidy’ according to Bradley Gotch, and kept former Roo and Tiger David Bourke to 1 goal. He won 18 possessions, took 4 marks and had 6 handball receives.
Cameron Cloke had a forgettable first half, but was an influence in the second. He kicked a crucial goal in the third term, then was strong into the breeze in the last quarter when moved into the ruck, winning 6 possessions. He ended up taking 5 marks in unsuitable conditions.
Mark Richardson didn’t seem to move freely after returning from a foot injury, but managed to kick a goal and shepherd another through, playing deep in the forward line
Luke Mullins was unlucky to miss senior selection, but played well for the reserves in their big win. Bradley Gotch said that he simply had too much of the same type of player in Mark McGough, Brad Lloyd, Adrian Fletcher and Luke Shackleton. His form remains sound.
Brad Gotch was happy and relived to overcome a high class, persistent foe who had beaten Williamstown twice during the year. He noted that the game was played at a more of an AFL tempo, with fast movement of the footy. ‘It was structurally more open than a lot of VFL games’ he said.
He is faced with more selection dilemmas this week, given the likely inclusion of Brodie Holland in the senior Magpie line-up, and the absence of injuries, which leaves more players than there are places.
Brad respects Grand Final opponent Box Hill, despite Willi beating them by 49 points in a Qualifying Final. Blessed with plenty of AFL talent in their ranks, Box Hill have plenty of slef confidence after twice come from behind to record victories in cut-throat finals. They led the VFL ladder for most of the season.
History
Collingwood’s VFL affiliate Williamstown, is one of the oldest and proudest clubs in the country. Formed in 1864, Willi joined the VFA in 1884 and gained their current blue and gold colours after merging with South Williamstown in 1888.
They were known as the ‘Villagers’ until the 1930s, when they became the Seagulls.
The main historical link to Collingwood was the recruiting of the Magpie legends Ron Todd and Des Fothergill in 1939. Todd still holds the Williamstown goalkicking record with 607, including 188 in one season.
The club won 14 flags in the 20th century, including five in the 1950s. The latest great era of the club was the late 80s, when they played in four Grand Finals, winning two.
Their narrow victory in 1990, was particularly sweet. The Seagulls went in as underdogs and had lost the previous two Grand Finals. They reeled in a seven goal deficit in the last quarter and injured club great Billy Swan kicked a long goal in the dying minutes to win the game. His son Dane is now on the Collingwood list.
Like many VFA/VFL clubs, Williamstown struck difficulties during the 1990s, but club stalwarts rallied. After a brief dalliance with the Western Bulldogs, the club approached Collingwood, whose chief executive, Greg Swann, was an ex-President and 80 game Seagull player.
Culturally, the alliance of two clubs with a working class heritage and large supporter bases in their respective competitions has been a good fit. The partnership has been fine-tuned and both parties are happy enough to have recently extended the deal until 2008.
For more on Williamstown, see:
http://williamstown.footballvictoria.com.au
