Giants snatch two close wins

22 Aug 2016 by Glen Davis

Under 14
The Giants under 14 side played off in an elimination final this week at the Wangaratta Showgrounds against the fourth placed Tigers. Played in great conditions the Giants were quietly confident of an upset having beaten the Tigers earlier in the year.

The first quarter saw the Tigers jump the Giants and they got straight onto the scoreboard kicking 4 goals to 1. The Giants were looking a little flat with several players struggling to get into the game. Samantha Pritchard was showing all however what finals football meant to her laying several crushing tackles.

In the second term the Giants, still struggling to match the physicality of the Tigers, were however able to match the scoring and at halftime went in trailing by 14 points. Jesse Walker was having a great game on the wing showing the courage and commitment asked of him and he took several towering marks in the quarter.

The third quarter saw the Tigers score another early goal and it was looking ominous for the Giants however late in the quarter the Tigers began to slow down and the Giants started to get on top. Moved to full back Josh Milner was fantastic this week but, at the final break we still had the Giants trailing by 14 points.

With a sense that the Tigers were running out of legs, coach Davis urged the team to take the game on and have one final push. The Giant’s big guns responded with Dave Button and Ben Wheeler really having a crack while Rory Wapling kept his foot on the Tiger’s jugular with terrific field kicking and superb set up across half forward. With a defensive wall setup by the Giants, the Tigers found it impossible to get past. With a goal to Will O’Donoghue and with only 4 minutes left on the clock the Giants hit the lead for the first time in the match. From there Tom Levy and Deakyn Kohler finished off the Tigers with one each and the Giants came away with a 14 point win.

What an amazing come from behind win and this should give the team plenty of confidence going into this week’s semifinal against the Bulldogs. For the coaching staff, they all eventually recovered but have asked for the de-fib unit to be moved a little closer next time!!

Giants 9-12-66 def. Wang Tigers 8-4-52

Goal Kickers: Tom Levy 4, Brodie Laird, Rory Wapling, Deakyn Kohler, Will O’Donoghue, Josh Hyland

Best Players: Rory Wapling, David Button, Ben Wheeler, Jesse Walker, Josh Milner, Samantha Pritchard

Under 16
In the first week of WDJFL finals Benalla Giants took on Wangaratta Tigers in the Qualifying final with much of the game played under lights at Wangaratta Showgrounds.

Tigers hit the ground running scoring the first goal of the game. The Giants moved the ball forward on a number of occasions but failing to register a major. At quarter time Tigers were holding onto a slender 9 point lead.

The second term saw the Giants dominate the quarter having 8 scoring shots with the forwards starting to convert. With everyone playing their role the Giants were able to turn a quarter time deficit into an 11 point lead at half time.

The third term was a very evenly matched quarter with neither side backing away for the contest. At three quarter time the Giants were still holding onto a 7 point lead with a number of players starting to run out of legs.

The last quarter saw some of the best junior football for the season with Tigers taking the lead with 90 seconds of the final term remaining. To the credit of all the Giants they remained composed taking the ball forward with a well-timed snap at goal putting the Giants back in front. The Giants were able to hold and win by 5 points setting up a Semi Final clash with College with the opportunity to go straight into the Grand Final.

Giants 8-12-60 def. Wang Tigers 8-7-55

Goals: Tom Moloney 4, Paddy Warner 1, Alex Winzer 1, Rhys Goodley 1, Campbell McCoy 1

Best: Riley Johnson, Brayden Wapling, Rhys Goodley, Paddy Warner, Tom Moloney, Nathan Holmes, Campbell McCoy, Dylan Sinclair



Location

Wangaratta Showgrounds

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