November 19, 2024
RALPH'S NEW ROLE
O'Shaughnessy is Xavs' Footy GM
A Century of the Red & Black
Another so-so weekend but now it's time for a much-needed week off. Things go up a notch when football returns after we celebrate King Charles III birthday.
A Sunday stroll with Old Haileybury on Mornane's Paddock resulted in a 44 point victory for the home team. The Bloods, while nowhere near their club's best ever vintage of 2006, showed plenty of endeavour early, quieting the Xaverian crowd and blunting the Red 'n' Black's offence.
But it was tougher to stop Charlie MacIsaac, who booted five goals and was clearly bet afield. Jack Hewitt, his usual aggressive self, was the only other nultiple golakicker on the day. Marcus Stavrou fould plenty of the Sherrin, aided by some nice work from Alec Spralja, who is growing each week as a tap ruckman.
The bye beckons. The team is at 4-4 but has displayed an upside that few teams have. A win at Old Brighton after the break should see them in fourth spot.
Goal Kickers: C. MacIsaac 5, J. Hewitt 2, J. Gangi, M. Stavrou, D. Robinson, C. Holmes, B. Moyle
Best Players: C. MacIsaac, M. Stavrou, S. Ralph, A. Spralja, A. Trigar, J. Hewitt
The Twos chalked up another massive win at the expense of Old Haileybury in their R8 clash on the Roche. The home team made a Sunday morning surprise, bringing in another tall forward to take advantage of the fine conditions. Tall timber is always at a premium, and big fellows with exceptional talent don't fall out of trees, yet today, when the late inclusion booted five goals in the first quarter, an innocent onlooker might have exclaimed, in the tradition of Brian Brushfield, "We've found somethng here."
Seasoned observers, of course, will have recognised the bifg fellow as Matthew Handley, who ended his retirement after just seven games and brought up game number 301 with a dominating effort. He had plenty of helpers, as the Red 'n' Blacks rampaged with some savagery. Chief among his fellow destroyers was Harrison Bell, who booted seven goals. Billy Kennedy kicked two in a commanding performance, while Jack Lowe impressed agan out of the middle, with Dan Tuddeham also impressive.
Goal Kickers:H. Bell 7, M. Handley 6, W. Brusnahan 3, W. Hart 2, B. Kennedy 2, B. Scala 2, B. Egan, C. Dunne, E. Niall, A. Sheedy, D. Tuddenham
Best Players: B. Kennedy, J. Lowe, D. Tuddenham, B. Scala, H. Bell, M. Handley
Old Brighton proved too strong for the WOX at BBO, pulling well ahead in the second term and holding the Xavs thereafter. Conditions were difficult for the 9:20 am start and the home team made better use of them.
Goal Kickers: R. Cox , O. Benston
Best Players: M. Mennilli, T. Mant, R. VandenBoom, A. Benifer, E. Craig, S. Rothfield
Uni Blues beat Old Xavs at Crawford and sent the Red 'n' Blacks back to the pack with a solid 19 point win.
Goal Kickers: C. Bourne, E. Paul, J. Sandman, M. Mahommed, J. Sassi, L.Hecker, W. Exell, H. Bird
Best Players: K. Walford, L. Moore, M. Mahommed, D. Calvert, W.Stevens
Coach Batten reports:
The Xavs welcomed Hampton Rovers to our home away from home for our Round 8 clash. Basil Reserve has been a lifesaver this year, however it is beginning to bear the signs of extra use, so conditions were again wet and slippery. For the second week in a row, we were playing a team we had already faced earlier in the year, with our previous meeting proving particularly tight as Hampton chased down our early lead to win by 11 points. That was a strange game of footy, and to be fair, so was this. However, as we accepted at the end of the match, footy is an imperfect game, some wins are better than others, the same with losses, but you can never discredit 4 points against a real finals rival - and that's what we delivered.
A number of changes to the team this week as our Premier outfit look to find the right mix. We welcomed some new faces, some old faces and some fresh faces back into the fold. A key message was about the challenges we as a group face and how we must build in mechanisms to overcome these. There is a lot of fluidity between our three teams, so it is vital that we have a team/role based game plan and develop a sense of predictability in our style. We need good communication and structure, so that anyone playing can slot in and help us perform to our best. This is still a work in progress, however it will become critical as players leave for holidays over the winter months.
The first quarter, unsurprisingly, was a tight affair. We got the first few clearances through Chris Crisostomos, who is starting to look right at home in the ressies, as he drove us forward. Hampton were equal to the task however, winning their own share of stoppages. Charlie Ralph was getting into dangerous areas forward and was our biggest threat early, proving elusive and hard to match up on. We had most of the play in our half, however we couldn't quite impact the scoreboard accordingly. Hampton were growing into the game, and when they transitioned out of the backline they showed great spread and deadly precision. They only needed a few looks at goal to make them count, and it was proving to be the difference. Our effort was there in patches, but we were also letting ourselves down defensively across the ground. A few excellent set shots from Hampton late as they signalled they were here to play, taking a 6 point lead into the first break.
It's fair to say I wasn't happy at the break. Yes we had a couple of goals, but it felt as if we were waiting for the game to come to us. Hampton on the contrary, were taking it up to us. The upside was that there was plenty of time to turn things around. The second quarter was even tighter. We did a lot right as Jim McCarthy presented strongly up forward, playing his best game of the season. Aaron Ivak was now spending more time in midfield and getting more of it, as we looked to have deeper entries into the forward line. And Ed Nelson was also starting to look at home in the ressies, with a couple of terrific examples on the near side wing of two, three, four, even five efforts! However, we needed another presence to help the forwards. Enter full back turned centre half forward, Will Wrigley. Wrigley was swung forward and told to hold his position at true centre half forward, offering us a great extra target and giving us a focal point. We managed to see more and more of the ball forward now, however our achilles heel (Greek Mythology anyone?) was our overuse across half forward. We would get in dangerous positions, with a big target up front to hit, but often turn it over with an extra handball or short kick. It was workman-like, but the signs were there. We got the only goal of the quarter through Matt Dahlsen as the game was all square at half time.
We drilled into the fundamentals of our gameplan at the main break. Get the ball in motion from the back half, use the fat side, put the ball out in front of our players and find the right target forward - no more messing around with it. Then, defend as high up the ground as possible, starting with the forwards. It requires a high-work rate, but we knew we had plenty in the tank. Things began to click. James Spiridonos was having a mammoth game at centre half back, with several strong contests and a number of intercept marks. It was lifting the spirits of the rest of the team, as Hugo Wyman started to look too powerful for his man at full back. Suddenly we had our defensive foundations in which to attack from. Harry West was moved on the ball and we found our running game through the midfield. Things were clicking, I was relaxing, and the players were feeling more comfortable in the game. Ralph bagged his third and Wrigley finally got his goal (from about 4 shots Wrigs?) We took a slightly more appealing but still tense 12 point lead into the final change.
The final quarter was an excellent demonstration of game management. We couldn't sit back, but we could play smart football. Ivak, West and Crisostomos were excellent in the middle, giving us first choice when the game was there to be won, as the boys continued to spread the field and make it hard for Hampton. Nelson was tireless as he pressured the Hampton backs into making mistakes, and Dahlsen showed poise at half forward to find Justin Salce inside F50 when he could have blasted away. Salce is having a strong year, with a terrific range of skills that enables him to play different roles up forward. He is always, always good for a couple of goals at least, and at the start of the quarter I had a small feeling that it could be a Salce quarter. This was all but confirmed when he slotted his second for the quarter, a dribbler from a tight angle at the muddy end of the ground. We controlled the game until the end thereafter to seal a gritty 22 point lead.
As mentioned, this was a really great win that emphasised the character of this team. You can't always win in scintillating fashion, and sometimes you play well and don't even win. So 4 points from a direct rival is a huge tick. However, it was clear that Hampton were undermanned, and on their home deck later in the year, they will be a serious threat to our season's ambitions. Preparation is key - so the message on Tuesday will be about how we prepare for every session and every match as we build into the second half of the season.
A bye this week and then we play Old Trinity at the Footy Festival, held at Elsternwick Park on Saturday 17 June. The Footy Festival brings every team from our competition to Elsternwick on the same day, giving us a chance to watch our rivals after our own game. The VAFA put on some hospitality as well as streaming the games live! It would be great to get a big turn out, even though I know it will be school holidays. We are yet to play Old Trinity this year, however they have been having some eye opening results and rightfully sit 2nd on the ladder. Another great challenge for the boys, and over the next two month's I'm looking forward to seeing everyone take their game to another level and really crystalize what makes this club and team so great... our depth!
Thanks and see you at the footy in two weeks, in what will be the halfway point of the home & away season.
Goal Kickers:J. Salce 3, C. Ralph 3, J. McCarthy 2, M. Dahlsen 2, W.Wrigley
Best Players:J. Spiridonos, E. Nelson, C. Crisostomos, H. West,J. McCarthy, H. Wyman
A wite-to-wire win for the young ones as they trampled OMs from early in the game. Six multiple goalscorers and eleven overall displayed the firepower available in a big win.
Goal Kickers: C. Niall 3, L. Danielis-Morley 3, T. Lowe 2, T. Amalfi 2, N.Brown 2, D. Condon 2, A. Lo Giudice, L. McCarthy, Z. Connor, T. Mantesso, J.Francis
Best Players: Z. Connor, G. Villiers de Casanove, C. Connors, T.Lowe, A. Lo Giudice, T. Davine
Goal Kickers:M. Perrett 2, A. Eden-Lachowicz 2, J. Lee, E. Silk, M.Constantino
Best Players:T. Paul, A. Eden-Lachowicz, M. Perrett, M.Costello, N. McGrath, L. O''Brien
