Picture: THOMAS MILES
A GRADE – PENOLA 18.11 (119) d KINGSTON 9.10 (64)
PENOLA A Grade footballers remain at the top of the Kowree Naracoorte Tatiara ladder after a strong victory over the win-less Kingston on Saturday.
But the Eagles took three quarters before they could break away from the determined Kingston lineup at their seaside home ground, with the opening term a close affair.
“We went in with only one change,” coach Matt Tilby said.
“Matt Merrett played for the Crows in SANFL, so he was replaced by Louis Merrett, who came in after a solid pre-season and some good form in round one in the reserves.
“We were happy with what we had done the previous week, but we were wary of Kingston’s first home game.
“They were an unknown quantity to us with a lot of new players.”
While Penola led at the first break by four points, Kingston had managed eight scoring shots to seven.
Inaccuracy in front of goals cost the home side the advantage, with four goals and four behinds, compared to Penola’s five goals and just two behinds.
The second term saw the Eagles pick up the pace somewhat to set the scene for the remainder of the game.
Adam Merrett presented well up forward, on his way to an eight-goal bag, while Simon Berkefeld began to control the mid-field.
Brad Merrett was also on target up forward on his way to four goals for the game, with new recruit Brad Bryant continuing where he left off with another solid match.
While the Eagles only added four majors for the term, they limited the Saints to just two and stretched the margin out to 17 points.
Down back the likes of Damien Wenham, Daniel Hackwill and Alex Moore controlled the ball, which made life tough for the Kingston forwards to find the big sticks.
That continued in the third term, with Penola again outscoring the home side as it continued to improve around the ground.
But it was a final-quarter flurry which made the major difference in the contest.
With a 24-point lead heading into the final stanza, the Eagles did not back off, but increased the pressure to bang on six major scores and blow the result out to a 55-point victory.
“We felt we started a little bit flat,” Tilby said.
“They stuck with us for the first two and a half quarters and it took us a long time to shake them.
“Towards the end of the game our fitness shone through.
“We feel we are on top of the ground after a really good pre-season.
“The guys are in great condition and that is holding us together for the last quarter.
“We feel we have a bit of an advantage over sides at the moment, but that will even up as the season goes on and other sides get fitter.”
Tilby said he was pleased with the way the forward line was functioning at the moment, but expected bigger things in the future once it all settles in.
“Adam kicked 8.1 after kicking 3.6 last week so he had his kicking boots on,” he said.
“Brad Merrett worked really hard.
“He finished the game with four goals and had a huge work rate.”
Berkefeld was again in top form, named best on ground, with his work rate picking up as the game went on.
“Simon gets a tag week in, week out and guys do a fairly good job on him early, but his superior fitness over four quarters makes it hard for the opposition to find someone to go with him,” he said.
“He was fantastic on Saturday.”
Tilby said he was also impressed with the ruck work of Canadian Jason Nystan.
“His ruck work keeps developing each week and his improvement just keeps coming,” he said.
“He is keen to learn the game and works really hard.”
Overall Tilby said he was pleased with the season so far and looks forward to the next clash against Keith.
The Crows sit fourth on the ladder, also undefeated, but after just one outing.
Their win also came against Kingston and was even more damaging, to the tune of 83 points.
“That will be a huge game for us on our home ground,” Tilby said.
“They will be really strong this year, so we are looking forward to that challenge.”
RESERVES – PENOLA 7.12 (54) d KINGSTON 8.4 (52)
A MASSIVE fourth-quarter effort from Kingston saw Penola’s Reserves team lucky to come away from the round two victory, when the Eagles visited the seasiders on Saturday.
The visitors had a strong start to set up a 16-point lead at the first change, which could have been greater had it not been for five behinds.
Regardless, another dominant quarter saw the Eagles add 3.1 to their score before half time, while the Saints found the big sticks to kick two majors.
Heading into the long break with a 23-point lead, the Eagles almost jeopardised their chances with an inaccurate third term.
They booted a mediocre five behinds for the quarter, while Kingston scored a single major to see the margin narrowed by a solitary point.
However, it was in the final stanza the Saints stepped up a gear, scoring an impressive 5.3 to bring the game to the Eagles.
Penola managed to find the big sticks with two majors and a minor score for the term, which saw it narrowly hold on for a two-point win at the final siren.
Gerard Merrett led the way for the victors, with three goals and a second-best performance, while it was Dale Bunnik who received the best-on-ground honours.
Jonathon Copping, Joseph French, Duncan Jamieson and Tom Clayfield were also among the top players for the Eagles.
For Kingston, Robert Starling top scored for the match with four majors, while Mitchell Pinkerton was named as best-on-ground.
SENIOR COLTS – KINGSTON 7.9 (51) d PENOLA 6.8 (44)
IT was a similar story for Penola’s senior colts team when it faced Kingston on Saturday, with the Saints coming from behind in a late surge.
However, unlike the Reserves clash, the young Eagles were unable to hold back the charge and as a result Kingston claimed a seven-point victory.
Penola was off to a solid start, with an unanswered 17 points in the opening term, but again the score of 2.5 could have seen a greater margin had the side been more accurate.
The Saints narrowed the gap somewhat in the second term, as they scored 1.4 to the Eagles’ 1.1, but it was after the long break they did the most damage.
Kingston regrouped at half time and a 3.4 quarter saw the seasiders two points ahead at the final change, after Penola managed just a single major for the term.
The hosts continued to hold control in the final stanza, kicking three goals and a behind on their way to a seven-point victory.
A three-goal effort from Kingston’s Luke Pedlar did the most damage, while for the Eagles Aden Brand top scored with two.
Dylan Morton was Penola’s best on the day and kicked a goal to show for his efforts, while Aaron Zerk and Caleb Lythgo were second and third best, both also with a goal to their names.
Kane Whitehouse, Jacob Robbie and Zac Currie rounded out Penola’s best, while for Kingston it was Campbell Watts who received the top honours for the round.
JUNIOR COLTS – PENOLA 9.9 (63) d KINGSTON 0.1 (1)
THERE is little to say about the junior colts encounter between Kingston and Penola, with the latter dominating the game to cruise to an easy 62-point triumph.
The Saints hit the board with a minor score in the second term and that was the end of their scoring, while the Eagles extended their lead at every break.
By half time the match had been more than won, as Penola held a comfortable 50-point margin.
That was extended to 62 points by the final change, before a scoreless fourth term saw the Eagles’ total remain at 63.
Brock Summerhayes led the charge on the scoreboard with three goals, while it was Anders McShane who received the best-on-ground honours with two goals to show.
Summerhayes was named second best, while Lochlan Neale, Ned Skeer, Thomas Currie and Codi Kellett rounded out the top contributors.
