By Trevor Jackson
Tantanoola 13.12 (90) d Glencoe 10.12 (72)
Tantanoola held off a hard-running Glencoe to claim a three-goal victory in Round 5 of Mid South East football on Saturday.
A final-quarter barrage by the Murphies threatened to overrun the Tigers, despite a big 44-point lead to the eventual victors at the final break.
It was only a dominant two quarters of football which set the Tigers up for the win, with a 20-point lead at the first break.
A renewed effort with the wind in the second term saw the Murphies close the gap somewhat, with three major scores to Tantanoola’s one.
Fortunes changed on the breeze in the third term as the Tigers used the conditions to their advantage.
They made good use of possession and banged on six majors, while holding Glencoe scoreless to set up a big lead.
That three-quarter-time lead was required, as Glencoe pushed hard in the final term.
The Murphies added five goals and five behinds as they made a run at victory, while limiting the Tigers to just the one goal and three behinds.
However, Tantanoola did enough and held on for a hard-fought victory.
Eight individual goal scorers contributed for the Tigers, with Marc Roberts on top with three goals.
Darcy Hogan, coach Jak Ryan and Cameron Saint kicked two each.
Glencoe was served well up forward by Jake Blackwell and Alex Hentschke who kicked two goals each.
Best for Tantanoola were Jack Dawe, Braydn Reilly, Roy Osborne, Marc Roberts, Jordan Hatt and Jack Cytrowski.
Best for Glencoe were Thomas Edwards, Dylan Childs, Jake Blackwell, Andrew Gray, Declan Hurley and Ben Swan.
At the end of the day Ryan described the win as a line in the sand victory, after struggling against the Murphies in recent years.
“For years Glencoe and Kongorong have been those sides where we always feel we should win but have fallen short,” he said.
“As soon as we got the win, I think the boys realised we can do it, so that was good.”
The wind played a huge factor in the outcome, with Glencoe enjoying the advantage in the final stanza.
Ryan said it was a matter of putting a score on the board against the wind to seal the victory, which did not come easily.
“It was a tough wind to kick into,” he said.
“I said to the boys, we had to counter when we got the chance, then try to hold off when they get it.
“They weren’t going to go away in that last quarter and put it up to us in the last couple of minutes.”
Ryan said while it was one thing to find a forward in the clear, it was another to convert into the breeze.
However, the Tigers set their win up using the wind to their advantage and the ground-level smarts around the packs.
“Most of our goals were on the run,” Ryan said.
“We were just trying to send it in long and a lot of boys were running onto it and kicking on the run.”
Ryan said he feels the season is coming together, considering the injury woes he still faces on selection night.
One bonus is the numbers in the Reserves, which provide those extra bodies when needed.
For now it is a matter of staying fit and pushing hard in a tough stretch of football.
“A couple of boys look like they will be back later in the year which is good,” Ryan said.
“We have a stretch now where we don’t get a break until the June long weekend, so our bodies are our main focus now.”
