James Murphy
SOUTH Australian Country claimed the state bragging rights over Western Australia at Adelaide Oval on Saturday night.
Played as a curtain-raiser to the Adelaide v Carlton AFL match, the SA Country side boasted seven South East talents, including South Gambier’s Brayden Kain and Todd Reid.
Kalangadoo’s Pat Davies and Hatherleigh’s Mark Marriott also took to the field, in what concluded as a 27-point victory to the Croweaters.
The experience was made all the more special after a prolonged hiatus from country state football, with the last match held in 2019 due to the disruptions of Covid in recent years.
The game itself was won off a commanding first half, where SA was out of the blocks early to put themselves in the box seat.
They held Western Australia to a single behind in the first term, while CMC Crows’ Ben Edwards was prolific up forward for South Australia to score three of his four goals and set up an 18-point lead by the first change.
The dominance continued in the second term and by half time the Croweaters had established a 36-point lead.
An even third term followed the main break, before Western Australia restored some honour with a four-goal return in the final quarter.
However, the damage had been done and SA held on for the win.
Naracoorte’s Matt Willson was in exceptional form and his on-ball efforts and pinpoint deliveries earned him the Barry Stringer medal for best on ground.
He also captained the team in what was an impressive all-round performance.
South East Regional Football Director Scott Duncan attended the game and was pleased to see the spectacle return to Adelaide Oval.
“It was great to have state country footy back,” he said.
“It hasn’t been played since 2019 so it was really good to give all the players that opportunity to play on Adelaide Oval and represent their state.”
He was impressed by the standard of football on show and pleased South Australia was able to come away with the result.
“It was a good game to watch – the standard was pretty high,” Duncan said.
“WA moved the ball fairly quickly when they got hold of it.
“We were able to counter that and put some early goals on the board which helped us.”
Crowd numbers reached over 35,000 for the AFL match and Duncan suspected around half of those were present towards the end of the state game.
He said it was a great experience for both teams, especially with the youth of the SA team this year.
“It was a really good day,” Duncan said.
“From my point of view all of the players were really good, in terms of the way they performed and the respect they showed to each other and all the officials.”
Duncan said Willson was a cut above as usual and a deserving recipient of the Barry Stringer medal.
“He played on the ball and rotated on the wing a little bit and he was a shining light for us,” Duncan said.
“He doesn’t waste a disposal when he gets the ball.”
However, Duncan was impressed by all South East players and said they were each played vital roles in the victory.
“The coach Rick MacGowan set the players different tasks and everyone performed well,” he said.
“I was happy with all the South East boys.
“Everyone played their role and they did a good job.”
The win caps off a successful period for Limestone Coast football, following South East’s win at the SA Country Championships two week’s prior.
