James Murphy
UNDER 18 – SOUTH GAMBIER 7.11 (53) d NORTH GAMBIER 8.3 (51)
IT went down to the wire, but South Gambier’s Under 18’s kept their undefeated 2022 record in tact to make it four Western Border premierships in a row.
Up against the Tigers, who took the long way into the decider with a preliminary final win over Millicent, it was a thrilling match from start to finish.
North put the pressure on in the opening term with three goals to South’s one as the Tigers caught their opponent off guard.
From there it was a tough back-and-forth tussle, with the Demons replying in the second quarter with three majors, while North scored one.
That put South up by just two points at the main break and set up a big second half.
An even quarter followed and it opened with a South behind, before North’s Joel Griffith converted to put the Tigers back in front.
After another minor score from the Demons, North found its mark again and pushed out to an eight-point lead.
However, South still had plenty of firepower left in the tank and goaled twice before three-quarter time, while the Tigers added another for good measure to hold a two-point advantage of their own.
Entering the final quarter for the year, it was anyone’s game.
South had plenty of opportunities, but struggled to find the big sticks with four behinds for the term.
However, with a goal each, those minor scores proved the difference.
A last-minute play from the Tigers saw an on-target shot caught safely in the hands of Demon defender Liam Turley, which was closely followed by the siren, handing South a three-point win.
Samuel Sims was a cut above for the Demons, while Jack Domaschenz, Mitchell Harrold and Liam Delaney also featured prominently.
Yet it was the workhorse efforts of North captain and league Under 18 best and fairest Brodie Allen which were recognised by the umpires and he received the best-on-ground medal.
Harrold and Luke Winterfield bagged two goals each for South, while Darcy Arthurson and Zayne Young were the leading contributors for the Tigers, also with two each.
