Trevor Jackson
PORT MACDONNELL 15.13 (103) d TANTANOOLA 5.13 (43)
THE damage was done early in the Tantanooola v Port MacDonnell clash on the weekend, with the Demons well on top despite an even final half of football.
The Mid South East football Round 6 clash saw the Demons at their best early at Tantanoola, with the home side struggling to just four points at the major break.
In contrast the visitors had kicked well clear, with a scoreline of 10.6 (66) to provide a tough challenge for the Tigers to get back in the game.
Tantanoola certainly made a contest out of it in the second half, outscoring the Demons by four points.
However, the Tigers could not make any major inroads into the lead and had to settle for a big loss.
There were plenty of options up forward for the victors, with Colby Munro and Tim Sullivan both
banging through three majors, while Ethan Gladman, Adam Kuhl and Ned Wilke added two each.
For coach Josh Woodall, it was not the ideal game, with the second half somewhat disappointing.
“We played a really good first half then had a lapse in the second half, especially the third quarter,” he said.
“It is not the way we want to play, but teams will fight back at some stage and we need to stop the momentum and get it back on our terms a little bit.”
Woodall said going into the game it was simply about starting well and going on with the contest.
“You have to treat every team the same and if everything is going well, like it was in the first half, you have to come out in the second half and start again, not let that lapse happen,” he said.
“Good sides probably don’t let that happen, so we have a lot of room for improvement and a lot of things to learn.
“You have to play four quarters to beat a Robe, so we just have to keep working on things.”
Despite the lapse, Woodall said he was pleased with the overall work rate.
“I thought our ball movement out of the middle was good in the first half,” he said.
“Ben O’Dine got his hands on it and I thought Ned Wilke was probably one of the best in the first half, just with his ball skills.
“Then we had Colby Munro who is pretty silky with the ball.
“He is playing more consistent and has the opportunity to play the majority of his time on ball.
“He is really developing as a footballer.”
Woodall said he was particularly disappointed in the third quarter, with the Demons clearly on top at the long break, but let the tigers back in the game.
“We don’t accept what happened in the third quarter and had to finish on a good note,” he said.
“Good sides keep the foot down and keep going – it is alright for them to kick a couple of goals, but then you have to stop it at that.
“We probably need to slow the ball down and get it back on our terms.
“You learn from everything and we will try to learn from the second half.”
