By Marcus Uhe
Poor kicking for goal saw Berwick blow a golden opportunity to cause a seismic boilover in the Eastern Football Netball League Premier Division – falling five points short of ladder-leaders East Ringwood at home.
The contest came to life in an epic final stanza after both teams had battled trying windy conditions at Edwin Flack Reserve, but the home side was unable to snatch the lead when it mattered most, going down to the Kangaroos 5.12 42 to 7.5 47.
Making the most of the advantageous wind blowing to the netball court end of the ground, Berwick peppered the goal-face in the opening term but were unable to convert their chances.
Harry Money was especially dangerous in the forward 50 while the midfielders and back six prevented the ball from even entering the opposition forward line until the seventh minute of the game.
After missing their first eight attempts on goal, Jonte Andrew showed his teammates how it’s done, converting a long set shot, benefiting from some slick ball movement from the back half.
Having kept East Ringwood scoreless in the first term, there would have been disappointment at not being further than 15 points ahead at the first break.
The regret no-doubt intensified when their opponents kicked three in the second quarter, benefiting from some costly defensive mistakes.
Two of East Ringwood’s goals were converted on the goal-line, while the third came from a freekick in the forward 50.
Berwick’s run and carry into the wind was ultimately in vain, as they themselves had a scoreless half-hour to trail by eight points at the long break.
Needing to maximise the use of the weather conditions, knowing they would not be in its favour in the final term, Berwick were too trigger-happy in front of the big sticks in the third.
Shallow entries leading to long, inaccurate shots saw them fritter the advantage of the breeze away, while also allowing the opposition to kick the first of the match from the entrance end of the ground.
Money provided the major highlight of the term with a sensational hanger on the goal-line.
Arguably the smallest man in the marking contest, he came from furthest back and flew higher than those around him to clunk the grab just outside the square and convert from a slight angle.
That would be Berwick’s only goal of the third term, however, meaning it had five points to recover in the last while battling the worst of the conditions.
It made all the running early in the last quarter, kicking the all-important first to edge-ahead by a point.
In a concerted effort to avoid kicking long into the wind, Andrew, Wal Wuol, and Tom Brennan combined with their hands to run the ball out of a stoppage in the backline, before Brennan found Josh Burgess at centre-half-forward.
Rewarded for his aerobic capacity, Brennan had the ball returned to him before dribbling it through from 20 metres out.
The next three of the game alternated, as did the lead as a result.
The Kangaroos responded quickly, Jayden Graham nailed a long kick on tired legs, then Wuol was caught holding the ball in defensive 50, and Berwick conceded another.
Graham had the chance to repeat the dose later in the term, but tried instead to involve a teammate running past, and ultimately the play came unstuck.
Minutes later, East Ringwood kicked another from a stoppage, the first time any side had kicked consecutive goals since the second quarter, to push the gap to 11 with four minutes remaining.
Sam Frangalas provided an immediate reply, running forward of the play from a centre bounce to kick a sublime goal on the run, and with three minutes to play there was just a kick separating the two sides.
When the final siren sounded with the ball in the East Ringwood forward 50, the relief on their players’ faces was evident, as disappointment simultaneously infiltrated those of Clint Evans’ side.
Along with Graham’s decision to play-on in the final term, a burst of speed from Anthony Vella from halfback went unrewarded in the opening minute of the final period, as Money was unable to return the ball back to him, leaving the dynamic forward exasperated on his own in the goalsquare.
Contrasted with East Ringwood kicking four goals from four attempts in the second half, the result is likely to stew at Edwin Flack.
