The Lower South West headed to HIF Health Insurance Oval in Joondalup today for Day 2 of the Nutrien Ag Solutions Country Championships. After a fantastic first day of the championships saw a pair of wins over North Midlands and Mortlock, Day 2 promised a stern pair of tests against Esperance and Central Wheatbelt.
Ash Wallam put the Lower South West on the board early in the first quarter with a behind, and from the resulting Esperance kick in, Harry Taylor fed a handball to Leon van Voorthuizen who finished with a superb goal on the run from 40. Lee Lucev slotted one soon after, and with Hugh Mitchell providing outstanding service from the middle and Jamie Marinoni prominent, the Lower South West dominated the early proceedings. Lucev added his second as the first half approached it’s midway point after Mat Michael fed a handball over the top, Taylor once again heavily involved in the build up.
Following a boundary throw in, the ball was scrambled forward and Tim Mayers swooped with a smart finish to put the fourth goal on the board and shoot the Lower South West out to a 26 – 0 lead. Gavin Norrish was ringing the changes through the middle of the ground, with the likes of Alex Cabassi and Matthew Marinoni rotating through the centre and Matt Tilbee spending time in the ruck. Jamie Marinoni found Lucev with a smart pass inside 50, who added his third and the Lower South West’s fifth for the quarter, to see the Lower South West hit half time with a 27 point lead.
After the first 15 minutes didn’t return any goals for the Lower South West in the second half, it was again Jamie Marinoni who was the provider, feeding a handball to David Cowan, who snapped truly for his first. Cowan added a second minutes later after Mat Michael took an intercept mark in the middle of the ground and sent the ball long, with Wallam this time involved. With a breeze blowing straight across the ground and standing water on some parts of the Joondalup surface, the Lower South West managed the conditions well and the two second half goals helped secure a 36 point win, 7.6.48 to 2.0.12.
Alex Cabassi was influential in the midfield in the Lower South West’s 36 point win over Esperance in their third game of the Nutrien Ag Solutions Country Championships.
The final game of the pool section for the Lower South West saw the two undefeated sides meet, Central Wheatbelt coming off two impressive wins on Friday. A win would put Norrish’s team into the Grand Final, while a loss would leave the door open for the final game of the day between Mortlock and Central Wheatbelt to bring unwelcome surprises.
Michael almost put the Lower South West on the scoreboard in the first minute, with a ball that just wouldn’t sit up in the goal square on the stubborn Joondalup turf. The first goal of the contest came from Central Wheatbelt’s danger man, Jake South, who courtesy of a free kick, nailed his 13th of the championship.
While many of the championship games over the two days had been somewhat free scoring, this contest quickly turned into a tight match up between two evenly matched teams, neither of whom would give an inch. The rucks got a work out, as multiple ball ups were called and territory was hard to come by.
Brett Wilson and Reece Edwards were both providing support in the ruck and as the half wound down towards the last two minutes, Edwards laid a fantastic tackle and earned a free kick in front of goals. From the resulting free, Edwards kicked truly and gave Lower South West a one point lead heading to the break.
At the start of the second half, South struck again to put Central Wheatbelt back in front, continuing the trend of early goals in halves across the four games. Michael answered minutes later as he started to put his stamp on yet another game of this championship and when he followed up with his second in the 9th minute, the Lower South West had skipped out to the biggest break of the tight contest. After both sides had their opportunities, it was South again who ensured a nervy final six minutes with his 3rd for the game.
That was to be the end of the scoring, with the Lower South West holding on for a 4 point win, 3.6.24 to 3.2.20. The win guaranteed a spot in Sunday morning’s Grand Final, while it was Central Wheatbelt who now faced a shootout for the other spot in their final game against Mortlock. It proved to be expensive for Central Wheatbelt, going into the final game without South. They led by 10 points at half time, and as the Lower South West headed for a well earned recovery session at Leederville, Mortlock fired off a four goal to none second half to secure themselves a Grand Final berth and send Central Wheatbelt home.
The Grand Final is scheduled for 9am Sunday at Leederville Oval.
The Lower South West Football League is proud to be back at the Nutrien Ag Solutions Country Championships and very thankful for all our championship partners, led by Greenacres Mill.
Manjimup Gateway Hotel and MacMahon have provided magnificent support, as have;
KJB Fabrication
Blackwood Plant Hire
Outdoor World Bunbury
Manjimup Toyota
South West Haulage Co.
Alison Rutten in Real Estate
Brooks Contracting
