Regional Districts Win Division 2 Colts

In between the Division 3 tilt for the Lower South West kicking off at North Fremantle on Friday, a little over 2km down the road, Regional Districts were concluding their Division 2 Colts journey at The Good Grocer Park (East Fremantle Oval). 

The Regional Districts side is made up of players from Lower South West, Upper Great Southern, Ongerup, Eastern Districts, Esperance and Goldfields. This year the side featured 5 players from the Lower South West;

Kai McGinty (Deanmill)
Tayten Smith (Southerners)
Hamish Omodei (Southerners)
Jed Edwards (Tigers)
Sam Doherty (Bridgetown)

After starting their campaign off with a loss to Kimberley on Thursday at Guildford Grammar, the Red Dogs fought their way back into contention with two wins. The 4.2.26 to 5.4.34 scoreline in game one, was followed by a 37 point win over Avon / Mortlock, 7.5.47 to 1.4.10. In the late afternoon sun at a fantastic facility, the Red Dogs then confirmed their qualification for Friday’s Grand Final with a 24 point win over West Pilbara.

All five of the Lower South West members of the Red Dogs team performed well on Thursday. Hamish Omodei and Jed Edwards helped control the air, while Tayten Smith at times seemed to have taken his own footy up to Perth, particularly in the final pool game against West Pilbara. Kai McGinty hit the scoreboard in the win over Avon / Mortlock, while Sam Doherty followed up his outstanding Great Southern Colts Carnival with a series of assured performances.

Entering the Grand Final, Kimberley went in as warm favourites, after their undefeated run Thursday, winning plenty of admirers with the way they went about their football. The skills many have come to expect from a Kimberley team were there, but there was also a physicality about their game that saw them win their games comfortably, save for the Red Dogs closing the margin late in their game to 8 points.

The Red Dogs got off to a good start in Friday’s final, heading to quarter time with a 10 point lead, 2.4.16 to 1.0.6. The first goal of the Grand Final had Lower South West fingerprints all over it. Tayten Smith was involved in the build up, before Kai McGinty earned a free kick for holding the ball 50 metres from goal. An overstepping infraction from the Kimberley defender resulted in a 50 metre penalty and McGinty banged it through from the goal line.

Halfway through the second term, Kimberley had settled and were seemingly getting their running game going. A super snap through traffic by Thomas Coughlan, who hit the scoreboard in the drawn play off game for Goldfields at Kulin, was his second for the day and restored a goal advantage. Doherty was giving the Red Dogs a target inside forward 50 and their runners were looking dangerous as they went small inside forward 50. Regional Districts took a 13 point lead to half time. in front 5.4.34 to 3.3.21.

They got the dream start 40 seconds into the second half, with Linking Eaton finishing off some strong stoppage work. Minutes late, Howie Clegg refused to give up on a. ball close the goal line, earned a holding the ball free kick and pushed the margin to 24. When Coughlan kicked his third for the day at the 5 minute mark, the margin had quickly blown out to 31 and the game was getting away from Kimberley.

McGinty earned a free kick 12 minutes in, once again 50 metres out and remarkably, once again was taken to the goal square courtesy of a Kimberley infringement. Two goals for McGinty, both from the goal square and his second pushed the margin to 38 points. Heading into the last part of the premiership quarter, the Red Dogs had one hand on the shield.

The final change scoreboard read 9.7.61 to 4.4.28 in Regional Districts’ favour before they added a further 4 goals in the last term to run out 46 point winners, 13.8.86 to 6.4.40. It was a fantastic performance after Kimberley had run rampant 24 hours earlier. Southerners’ Smith was again superb in the Grand Final operating in the midfield, while Deanmill’s McGinty was in everything and finished with 2 goals. 

Smith’s performances across the championships earned him selection in the All Star team for the Colts, alongside his team mate Albert Leveney, a face well known the Lower South West contingent after his efforts for Goldfields at the Great Southern Colts Carnival.