Round 12 - Reserves Match Report

Hinterland 5.4-34 def by Wynnum 11.13-79

I have to apologise to the boys for this. Last week I praised our ability to get a full team on the park at this time of the year so obviously we were short for the game on the weekend. Not through lack of effort, we just had a number of absentees’ through injury, sickness and a wedding. Even with a 1 man bench though our lads stuck right in and were within striking distance at half time.

What was impressive from the sideline was our attack on the ball and the man. No-one looked to shirk a contest and there were some really inspiring individual efforts which kept us in the game. Kin was great as a marking option down the line and complemented it with his long kicking. Josh has really started to find some form in recent weeks across half back and found plenty of the ball whilst shutting down a number of Wynnum forays forward. Brocky was again influential though that back of his needs replacing.

The third quarter was where Wynnum really managed to break free with our boys inevitably tiring with limited interchanges. Chopper even ended up in the backline at one point which shows how much the board had to be thrown around. He seemed a bit confused by not kicking for the nearest goals but battled well despite having a munted toe. A 4 goal to 1 quarter though was enough to effectively put the contest to bed as our injuries mounted and blokes slowed down. I thought Pete was good again down back in the face of mounting pressure. He has only been back playing for a few weeks but has contributed really well to our 2’s since arriving.

The last was just trying to hold on and it was a credit to our guys that they kept Wynnum to 3 goals. Jack and D Jay both played their best games for a while and will be putting pressure on the seniors not performing if they continue to put together solid games. Mick was enormous for the entire contest playing predominantly on the ball. He has taken on more responsibility this year and has really thrived with a move to the midfield. Saturday also marked the return of former Blue Gilla, apparently got a sniff that we were short and put his hand up to play which was greatly appreciated.

Another game that we can look back on with mixed emotions as we were probably the better team but can’t compete with the numbers and injuries we have had. We will continue to scrap though and with any luck next week we will see a number of players back for a crucial clash with Ipswich. I’m very bullish on the future of our club on and off the field and from a mens point of view it all starts with the reserves. The more we work to get guys to training, to recruit mates that are thinking of playing, the stronger we will be. With a few more numbers and sticking with the hard work though we are going to be a real force beyond this season.

Go Blues!