(Preliminary Final) Swan Athletic V’s Kalamunda at Swan Athletic
The Cougars who had won their last two final round games by a single point had certainly earned the title of ‘Underdogs’ for this encounter.
Swan Athletic had finished the home and away season on top of the C1 ladder and would have been very disappointed losing their qualifying final against Cockburn lakes last week.
This loss, knowing they could be more than a match up for Cockburn Lakes would have made them very determined to finish the Cougars season and beat the ‘Warriors’ next week for the flag.
From the first ball toss it became apparent the Cougars were going to struggle with the height and physical presence of the Swans. Coach Bolton would have stressed to his charges pre-game they needed to keep the ball in open space and avoid the height advantage the Swans had.
This was achieved in the first quarter with the wind however, inaccuracy in front of goal by kicking 1.5 allowed their opponents to rebound and kick 2.1 against it.
In the second term the writing was on the wall for the Cougars as the Swans started to take charge of the ruck through Cameron Yukich, who provided many opportunities for his mid-field to break away and kick 2.5 to lead by 12 points at half time.
In the third quarter the Cougars through Scott Foley, who was matching the Swans with his physical presence, led a rally reducing the Swans score to one point for the term. Unfortunately, the Cougars playing their best football for the match were let down with inaccuracy in front of goal kicking 1.5 to the frustration of all concerned.
The wind during the final term dropped giving the Cougars hope they could cover their three-quarter time deficit of 3 points.
It was imperative the Cougars gained the advantage by scoring first in this quarter however, Swans big man Cam Symonds was awarded a free kick first, resulting in a goal which triggered a 4-goal blitz by the Swans while keeping the Cougars to 2 points for the term to lose by 26 points.
The Cougars were valiant throughout this match and never stopped trying however, as I have written in the past ‘size does matter’ and that fact was borne out in this preliminary final.
Final scores: Swan Athletic; 8.9 – 57, Kalamunda; 3. 13 – 31
Best players: Josh Touchell, Blake Boys, Josh Harris, Scott Foley
Coaches award: Ben Holman
Goals: Josh Harris 1, Trent Pottinger 1, Leo Lambert 1.
Special Mention:
Other final round game:
IDC Colts: Preliminary final, Kalamunda; 2.5 – 17, Swan Athletic; 3.8 – 26
Congratulations to the following players finishing in the Top 3 for the PFL Awards!
C1 – Trent Pottinger, C1W – Chanelle Myburgh, IDC – Michael De Gasperis, E2 – Josh Davis
See This Weeks Topic – Alex Haight’s report: Two big Milestones; Josh Harris and Ethan Massam
Next C1 game: (Grand Final) Cockburn Lakes V’s Swan Athletic 2.30 PM Saturday 7 September 24 at Bassendean Oval.
This post is dedicated to, MACA Mining & Orica Mining Services, proud sponsors of the Kalamunda ‘Cougars’ Football Club.
