Sport
5 September, 2022
Natte hold Lexton goalless in 94-point semi-final victory
NATTE BEALIBA 15.11 (101) def LEXTON 0.7 (7) Natte Bealiba sent a timely reminder to the rest of the Maryborough Castlemaine District Football Netball League on Sunday afternoon — the reigning premiers aren’t done yet. Their 94-point victory...
NATTE BEALIBA 15.11 (101) def LEXTON 0.7 (7)
Natte Bealiba sent a timely reminder to the rest of the Maryborough Castlemaine District Football Netball League on Sunday afternoon — the reigning premiers aren’t done yet.
Their 94-point victory over Lexton saw the Swans at their miserly best — they held the Tigers goalless for the entire afternoon, even when the Tigers enjoyed the better passages in the second quarter.
Six goals from Danny Brewster, and a very even performance across the board in the forward line, did the rest for the Swans, with the challenge of Harcourt now on the horizon.
After a slow start in their qualifying final against Carisbrook, the Swans needed a quick start to get any jitters away, and they certainly were able to do that, kicking four goals in quick time. First, playing coach Zeik Johnston was able to start the scoring with a kick out of midair in the goal square, before Trent Mortlock kicked a goal from a set shot not long afterwards. Jayden Templeton added a third, before Emmet Smith added another, and Natte had shot out to a 24-point lead in a matter of minutes.
When Brewster got on the board for the first time for the afternoon, it helped Natte take a commanding 33-point lead at the opening change.
Lexton had their chances in the second quarter, and were the better team for large periods — pressuring the Swans into making many mistakes in the midfield, and generating inside 50 opportunities as a result. However, it wasn’t quite to be for the Tigers, as their attempts to get back into the game yielded three behinds.
In contrast, the Swans were able to make the most of their gilt-edged opportunities in front of goal, which really deflated the Tigers. Brewster kicked his second goal, before Jordan Fraser added another on the run, which helped them take a 45-point lead at the main break.
The third quarter was all Natte Bealiba, with the sting being taken out of the game. Brewster kicked his third goal of the contest, before Mortlock added his second with an excellent set shot from a tight angle. Josh Grant and Brewster finished off the quarter with majors as it was well and truly party time for the Swans, taking a 70-point lead into the final change.
Much of the last quarter was spent ensuring the Swans could get through for next week’s encounter with Harcourt, but that still didn’t stop them from kicking another four goals. Brewster added another two to take his tally to six for the day, with Templeton adding his second, and Jordi Cossar kicking the final goal of the day in the last few seconds to ensure Natte would crack the 100-point barrier.
Lexton had three more chances to score in the final stanza, but were unable to trouble the goalscorers all afternoon.
It was something that pleased Natte Bealiba playing coach Johnston, knowing that it would have been easy to gift the Tigers a cheap goal towards the end.
“I thought we were pretty good. We started well, had a bit of a lapse in the second, but after half time, we kept the foot on the throat. To have them goalless was pleasing. It would have been easy to give away a late one when the game was over,” he said.
Johnston was pleased with the fast start that the Swans needed, after going goalless to half time against the Redbacks last week.
“We had an emphasis on a fast start and to really take our chances after last week. I felt we should have been level last week, but we weren’t able to execute and take our chances,” he said.
Johnston reserved particular praise for the spread inside their forward line, which has seen multiple options inside 50 provide targets throughout the season.
“Danny Brewster, Will Holt and Trent Mortlock have about 250 goals between them, so you pick your poison a little bit. If you try and hold one, another is probably going to get off the chain. In saying that, Jayden Templeton has also kicked 20 goals, Jordan Fraser has probably kicked about 20, it’s a good spread. Someone will get a hold at times, which is a good advantage.”
The Swans now play Harcourt next week — in the corresponding encounter in round six, they were able to inflict the Lions’ first loss of the season with a 20-point win.
However, Johnston knows that given the length of time that has elapsed since that game, much will have changed, particularly with the game being played on neutral ground at Princes Park.
“The biggest challenge is we haven’t played Harcourt for so long. The amount of teams in the league makes it hard. We’ll have to work out where we are at when we start. Both of us had a few out in round six. We played good footy that day, we like the size of this ground, it’s definitely going to be a close game, but whoever plays their best footy for longer will win,” he said.
However, the message remains simple for the 2019 premiers, as they look to defend their title.
“The top tier of the competition and the top four sides next week is really even. She’s anyone’s game, I reckon,” Johnston said.
The Swans will now take to the field next Saturday afternoon as they look to secure the first place in the grand final.