Sport
27 August, 2024
Trentham shock Harcourt in first week
HARCOURT 8.11 (59) def by TRENTHAM 14.5 (89)
Trentham might not ever have a better chance to break their 30-year premiership drought.
That’s the prognosis from their sensational 30-point victory over Harcourt at Carisbrook Recreation Reserve, leading from start to finish and inflicting just the second loss for the Lions in their last 44 matches.
This wasn’t a smash-and-grab job either. The Saints were the better team right from the outset, and, perhaps apart from a second quarter challenge, controlled the pace of play.
It was their forward line that set the tone, and in particular, it was that dynamic duo, James Regan and Jake Keogh, which did the damage early.
Keogh kicked the first goal of the afternoon from a set shot, followed quickly by Regan, and there were danger signs for the Lions immediately.
Nathan Anderson responded in kind for Harcourt, delivering their first goal of the day from a tight angle.
However, it was the Saints who were dominating in close quarters. Zach Gervasoni was giving his prime ball movers first use, in particular with Josh Cowan, and they allowed Regan and Keogh to get to work.
Keogh soon kicked a clever second goal, before another goal to Josh Murphy left the Saints 19 points up.
Harcourt would bounce back, with Jacob Ede and Paul Chaplin kicking back-to-back goals, but the Saints would lead by 18 points at the first change thanks to goals from Cowan and a third to Keogh.
Harcourt were determined to get back into the game, but it was a goal-for-goal affair instead.
Alex Code kicked an easy goal from the goalsquare, but Benjamin Curran would respond with a terrific goal from congestion.
That Curran goal was one of many highlights during the term, with Cameron Anderson soon kicking a brilliant running goal for Harcourt, before Regan kicked a similar goal to Curran’s.
Harcourt kept asking questions, with Jed Rodda kicking his first for the day to reduce the margin to 10 points, but Mark Strickland kicked an important goal to increase the margin to 16 points at the main break.
The third quarter was the key for Trentham. There, they would dominate possession and territory, and Harcourt were panicking with ball in hand.
While the quarter would only yield two goals, the Saints were in complete control, with Keogh kicking his fourth and fifth goals to make it a 28-point game at the final change.
It was all Trentham, and while Harcourt were asking questions during the term, the Saints kicked the all-important first two goals of the last term, both through Regan, who kicked his third and fourth to end the contest.
Harcourt would get some score on the board through Baxter Gurd and Rodda’s second, but in-between, it was Jeremy Steen who put the icing on the cake for the Saints with his goal ensuring it would be a five-goal win — and a major statement in the premiership race.
Gervasoni took full advantage of the absence of Jordan Gartside, jumping all over anyone thrown at him by Harcourt, in a sensational performance.
Keogh’s five goals, and Regan’s four, were key for the Saints, while the performances of Alister Ferrier, Sam Kelly and Cowan also earned ticks from coach Clive Raak.
For Harcourt, who now go into a do-or-die semi-final against their modern-day nemesis Carisbrook, Mark Noonan, Thomas Walters, Cameron, Ede, Trent Leech and Braydon Vaz were all named in the best players.
Raak said a bit of soul-searching after late-season losses to the Lions and Carisbrook meant that playing to a plan would be crucial for the Saints.
“We learned a lot in our meeting at Harcourt where we were lazy off the footy and lazy towards the ball carrier. It’s been our biggest focus we got right,” he said.
“We were outstanding last week against Maldon and we had a plan. We played to a plan last week, and we wanted to bring that into the Lions. We were great with our pressure around the footy.
“We played the way we wanted to in the first quarter, and the second, we could see we were starting to maintain that level. The third quarter, we were asking ourselves if we could sustain it, and we did throughout, which was really pleasing. By the last quarter, we were in a really comfortable position.
“We had a plan in place for a few, but we want to play to our strengths. We got balls through the middle of the ground, and we worked extremely hard.”
It means Trentham earns the all-important week off, something that Raak was hoping for to help nurse key players back to health.
“We have that many injuries, and blokes have been carrying injuries into this game. Getting a week’s break is massive for us, and we’ve been struggling all year with it. I don’t want to harp on it too much, but it’s been a big effort from the club,” he said.
“We highlighted on Tuesday the importance of winning. It gives us the opportunity to rest bodies and help those who are missing at the moment. We’re hoping they’ll be right to train on Saturday and see if we can help them out. We can’t afford to rest now in my opinion.
“Joel Dovaston didn’t play, and he’s probably leading our best-and-fairest. It was a huge loss for us, but we kept finding a way to the plan. To win like that was very pleasing.”
Raak hailed the performance of Gervasoni, while paying tribute to the performance of Regan, who has helped set up the Saints’ forward mix this season.
“Zach Gervasoni was fantastic as well for us, he worked extremely hard when we had the football too, which is pleasing for a big guy, and he rucked all day, and just kept working and working, bringing our players into the game, which helped our forwards,” he said.
“Regan adds plenty. If he isn’t kicking goals, he’s setting a lot up, and he’s working high up the ground, which is good.
“With Jake Keogh, he was outstanding as well, at ground level and one-on-one, so we used him a bit more up forward. We only put him through the middle once, which was halfway through the second quarter, and we played him deep, which suited us a bit.”
The Saints will now await the winner of the semi-final clash between Lexton and Dunolly.
Raak knows there’s still plenty of work ahead.
“There’s still a hard slog ahead. I’ve been fortunate enough as a player and a coach to win a few premierships on my journey. You have to tick all the boxes — we’ve ticked one, and we still have another two boxes to tick. There’s a lot of work ahead. It won’t be handed to us, for sure,” he said.
“What’s happened has brought belief, and when you have that, you can do anything in footy. I think that’s what we’ve done, that we can take on the best and win, and that gives us plenty of confidence moving forward, which is huge for us.”