Nomads aim for three-in-a-row
By Matt Nichols (Armidale Express, 25/06/2010)
Star midfielder Matt Maxwell will return to the New England Nomads side as they look to make it three wins in a row against Gunnedah tomorrow.
On the back of victories against the Tamworth Swans and Narribri, Nomads coach Brendan Meehan said he could feel the momentum building at Bellevue Oval. “You get the feeling that things are starting to happen for us,” he said. “We’ve still got a way to go but we’re definitely on the right track. A win against Gunnedah at Gunnedah would be terrific as we’ve got Muswellbrook at home the next week and that should be a certain win. It’s hard to win four games in a row in this competition and it would give us a great platform before the finals.”
While Maxwell will bolster the Nomads’ midfield stocks, New England will be down a goal sneak up forward with Ben Page unavailable tomorrow. Star player Weston Whitby will again be relied upon to kick the goals, while Johnathon Frost can expect to find himself on the forward flank after a best-on-ground performance against Narribri.
Meehan said Gunnedah had a similar sized ground to Bellevue Oval and said that would benefit his charges. “Some of the grounds we play on can be pretty small but Gunnedah’s is a lot like ours,” he said. The bigger grounds suit us a bit because we like to play a possession-type game. When we hold on to the ball we are a much better side than say a side like Inverell who like to play on a bit.”
While Gunnedah were well beaten last week (158 points by Inverell), Meehan said the Bulldogs must not be taken lightly. “It was only a few weeks ago when they beat the Tamworth Roos so they must have a few good players,” he said. “The mines probably have an impact. Some weeks they might have everyone available and other they might have half a dozen missing. We’ll have to play well to win.”
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