Nomads try for four
By Mitchel Neems (Armidale Express, 02/07/2010)
The New England Nomads will be chasing their fourth win on the trot when they face off against the Muswellbrook Cats in Round 12 of Tamworth AFL (TAFL) this weekend.
Coach Brendan Meehan reported his young charges all recovered well from last weekend’s nail-biting two point win over the Gunnedah Bulldogs.
“All the boys pulled up fine and there’s no real injury concerns,” he said.
“We’ve put in solid performances at training this week, despite the cold keeping a few guys away.”
Meehan’s main concern for the weekend is whether Muswellbrook will actually turn up.
“They’ve forfeited this match for the last two years,” he said.
“We don’t want that to happen again – we want to earn our fourth win in a row and we don’t want to go up against Inverell without having played the week before.”
Presuming they do turn up, Muswellbrook will be looking to save some face after the 73 point pummelling they recieved at the hands of Inverell last week.
Meehan said, despite the hammering, he and his charges will not underestimate their opposition.
He will be looking to usual suspects Weston Whitby, Johnathon Frost and Hamish Pearce to lead from the front for the Nomads.
“If we can get a few of the senior guys fired up, that will be a big step forward,” he said.
“We’re really going to try and focus on lifting our talk on the field.”
Recently returned midfielder Matt Maxwell is expected to continue with the form he found in the second-half last week against the Bulldogs, while Kenneth Clayton and Leigh Holmes will once again be responsible for shutting down the Cats offensives.
Meehan said it was disappointing to have so few UNE students in the Nomads side this year, though it did ensure there was no shortage of players, even as the end of semester approaches.
A Nomads victory will put them within reach of the second placed Tamworth Swans on the TAFL ladder and set them in good stead for next weekend’s clash with ladder leaders Inverell.
The Nomads will make their charge for a fourth straight win at 2 o’clock on Saturday afternoon at Bellevue Oval.
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