After a great team effort to get over Narrabri a fortnight ago, the Nomads put in a pretty lacklustre effort on the weekend to be soundly beaten by Gunnedah. It was a game we should have been up for, given the milestones being reached by three long-time Nomads – Ben Page (100th Game), Adrian Walsh (Club games record – 104th Game) and Jay Wright (50th Game).

From the first bounce there was a spring missing from our step, and the Dogs hit the ball harder than us. We were smashed in the centre, and the ball spent most of the quarter rebounding in and out of our defence. Two things kept our deficit at quarter time to a flattering 25 points – the Dogs inaccuracy, and some staunch defending from Adrian Walsh and Leigh Holmes on the full back line. In a quarter pretty light on for positives, our defence got a rigorous work out and stood up pretty well under the circumstances.

Not a game I want to dwell on too much – it took until the second half to see glimpses of the type of footy we should be playing. Clinton Ballagh and Hamish Pearce were courageous all day as usual. Grant Wagstaff took the game on in the second half and was lively across half back. Vellani Chakalisa looked right at home on the wing in only his second game (which unfortunately doesn’t qualify him for the finals), and Lachie McLeod is starting to hit some form, putting in a solid game. It would have been a frustrating day for the forwards, who didn’t see enough footy to impose themselves on the game. The final margin was 64 points.

Now, looking forward. We have a semi final next week, against the Tamworth Swans in Tamworth (assuming their ground is available). There will be a couple of welcome inclusions to the side. However, of far greater importance than any personnel changes is our attitude towards the game. In a few games this year we have put in whole-team efforts and really clicked as a group, so there is no doubt that it can be done. We really need to get together on the track this week, sort out our issues and build some momentum heading into this week’s knockout final.

On a different note, the Nomads would like to congratulate Clinton ‘Rowdy’ Ballagh, who finished equal fifth in the league best and fairest – A fantastic effort for a little bloke who played most of his season in the back pocket. Rowdy is one of the hardest at the ball in the league, and has surely been on the bottom of more packs than anyone this season. Hamish Pearce and Weston Whitby also polled well, despite both having missed a few games. Well Done, guys.

Award winners: Player’s player – Nick Schultz, Coach’s Award – Clinton Ballagh, Captain’s Award – Adrian Walsh, Red Rooster – Vellani Chukalisa, President’s Award – Dave Bioletti, Vice Chancellor’s award – Grant Wagstaff.

Round 19 2010

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 24th, 2010 at 2:06 pm and is filed under Match report. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.