Nomads hit back
By Ben Lonergan (Armidale Express, 17/06/2015)
The New England Nomads have leapt above the Tamworth Kangaroos into top spot on the Tamworth AFL ladder after a 94-69 victory on Saturday.
It was a satisfying result for Zac Economou and his men after a shock defeat to the Tamworth side in the opening round of the season.
“A great result,” Economou said.
“Round one was not our best performance so it was good to make amends.”
The two sides have quickly struck up a fierce rivalry, which Economou describes as refreshing compared to the 100-point wins the Nomads rack up every other week.
“The intensity was a lot higher than others throughout the year,” he said.
“It was a good close contest.
“The feeling after the game was great because there was a bit of adrenaline there after being pushed the whole way.”
It was actually the Kangaroos who had the better of the opening stages to lead 20-15 after one quarter. The Nomads kicked four goals in the second quarter to take a slim five-point 42-37 lead into half time.
Whatever Economou said at the main break seemed to resonate with his players.
The Nomads went on a point scoring rampage in the third quarter to open up a 78-53 lead, which was only extended in the final quarter.
“The third quarter was where we really kicked into gear,” Economou said.
“We cleaned up a lot of skill errors we were making and used the space a bit better.”
Economou and captain Dave Richards enhanced their reputation as big game players with seven and five goals respectively.
“Dave was at his damaging self,” Economou said.
Wayward goal kicking had hampered the Nomads in recent weeks, but Economou and Richards were dead on target on Saturday.
“I’ve been a bit of a culprit for that the last few weeks,” Economou said.
“It was good to hit them straight.
“It makes a big difference when you are kicking goals not one-pointers.”
Tom Hunt was impressive in his first game back for the Nomads this season as were Paddy Tobias, Luke Raymond and Mark Spencer who Economou said kept them in the game in the first half.
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