Nomads Win Against the Odds Against Gunnedah
Round six of the AFL North West season had us travelling south to take on the Gunnedah Bulldogs. It was set to be a great game as we had the wood over them in round one, but we knew they would be stronger at home. Travelling with only 17 blokes with a few notable outs, we knew it was going to take some sheer determination to grind out a win. Coming off the back of a strong win against Moree/Narrabri we were looking to continue some form heading into the bye. The game started as an arm wrestle as the footy whizzed from end to end. A strong final term from the boys meant we came out eventual winners downing the home side by 36 points. Final scores were 21.12.138 to 15.12.102.
A fast start from Gunnedah was cause for worry early on, however we managed to steady the ship to take an eight-point lead into the first break. Clarrie Barker was in his usual strong form, dominating the centre clearances along with Hunter Greene and Ethan ‘Karps’ Karpany. Nic ‘Bucko’ Buckland was playing a solid game down forward, continuing his recent form from the last few weeks.
It was apparent that we had a size miss match in the backline and that was giving Gunnedah easy marks inside 50. A positional change was made at quarter time to move Lindsay Brown up forward and be replaced by Daniel Boyd in the backline. This was a strategic move that yielded a strong result as Boydy really looked comfortable in defence and kept his man honest. We were more accountable down back and were able to compete against the bigger bodies of the Gunnedah forwards. The rest of the second quarter mirrored the first in that both teams were tussling for the lead. We went into the half time huddle with a handy 15 point lead.
We knew a strong third term would well and truly put us in a position to claim a scalp on the road. The midfield rallied from the first bounce as we kicked three unanswered goals from centre clearances. Our backline was holding up well. Sammy Jackson was at home in fullback, giving us plenty of run and carry out of defence. Xavier Walsh and Wulu ‘Choco’ Hall were busy organising our defence and both played strong games. David ‘Modra’ Richards was doing Moddy things in the middle and up forward, playing a characteristically solid game. Our accurate kicking was the difference with Gunnedah having most of the scoring shots towards the end of the quarter. Our efforts meant we were taking a bigger lead into the final change to lead by 18 points.
We’d done the hard work all day and put together three strong quarters of football to give ourselves every chance at winning. A dominant quarter from our boys took the result beyond doubt. We showed a lot of polish with our ball use. We began to change angles of attack and control tempo to maintain possession. Our structure behind the ball was rock solid and made any Gunnedah advances treacherous. Noah Connick had played a great game in the ruck and would always pop up down back or up forward where he was needed. Jakey Bourchier was presenting well up forward and crumbing ground balls. Charlie ‘Chaz’ Payne was a bull in the middle, winning contested ball and giving us forward entries. Drew Walsh was playing a solid game in the forward line, playing with a lot of confidence and composure. We finished strong to cap off a great game of footy coming out 36 point winners.
A win on the road against Gunnedah is always a tough ask but we managed a big scalp. The win really gets our season back on track after a succession of losses prior. We’re beginning to gel and play a strong systematic style of football. While it was a convincing win. We can’t afford to rest on our laurels. We still haven’t played our best football and we still have plenty of things to work on. We’re building and should be cherry ripe come the business end of the year.
Players’ Player Award: C. Barker
Captains award: D. Walsh
Meehans Plumbing: E. Karpany
Coachs: D. Boyd
President’s award: Not awarded in absentia
Nota bene – editors note Lindsay wrote this report and due to notorious BCOM (Beckom-Constraints of Modesty) neglected to mention his own two goals, both slotted from improbable angles.
