R2 Match Report: Tigers fall short in tight finishBy Heather Mellican
Coburg website
01/04/2012The Coburg Tigers suffered a six point loss to Casey Scorpions yesterday afternoon at Mantello Holden Oval, after a thrilling finish that left the Coburg faithful devastated.
The Tigers attempted a second half comeback with Nick Maric finishing the game with four goals and Jeromey Webberley and Matthew White creating options across the ground, however fell short as Casey ran away with the momentum at the end of the final term.
Coburg looked strong at the start of the first quarter, with a quick, tight angle goal from Maric and good pressure around the ground. However momentum was quickly lost with skill errors in the backline and strong defensive pressure from Casey in the forward line.
The midfield was working well together to create opportunities inside 50, however the Tigers were struggling to hold marks and move the ball as Casey kept them all locked up, creating goals from Coburg’s mistakes and keeping the Tigers to only one goal to three in the first quarter.
Casey continued to dominate in the second quarter, scoring two goals from quick centre clearances and making the most of Coburg’s turnovers.
Things went from bad to worse, when Richmond’s Brad Helbig, went down early and didn’t return for the rest of the game.
Coburg struggled to cover space in the back 50 as the Scorpions created quick play all over the ground to further their lead.
Richmond rookie, Ben Darrou was good defensively, creating four spoils, however it was not enough to stop Casey’s forward run.
Coburg finished the quarter with three late goals from Graham, Maric and Contin, set up by good run from Webberley and White, but still went into the second half down by 32 points.
The Tigers came out with fresh legs and a much better attitude going into the second half, leaving Casey goal-less in the third quarter.
They began to create space throughout the ground, with White, Webberley, Wheeler and new recruit from Perth, Daniel Venditti generating good outside play and creating options all over the ground, assisting in two of their three goals from Casey turnovers.
Maric also showed he was more than just a goal kicker, chasing four Casey players in Coburg’s forward 50 and laying on the pressure until the ball was back in his hands and created gutsy plays throughout the quarter.
Coburg went into the last quarter with momentum, only trailing by 15 points.
They were able to generate run to get it going their way, were surging the right spots and were able to build this into three goals from Carnell, Maric and O’Hanlon to gain their first lead in the match.
Casey struck back quickly, taking advantage of the Tiger’s careless errors and making quick centre clearances to take back the lead.
Coburg didn’t give up with a magical goal bouncing through the goals from Captain, Nick Carnell and a wide goal from White putting them back within three points.
Coburg were once again outclassed in the centre, with Casey taking advantage of their fumbles to create quick clearances to further their lead.
A last minute goal by Maric wasn’t enough for the Tigers as time ran out, giving the Scorpions a one goal win.
Coburg will take on the Sandringham Zebras next week in Sandringham.
Coburg Tigers 1.4 4.5 7.7 13.9-87
Casey Scorpions 3.4 9.6 9.10 13.15-93
Goal Kickers: N. Maric 4, N. Carnell 3, M. White 2, A. Browne , B. O''Hanlon , P. Contin , A. Graham
Best Players: N. Maric, M. Arnot, M. White, W. Wheeler, J. Batchelor, N. Carnell
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