Grand Final Review – Men’s Division Two
Written by Michael Shillito
It was early Sunday afternoon at Rosedale that saw the Men’s Division Two decider get under way. North Shore were facing off against Sydney Uni.
The Bombers had finished the regular season as minor premiers, dropping just one game; and followed that up by holding Wollondilly goal-less in the Semi Final. The Students had lost two games in the regular season to finish second, and then defeated Pennant Hills by 12 points in the Semi Final to make their way through.
The Bombers went into the match as favourites, and looked to be going to script when the Bombers made the early attacking and a 50 metre penalty sent Sam Jackson to the goal line for the first goal. But the North Shore charge would go no further, and they would not manage another major score in the first half.
It took 13 minutes for the Students to get their first goal, with Andrew Kraefft finding himself in perfect position to run into an open goal. And when David Starkey crumbed a ball-up and snapped truly, the Students had the lead. They would add to the margin as Sam Jensen marked on a tight angle as the siren sounded. A 50 metre penalty turned what would have been a tough shot from our wide into a certainty and the Students took a 13 point lead into quarter time.
The wind was nowhere near as strong as it was on Saturday, but what wind advantage there was favoured the Students in the first term. But the second quarter would be decisive, as the Bombers were unable to make anything of their turn with the wind.
Early in the second quarter it was an arm-wrestle, as two determined teams looked for a weakness to exploit. Neither team would trouble the scoreboard operator for nearly 10 minutes before Josh Cutrupi pounced on a boundary throw-in and snapped truly. Suddenly the Bombers were looking vulnerable and the Students were first in line for the ball and finding loose men everywhere. Sam Jensen found himself unattended in the goal square to mark and goal. Moments later, Oscar Gibbins was loose and faced minimal resistance to bang another goal through.
Three unanswered goals into the wind had put the Students 31 points ahead at the long break, and that was a margin from which the Bombers were never going to recover. Heads had dropped, spirits were low, and the Bombers were beaten. Meanwhile the Students had the sniff of a premiership in their nostrils and weren’t letting go.
The Students would add three goals to one in the third term. By the last quarter the sting had gone out of the contest and the teams would score two goals apiece. But the siren was inevitably pointing to a Uni premiership celebration as they completed a comprehensive 44-point win.
Sam Jensen was awarded the best-on-ground medal, while Jotaro Howard-Shibuya and Philippe Alais had put in plenty of work around the ground to get the win done. It had been a disappointing day for North Shore, but Connor Smith, Christian Dennis and Sam Milligan kept putting in.
It wasn’t a great game for North Shore. The Bombers were unable to stand up against the relentless pressure of the Students when it mattered most. For Sydney Uni, they were able to time their run to perfection, putting on their best performance of the season on the day when they most needed it.
Match Results:
Sydney Uni 3.3 6.4 9.5 11.6 (72)
North Shore 1.2 1.3 2.3 4.4 (28)
Goals:
Sydney Uni – C. Morgan 3, S. Jensen 2, O. Gibbins 2, P. Alais, M. Wonders, J. Cutrupi, D. Starkey.
North Shore – C. Hungerford, S. Jackson, C. Dennis, M. Voyage.
Best:
Sydney Uni – S. Jensen, J. Howard-Shibuya, P. Alais, J. Fox, D. Starkey, A. Kraefft.
North Shore – C. Smith, C. Dennis, S. Milligan, S. Wood, C. Hungerford, M. Cassidy.
At Rosedale Oval, Sunday 27th September 2020.
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