JONTY: Hello everyone and welcome to another edition of Let’s Talk Sport, this one slanted towards narratives that haven’t got the coverage they have perhaps deserved as the winter sport season enters the home run. Before we get to that though, best action as usual. Dave, to you first.
DAVE: The best thing I didn’t see. Blake Carew from Dalyston, in his 200th game, kicked the match-winner with a minute to go against Kooweerup. Then Kooweerup was starting to get the ball out with about 20 seconds to go and Carew makes strong physical contact on the Kooweerup player…the ball spilt free and both players ended on the ground when the siren went. He was the hero, you couldn’t ask for a better way to finish off your 200th game. I’ve got to give a mention to my daughter-in-law Bianca, who played her 250th game of netball on the weekend. She’s won five A-Grade best and fairests at Cora Lynn so she’s a bit of a star. That was really good to see her get some attention in the weekend. But the biggest highlight was Nathan Gardiner who almost pulled off one of the best marks I would ever have seen. He got a lift off one bloke, then a second lift with about three seconds left in the first quarter, but unfortunately it bounced off his shoulder and spilled free. There were ooohhs and ahhhs from the crowd because it was exciting to see a local footballer get up that high. It just so happens that Nathan’s Dad, Rob, got an action shot of his son up miles in the air.
JONTY: Toby Greene did the same on Saturday night. He took a nearly mark of the year on the wing. The elevation was ridiculous. Marcus, what have you got for us?
MARCUS: Unlike you blokes I’m going with an actual mark. Late in the game between Gembrook Cockatoo and Mt Evelyn, Daimon Kift, who is a sneaky chance to win the best player in the competition award having been named in the best 10 times from 12 games, came from three or four deep in the pack and ended up horizontal. It reminded me of Jack Riewoldt about a decade ago against Fremantle. It was just impressive that he glided across the pack and held it on his chest. Unfortunately missed the set shot but it was a great mark.
JONTY: Chris Ramac from Cranbourne gets my best action. In the first quarter, Cranbourne were particularly culpable of entering inside 50 in a way not conducive to success without Marc Holt. It allowed Cheltenham to chain out or take intercepts, but Ramac took ownership against the grain and kicked one from 50 towards the boos of Cheltenham supporters.
DAVE: No Holt, no Cranbourne?
JONTY: To some degree. They were still very competitive in the midfield but that next kick going forward, it was clear their method was off.
NON-FOOTY STORYLINES
JONTY: I’ll ask you both, based on other sports you’ve covered, what’s something that hasn’t been given enough attention in our weekly write-ups and perhaps could be more spotlighted.
MARCUS: Mine is the disappointing performances of the two NBL1 South clubs in our region in the Dandenong Ranges and Casey Cavaliers. Casey finished last in the men’s and women’s programs this year and Dandenong were second last in the men’s, the women to their credit just missed out on a finals spot. It just seems strange to me that in high density areas – although you don’t need to be a local – that they are not much stronger than what they are given how popular basketball is in these parts.
JONTY: Where are they off the pace?
MARCUS: They did have a lot of injuries and the Casey men in particular had almost an entirely new squad. They had guys coming in at very-late notice which doesn’t help, but the players they brought in had spent a couple of years at different colleges in the US.
DAVE: They’re two years out of the Big V and have now gone to the NBL1. That’s a massive jump taking on the cream of the crop. It would be interesting to find out what they need to do. Are they set up like one of the bigger clubs at the top of the table….
JONTY: Is it off field? Admin? Culture?
DAVE: Exactly.
MARCUS: They’re playing against sides that do have NBL players in them too so it is a little bit of an uneven playing field.
DAVE: Mine is a bit off Broadway. Deep Creek Golf Club, they went broke about two months ago but what hasn’t been written about is the financial boon for clubs like Drouin, Garfield and Lang Lang. The members from Deep Creek at the end of their existence have dispersed and record fields are competing at these other clubs which are now absolutely flying. That’s gone under the radar. That’s something I wish I had covered a little bit more in recent times.
JONTY: It’s never too late Dave. From my point-of-view, the Cardinia Storm Hockey Club. A startup club based at Beaconhills College in Pakenham, it’s been a little bit of a grind, off field, to get people to help out. Speaking to people at the club, everyone who plays is helping out in some sort of off-field role because they haven’t quite hit their straps with that side of it yet. But despite that, their success on the field has captured attention. They’re fourth on the ladder and competing with teams in the top two. There was talk they were in a lower division than what they could have been in, just because it was their first season, but still to compete the way they have has been really admirable. And also, they’ve got juniors competing for the first time this week in under-10s and under-12s so that pathway is starting up. They’re setting themselves up sustainably.
DAVE: It sounds like the Cardinia Storm are similar in their sport to what the Pakenham Eels are in rugby league. A Pakenham-based team with members and juniors so it’s great for local sport…and the local shire gets a lot of abuse. Last week, you wrote a story about Doveton and Hampton Park in the City of Casey, but in some respects, there are new facilities being built which is helping these clubs to thrive, which is good news from the Cardinia Shire and City of Casey point of view.
JONTY: On that topic, Cardinia Storm have been very complimentary of Cardinia Shire’s help with them setting up.
FOOTY STORYLINES
JONTY: Onto footy, a narrative now for each of you that has flown under the radar. Dave?
DAVE: The Cora Lynn Football Club, if I took you two down there, you’d go ‘no…this is not a football club, it is a relic from 1954 that nobody has touched since’. The change-room facilities are dilapidated. You wouldn’t think there’s a footy club playing there. Their social rooms are fine but these change-rooms have been there forever. Instead of getting things fixed up, if there’s a hole in the roof, they’ll just patch it up or something and everyone at the place loves it. The Cardinia Shire has just given them a $4 million grant so in the next two years, their rooms will be getting rebuilt but for me, it will take a little bit away from the character of the joint. There’s a certain type of footballer that goes down to Cora Lynn and plays. You pull on the jumper, you play hard, tough and don’t take a backwards step. I admire that quality of the football club. I don’t write about it enough but it is just incredible what they do. There’s no one in the town either. The population of the town increases by about 1000-percent anytime footy’s on there, there are only about 20 permanent residents. Andrew Bergmeier, the president and the CEO Terry Dillon deserve a lot of credit. Terry has management success at places like St Kilda and Hawthorn AFL, he knows his stuff and is a legend around these parts. This week, they take on Tooradin, third and Cora Lynn is fourth. I give them a chance, they’re starting to play their best footy at the right time of the year. Do people like Cora Lynn? No. Do they respect them? Yes. There is just something about that footy club.
JONTY: Like v respect is such a huge thing in sporting circles, it’s such a fascinating topic, one I’d love to delve into. Marcus?
MARCUS: The facilities topic is interesting. You’re kind of robbing Peter to pay Paul in that you’re never going to turn down facilities that will be better for the club, but when you lose what you had previously, some character is gone. Pearcedale is going through similar things. Local crowds take a lot of pride in the old-school facilities compared to council facilities – state of the art but they don’t have the same club feel.
DAVE: The Cora Lynn coach sits on two milk crates stacked on top of each other when addressing his players after the game…it’s fantastic.
JONTY: They’re not a club that complains about this?
DAVE: They thrive on it…because that’s what Cora Lynn is. It will be interesting to see what the dynamic is when the new rooms are added.
MARCUS: The discourse for me is similar for me somewhat. More and more coaches week on week are referencing the ground size disparity in the Outer East. Wandin, Mount Evelyn, Upwey have really small grounds in the hills, compared to Gembrook Cockatoo, Narre Warren and Pakenham which are quite big. It affects tactics, how you defend and move the footy. A good example this weekend. Gembrook Cockatoo played at Mt Evelyn and Mt Evelyn almost didn’t use their wingers. They would get it to halfback and from there kick it to the forward line automatically and have an opportunity for goal from there. Whereas Gembrook Cockatoo methodically tried to piece their way through and kept turning it over. That will be something to watch later in the season. This week will be interesting with Mt Evelyn playing Pakenham at Toomuc. Pakenham will like their chances in a real eight-point game.
JONTY: Yeah, I know Port Colts and Caulfield are two teams with notoriously small home grounds in Southern which is always a discussion and JL Murphy in Port Melbourne is so skinny their wingers are like extra midfielders. I was going down a different path, but you’ve given me an idea: player points. I haven’t given enough credit to Springvale Districts and Hampton Park who are going to make the top five this year. Springvale Districts have only about three who went through the juniors but they’re still able to compete and find different ways to attract people to their club. This year, they’ve taken a big step forward, both of them, they’re competitive with teams above them on the ladder, but Dingleys and Cranbournes will always be at an advantage. Hampton Park has struggled with player points every week but I think they’ve juggled that really well. Certain players come out each week on a horses for courses selection mantra, understanding the need to do that. I think the Redbacks have run that professionally and have come out relatively strongly despite those challenges.
DAVE: On player points, there’s a local football advocate who got a seat at the table with Travis Auld. It looks like AFL Victoria are listening to his thoughts on player points and there might be some minor tweaks and changes to make it a bit easier for local footy clubs to work through the system, so well done to the advocate.
JONTY: A little bit of breaking news is a great way to finish Let’s Talk Sport. Have a great week!
