by Wedgie » Sat Apr 22, 2006 10:21 pm
From the Roost:
GILL MAGIC SPELLS STURT TRAGIC
(by The Roost!'s official reporter, Paul Horwood)
NORTH 4-4 13-4 22-8 27-16 (178)
STURT 5-0 7-3 10-4 13-8 (86)
Best: Gill, Ryswyk, M Campbell, Wintle, Gatto, B White, Howard
Goals: Gill 9, Weatherley 3, M Campbell, Ryswyk, Hargraves, Younie, Wintle 2, Bamford, Howard, Koops, Kaesler, Kreig 1
Emu…a large flightless bird, native to Australia, and capable of running at high speed.
It would seem apparent that the Oxford dictionary may need to revisit their definition of this word following Nick “Emu†Gill’s astonishing heroics in North’s pulsating 92 point demolition of a hapless Sturt outfit.
For “Emu†was anything but flightless last night, with a best-afield performance comprising 20 kicks, 1 handball, 18 marks and a lazy 9-3!! However, it was his truly amazing deeds during the Rooster’s second term frenzy that will surely enter and become part of club folklore. In a frenetic eleven minutes during the stellar second quarter, my scrambled notes reveal the following Gill statistics…1 good “steal†(culminating in his first goal for the term)…6 marks (including 2 “screamersâ€)…6 goals..and 1 goal assist (pass to “Hargy†who then goaled).
“Definitely notâ€, was Nick’s beaming response to whether he had ever played a better quarter of football. “Couldn’t complain…I was pretty happy with it, that was my end I thinkâ€, Gill said.
LeroyThe star forward, however, was quick to heap praise on the other willing combatants, particularly North’s star midfield outfit. “When you see the likes of Tubs (skipper Darryl Wintle) and Leroy (Leigh Ryswyk) with the ball you just run at it because you know they’re going to hit youâ€, Gill said.
The blitzkrieg that transpired in the last three quarters (North kicked 23.12 to 8.8 during this period) could hardly have been anticipated following the intriguing tussle that unfolded during the first term.
Indeed, it was Sturt that dominated the scoreboard (if not general play) early into proceedings, their straight shooting facilitating their 4-0 to 2-4 lead by the twenty minute mark.
“Didn’t worry..I knew that this group is now capable of responding to sides that throw things at themâ€, was coach Andrew Jarman’s post-match assessment at the first hiatus. “There’s a maturity in the group..it was a case of back to basics, knowing that if you get your hands on the ball first you are going to control the gameâ€, Jarman said.
Gill’s antics aside, it is hard to find words that fittingly describe and reflect what unfolded during our amazing second term…â€absolutely brilliant†may be an appropriate signature to our 9-0 to 0-1 for the first twenty three minutes of the quarter.
With Sturt relegated to a mere spectator role, our boys were simply to tough at the stoppages (the likes of Dean Howard and Matty Krieg (11 kicks and 16 handballs) making their presence felt)…to slick in the midfield (Wintle (14 kicks, 12 handballs) again showing his magic tricks by both hand and foot)…to quick around the ground (I get exhausted just looking at the blistering pace of “Leroy†(31 kicks and 6 handballs) and “The Flashâ€)…to strong in the air (was there anything Nick didn’t mark, even when third in line!)…to strong in defence (Daniel Ebert, Mick Haseldine, Luke Ivens, Steven Koops and Shane Schubert were just Rocks of Gibraltar in defence). Need I go on!
Although the contest had effectively been killed off by half-time, the Roosters were not content to rest on their laurels and continued from where they left off during the ‘premiership’ quarter. Inspired by Gill’s second quarter heroics, it was the turn of Owen Weatherley and “The Flash†to have a picnic in our forward line – both posting two individual goals for the term.
Campbell’s two goals were particularly eye-catching and came within a minute of each other – the first one culminating from him pouncing on a poor Sturt kick-in from a point, the second resulting from him being rewarded for a strong tackle. His pace is just so electrifying that the opposition must be clearly precise with their use of the football when he is lurking in the vicinity – he’s quicker than a seagull to a sandwich on any loose ball in our forward line!!
Up by a staggering 76 points at the final change, the North faithful were salivating at the prospect of a 100+ point shellacking at the offering.
Whilst we did achieve the defining 100 point margin deep into the last term, late goals to Sturt denied the icing on the cake that would have been a 100 point margin and 10 goals to Gilly!
“Very happy, and full credit to the playing group†a delighted coach Andrew Jarman said. “They came off a very good hit out against South Adelaide, and the bye does interrupt your momentum as a group. Full credit to them, and the way that they work for each other, their disciplines, and the things they now pride themselves on for the jumperâ€, he said.
The quiet achiever in our backlines, Michael Haseldine, could have been excused for catching a cold in our defence, such was the rarity that the football penetrated Sturt’s forward zone. “It got fairly quiet at stages there, but I would be happy to see more of it because it’s good when it’s down the other end, I guessâ€, he said.
As to how the win rated with others he has experienced in his short tenure with the club since returning to the southern confines from Brisbane, Haseldine said “it’s up there...since I’ve been here we haven’t put a side away. Tonight we went on with it and sent a message to the competitionâ€.
The boys now get a slightly longer break than normal before tackling the re-born Tigers down at the beach on Sunday April 30.
On last night’s form simply cancel all appointments...bring along your friends (particularly those not yet converted back to the tribal nature of the SANFL)..and witness first hand the excitement machine that is our North Adelaide Roosters!!
Armchair expert wrote:Such a great club are Geelong
