June 27, 2016
Wests and the Barambah Bears took out both the 2nd Division and Women’s Division games on Saturday.
But in First Division, neither side possessed the necessary firepower to unseat their rivals.
The match outcomes would have helped take some of the sting out of the bitter winter weather that raked the region’s sports fields over the weekend, which kept most footy fans either watching the games from their cars, or rugged up in dense winter woolies on the sidelines.
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Wests took on Nanango on the Panthers’ home ground at the Burnett Soccer Fields on Saturday.
It might have been expected this would give Panthers an edge, but that turned out not to be the case.
In the Second Division clash, Wests and the Panthers struggled manfully through the first half without an outcome until Ryan Jacobs found the back of the Panthers’ net barely a minute before half time.
And when he was followed by Rex Parsons barely 10 minutes into the second half, the big cats were clearly a little surprised.
After enjoying two wins in a row, they launched a furious effort to retrieve their honour.
But they were unable to penetrate Wests’ defence, nor find the back of their opponents’ net despite repeated attempts.
For Wests, the victory came as a drought breaker after the team’s two previous losses.
And for Panthers, it was a timely reminder that while they’ve enjoyed back-to-back wins (or wins-and-draws) three times this season, they’ve yet to break the hoodoo to make it three in a row.
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In the Women’s Division, Wests did almost as well when they fought the formidable lady Panthers to a nil-all draw and shared the points.
Wests goal keeper Toni Schick – a skilful player living the dream – made more than a few well-timed saves which prevented Panthers finding the back of the net, while the rest of the team kept the pressure on right up to the final whistle.
In fairness, the Panthers may have suffered from the shock loss of Raegan Campbell, who had to withdraw mid-match when a ball unexpectedly bounced into her face.
Raegan is a formidable force on the lady Panthers side, and a player who should never be under-estimated.
But with the good sportsmanship that typifies football, players from both teams came to see how she was doing after the game was over, offering her genuine commiserations along with hopes for a speedy recovery.
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In First Division, though, the tables were turned on Wests and Nanango’s indomitable top squad showed why they are still the team to beat in 2016.
They delivered the red and blacks an energetic 5-0 drubbing, and chalked up their eleventh straight win this season.
Wests worked hard – very hard – to penetrate the big cats’ defence, but in the end had no answer for the Panthers’ cleverly executed plays or the precision of their kicking.
The result has kept Wests lodged in third position on this season’s First Division totem pole, albeit not in an entirely impossible position if they can win their next four games.
No doubt the team will benefit from a week’s break for the Winter school vacation to analyse their gameplay and look for any weaknesses they can iron out.
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In Kingaroy, Barambah played Gunners at Tom Alford Oval, and the Bears dominated their rivals in the lower grades despite playing on Gunners’ home turf.
In 2nd Division, Barambah quickly found themselves one down after Griffin Rogerson found the back of the net for Gunners in the tenth minute.
This clearly energised the team, because the Bears ramped up their attack and equalised barely five minutes later when Ryan Sommerfeld guided a rocket past Gunner’s goal keeper.
And when Barambah took the lead a further five minutes into the game – thanks to a powerful shot by Chris O’Loughlin – the tables turned.
But Gunners fought back, and when Luke Holland sank one against the Bears in the 23rd minute to equalise a second time, the match quickly became a tussle where neither side could gain any clear advantage.
This stalemate persisted right up until a minute before half-time, when Joel Sommerfeld suddenly found the back of Gunners’ net to leave the Bears going into the break one up.
In the second half, however, the Bears scored three more times and Gunners found they were unable to come up with any answers to the sure-footed northerners.
Joel Sommerfeld repeated his previous effort just a few minutes into the round, followed by Duare Moses six minutes later, to put the Bears ahead 5-2.
And when Joel Sommerfeld shot his third rocket into Gunners’ goal mouth in the 79th minute, it was pretty much all over for the purple and golds.
The victory has kept the Bears level with Wests in joint second position on the 2nd Division ladder, but has now relegated Gunners to the cellar.
However – football being football – Gunners future is still bright if they can overcome some of the hurdles that have kept them out of the winner’s slot for three of the last four rounds.
And with four more rounds to go before the semi’s, they just might.
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In The Women’s Division, the lady Bears showed they were no Yogi Bears when it came to dealing with the hard-working Gunnettes, whose Boo Boos they were very quick to take advantage of.
As was the case in previous clashes between the two sides, the Bears dished out a 5-0 thrashing to the plucky Gunnettes, this time all at the hands of Taylah Berlin, who scored four times in the first half and once in the second.
After securing a draw in last week’s clash against Wests – their first point of the season – the result must have been dispiriting for the Gunnettes, who no doubt realised the lady Bears were exploiting holes in their gameplay they’ve yet to plug.
But as always, the Gunnettes never let their heads drop, showing markedly improved form in the second half that probably kept Barambah’s final score lower than it might have been.
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In First Division, though, the Bears suffered their usual catastrophic form reversal when exhausted players from the men’s Second Division took to the park for another round in a higher grade.
Gunners delivered a punishing 7-0 result that would have been as uplifting for their team’s spirits as it was dispiriting for the Bears’ iron men.
The result has kept Gunners in First Division’s second position as the team that seems most likely to take on Panthers in this year’s Grand Final.
But it has left the Bears in the curious position of being anti-Panthers, in the sense that while Nanango’s First Division side have enjoyed 11 straight wins in a row, the Bears have endured 11 straight losses.
This season’s efforts have certainly earned both the Bears and the Gunnettes an A-plus for dedication to the game from spectators, even if the outcomes of their matches can at times be cruel to watch.
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Round 11 Results
Wests v Panthers (in Nanango)
- Second Division: Wests 2 (R Jacobs 44th, Rex Parsons 55th) – Nanango 0
- Women’s Division: Nanango 0 – Wests 0
- First Division: Nanango 5 – Wests 0
Barambah v Gunners (in Kingaroy)
- Second Division: Barambah 6 (Ryan Sommerfeld 15th, Chris O’Loughlin 20th, Joel Sommerfeld 44th, 47th, 79th, Daure Moses 53rd) – Gunners 2 (Luke Holland 23rd, Griffin Rogerson 10th)
- Women’s Division: Barambah 5 (Taylah Berlin 4th, 6th, 28th, 35th, 64th) – Gunnettes 0
- Gunners 7 – Barambah 0
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Next Week
The 2016 South Burnett Football Competition will be taking a week’s break for the winter school vacation.
The next round – Round 12 – will be played at Kingaroy and Murgon on Saturday, July 9:
Gunners v Nanango (in Kingaroy)
- Second Division: 2:00pm
- Women’s Division: 3:30pm
- First Division: 5:00pm
Barambah v Wests (in Murgon)
- Second Division: 2:00pm
- Women’s Division: 3:30pm
- First Division: 5:00pm
A canteen will be operating at both venues, and spectators are always welcome.
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