MATCH REPORT

There are some things in football that take a while to get used. Teal- coloured jumpers are one of them, especially when you know and love the more traditional fare of the old Fitzroy guernsey. But when you are playing another team of Roys Boys, and they are at home, you have no choice – bring forward the League strip. So on Friday night at training, Terry got the boys to wear the teal (some may say turquoise) just to make sure the boys knew what to look for on Sunday. A quick inspection of Alfred Crescent before the game though could have left a distinct impression that the colour of the jumper was going to be purely academic after about a quarter of footy – mud everywhere, smelly, gooey and clingy, like a bad old sock.

Fitzroy 2 decided to meet this prospect head-on, and under their coach Guy’s instructions, they warmed up by rolling through the mud before the game began. It had worked a treat for them the previous week when they won by a 100 points. Why not try it again? And the other Roys started well too, in a tough opening that set the standard for the intense contest that followed. The ball didn’t bounce. It sat on the mud and looked at you. When the game gets stuck like that, and the ball doesn’t carry, the centreline becomes important and the wall Terry created across the middle held firm. Elia and Patrick on the wings dropped back to take marks and feed the ball in to the forward line. Adam completed the picture with his hard- running, but it was tough footy. Fitzroy 2 kicked the first goal and held the upper-hand at quarter time after our Roys kicked a solitary point.

The wind was unpredictable but it appeared to help the team kicking to the playground end and our Roys benefited from it. Aleks worked the boundary line with trademark finesse and Sebastian did some exemplary spoiling work against his taller opponent. Digby was able to turn defence in to attack, with some fierce chasing and tackles that sparked turn overs. But it was the strong body work of Nick N in the forward line that registered the Roys’ first, after he wrestled in the goal square mud and managed to get a boot to the ball. Jesse, who has had a fine season, continued his good form by leading the in- and-unders in the packs. By half time, the Roys led by four points but there was no indication that the game was suddenly going to change. “It’s going to be a slog,’’ Terry told the boys at the long break.

His forecast was on the money. The third quarter resumed with the intensity of the first half. It was a game swinging on a knife-edge. But the Roys stood up. Sam was poised and confident, looking the part of a seasoned player, and Lewis showed off some wonderful tackling, yet the momentum started to swing. Fitzroy 2 were looking strong and well-organised: they kicked their second, and in the shadows of the siren, another that appeared to almost sap the Roys’ remaining fight. Trailing by 11 points at three quarter time was a big margin in a low- scoring match. Terry kept it simple. “I don’t want any spectators out there,’’ he told the boys. Everyone had to have a go, and he let them know that having the wind in the last quarter was not going to be enough.

It worked. Nick N kicked his second, off the ground again, and suddenly the Roys had a sniff. Charlie, who had been strong around the ground all day, slid in under a tackle to win a smart free-kick near goal. His excellent kick sailed in to teeth of the goal square where a nest of Fitzroy 2 boys were waiting. No one had told them about Dave, who decided now was the time to write the happy ending. He grabbed the mark and on an awkward angle, slotted the goal that put the Roys in front for the first time.

The boys’ spirits soared. Max, thrown forward for the last quarter, locked on to a loose ball, spun and turned and tumbled one through. But Fitzroy 2 kept coming as the clock ticked on. The ball sailed in to their forward line, going ever close to goal where Aleks waited to take the relieving mark and turn the tide. Moments later the siren sounded to end a memorable Fitzroy derby. ENDS

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