FJFC U-13 Blue 2 10.8 (68) d Ashburton 7.5 (47) at Ramsden St, July 26, 2009
Early Sunday afternoon at Rammo – the breeze is up, blowing down the far end, and Ashburton turn up with only 17 boys. Richard is back in charge, with Terry in tandem, and it’s 50 game for Digby and Atticus.
The banner is a beauty and the boys burst through it under a blue sky and a watery sun. The Roys loan Ashburton a player and then we’re away.
It’s a fast start and Ashburton quickly draws first blood with a goal.
Then the game starts to settle. Nix is in commanding form in defence, and Atticus shows how to charge hard and fast at the ball, trying to cut through the Ashburton forwards. Ned is strong in the air but it’s Josh, who’s rewarded with a free kick that he sends towards the goals and triggers a smart piece of scouting from Ahmed to kick the goal.
But the advantage is short-lived and Ashburton ram on three quick goals. They are kicking with the wind and they have a couple of boys who give the ball a decent roost. It makes for a big lead at quarter time.
Yet Richard knows the boys are travelling all right. He tells them they have the wind in the second quarter. Let’s just see how it goes.
And within a few minutes of the restart Digby finds Connor B in space, who kicks the Roys’ second.
Sebastian is fearless on the backline, attacking the ball three times with hunger and speed. Max O sends a wonderful handball to a loose player running past with the goals open, but it comes to grief on the Ashburton defensive wall. Mo manages to get one off the ground, but Ashburton claim it straight back. Charlie, playing as a key defender, is using his height to good effect, and then lays a courageous smother to stop another Ashburton attack.
It’s hard, tough and nine points the difference at half time.
It seems that just as Fitzroy get a little bit of hope, Ashburton snatch it away. Richard and Terry don’t panic. The boys have been playing well: they just have to keep doing it, keep working for each other, keep focussed on getting the footy and sending it forward.
Richard has a word with a couple of players. He wants them to lift because he knows they have more to give. It works. In a blink, Whizz has grabbed a loose, looping Ashburton handball coming out of defence and snapped truly against the wind. And then, Ashburton reply with a goal. The Roys keep their chins up and keep tackling: Josh, Jesse, streaming out of defence, Jaqan are rocks. Ashburton dig in, trying to hang on. A chain of possessions from Patrick, to Atticus to Whizz, and on to Hugh, leads to another Mo goal. The game starts to open up and then, heartbreakingly for the Roys, Ashburton score another goal. The margin is back to nine points. Then Patrick, loose on the half-forward line, charges on to a bouncing ball, and then hard against the boundary line, delivers a check-side that clears the goal-square pack, bounces once, and through for a goal. It’s three points and the momentum is starting to shift. The boys sense it in the three-quarter time huddle. They have a sniff now. They’re loud, urging each other on, knowing something special is possible. Richard tells them it’s
time: the wind is with them. The Roys can do it.
It’s almost instantaneous after the start of the final quarter: the ball is rushed deep in to the right forward pocket where Connor B is ready. He slips the tackle and calmly threads one through from a tight angle. The Roys are in front for the first time. Can they consolidate?
The answer comes quickly when Ahmed finds Connor B, who runs on to it and kicks his second for the term. The ball zips back down the ground where Ashburton are preparing for the final arm-wrestle that will surely determine the match. But the Roys are strong: Josh is a tower in defence. Hugh and Digby are tireless. Atticus is impassable.
Ashburton jag a point, but the Roys race the ball back down field.
Ashburton look to be tiring and the Roys know the game can be theirs.
A kick to the top of the square eludes everyone except Andre lurking at the back of the pack to expertly deliver the Roys’ ninth goal. It breaks Ashburton’s resistance. When Ned takes one of several strong marks for the day and finds Connor B at full-forward, the match is entering its final stages. Connor drills it and the Roys are home, by
21 points. It’s a great win for Atticus and Digby to celebrate their 50th, but it’s a terrific team effort to never give up and then grab the four points. The Roy Boys sing the song with gusto and pride. It’s a big result and they know it.
Under 13 Blue 2