Cats set up blockbuster to determine finals fate

The Bloods came out strong and LBU was on the back foot early, finding itself down by seven points at quarter-time.

Despite winning the second quarter, the Cats were still three points behind at half-time, and needed to respond if they wanted to keep the back-to-back flag dream alive.

The second half was a display of strength from the reigning premier, kicking 10 goals to three to storm home and claim a 13.8 (86) to 7.8 (50) win.

LBU coach Stacy Fiske was complimentary of Elmore’s first half, while also being understandably pleased with the way his side rebounded.

“Elmore had an opportunity to finish our season, so they came out firing in that first half,” he said.

“And credit to them, they put a lot of pressure on the ball and we continued to probably play the way we have played the last couple of weeks, bombing down the line and so forth, even though the messaging was different.

“I think in the second half, the boys listened to what we’ve been trying to put out when it comes to our mechanics and the way we want to move the ball, and we were able to do things a lot better in that half. So yeah, happy to finish that last half the way we did.”

However, the most pleasing aspect for Fiske was the manner in which the entire team lifted to establish the lead, and eventual win, in the second half.

“I think it was probably as a collective group at that stage,” Fiske said when asked who stood up in the second half.

“There were a lot of us that were guarding grass and hoping for an easy kick and easy possession and doing it the easy way.

“But after half-time, we found that the whole group found themselves just buying into defence and our ability to shut them down and not allow them to move the ball, and that made a big difference.

“Also, our ability to not all try to go in for the same ball, that sort of bees to the honey pot kind of analogy that you sometimes hear.

“That’s been one of our biggest challenges over the last month, the ability to keep our shape around the contest so that we don’t open ourselves up against attack when we don’t have enough spread around the ball.”

The win means LBU stays one game behind the Bombers on the ladder, after Leitchville-Gunbower beat Colbinabbin at the weekend.

The Bombers have the bye in the final round, setting up a huge clash between Mount Pleasant and the Cats.

If the Cats win, they will play finals and deny Leitchville-Gunbower the same opportunity, however a loss will see the Bombers progress at LBU’s expense.

Fiske expects a fiery clash between the two grand finalists from last season when they meet this coming Saturday.

“There’s always going to be a bit of a recent rivalry between the runners-up and premier of 2022,” he said.

“There’s always going to be that side of things, and we’ve been the premier team for the last couple years, so there’s going to be a lot of heat, not just for the position when it comes to making finals.

“For us, our messaging is going to be around our fundamental brilliance, the ability to just do the basics well.

“We’ve shown that when we do the basics well, we hit the targets we are supposed to hit and we play the footy we need to be playing when it comes to around the contest, we’re a very good footy team.

“So that’s the message, and not to try to get too caught up in the moment and forget about that kind of stuff.

“That can sometimes happen — you get too caught up in the moment and you lose your head on where you’re supposed to be and what role you are supposed to be playing. So that’s going to be our message for the week and I think that’s the best way we can go about it.”

HDNL

Lockington-Bamawm United has slumped to its 14th loss of the season, going down 93-34 to Elmore in the Heathcote District Netball League A-grade competition at the weekend.

The Cats have now lost 11 straight games, with their only win this season coming way back in round five, a 53-41 victory over Leitchville-Gunbower.

The Cats will have one final chance to claim a win this weekend when they play Mount Pleasant away from home in the round 20 clash.

LBU sits last on the ladder, one game behind the Bombers, who remain the nearest competitor.