The Archive | Just in case local footy followers need reminding Maryborough was a formidable BFNL force a decade ago.

In fact in June 2008 the Princes Park Pies held off a fast-finishing Kangaroo Flat who booted six goals in a pulsating last quarter to win by a single point: 16.16 to 16.15.
It was one of the most exciting matches I’ve seen in the past eight to 10 years.
The Pies looked to have the Princes Park game firmly in their keeping at three-quarter time.
They led by a solitary point shy of five goals, but had the Roos been a tad more accurate in that terrific last term --- they booted 6.7 to the home side’s 2.3 --- the Flat could have climbed into the Top Five.
When I summed up the match for the Bendigo Advertiser’s Monday footy wrap, I noted that Jamie Bond’s three-goal individual effort in the third term had swung the game.
“In the final analysis it was Bond’s performance at the scoreboard end as his side added 7.3 to the Flat’s 1.3 which was the deciding factor,” I wrote.
Nonetheless Flat’s outstanding skipper Tyrone Downie (who later spent a year on AFL club Gold Coast Suns’ list) almost pinched the four premiership points for the Green and Whites.
Not only did he boot three first quarter majors, he also landed his sixth major deep into the final term to cut the deficit to eight points.
But it was Bond and a contingent of young rising stars, led by Darcy Richards, Luke Bucknall, Matthew Bilton (three goals) and ruckman Shane O’Connor, who dragged Maryborough across the line.

IN OTHER BFNL matches that chilly June weekend 10 years ago South Bendigo dealt Gisborne its biggest loss since the Dogs went down in the 2004 grand final.
A 26-point loss in the Sunday game doesn’t actually amount to a belting but the size of the deficit proved to all footy followers how potent a force the Graveyard Dogs had been since joining the BFL in 2000.
And Sandhurst celebrated its first win of the 2008 season after staging a last quarter revival to beat Kyneton by 17 points at the QEO.
It had taken seven rounds but eventually the Dragons climbed out of the cellar and catapulted the hapless Tigers into the bottom slot.
The Hurst fought back from 16 points down three minutes into the last quarter to run over the top of the tiring Tigers.
Golden Square held onto a Top Three berth with a 37-point win over the Maine at the Camp Reserve.
With injured stars Nick Carter, Mark Lloyd, Jason Griffin, Stacy Fiske and Luke Rosa looking on the Bulldogs raced out to a 20 points to 1-point advantage in the first term and never looked back.
South used two simple blueprints to down Gisborne. It was to apply constant pressure and play four-quarters of aggressive footy.
The Bloods were led brilliantly by Brady Childs, Neville Clark and John Hardinge who all imposed themselves physically on each contest they were involved in.

GISBORNE led by three points at each of the first two changes. Then South snagged 11 majors to six after the long break as Clark finished the game with four goals including the crucial first major of the last term to hand South a 17-point buffer.
Really Dayne Frew should have been South’s major scorer.
He landed just three goals from 10 scoring shots --- but pulled in the mark of the day with a third quarter Barnard Street end ‘hanger’ --- as he found Gisborne coach Marcus Barham a tough opponent to shake.
Hardinge, Jackson Ireland, Childs and the late Shaun Bergin all booted a pair of goals apiece. Darren Farrugia was Gisborne’s best forward target with four majors.
Jordan Barham and Rod Sharp (later to coach the club) both had days to forget while reliable prime movers Matt Fitzgerald and Ollie Messaoudi had little impact after quarter-time.

BUT back to the Princes Park thriller.
The Flat led by three points at the first change. They’d kicked to the town end and thanks to Downie’s three majors held a slight lead over the Magpies, who booted 3.4.
But two 50m penalties by undisciplined Roo defenders gifted Maryborough easy second stanza goals to Adam Hurse and Matthew Brown.
Ryan Doherty and Ash Benbow replied for the Roos and by half-time the Flat led by one straight kick: 9.5 (59) to 7.11 (53).
Maryborough surged away in the third quarter. Matt Johnston, Martin Dell and Glenn Handley controlled the midfield with Bond unstoppable in the Pies’ front half.
Glenn Chadwick and Bucknall combined to find Bond for the first of his third term trio. Then Andrew Tatchell passed sublimely to Bond for the big man’s second.
After Brown was gifted another 50m penalty he nailed his third major before Bond banged home number 3 for the term (and fourth for the day) to hand Maryborough their sizeable three-quarter time lead: 14.13 to 10.8.
But the Roos weren’t done. With the lights on they were kicking to the scoreboard end where eventually 21 of the game’s 32 goals were scored.
Rowan Warfe and Andrew Gladman controlled the half-back line and their forward thrusts were seized on by Downie, Brown and Philip Lobb.
Before they got started the Pies had a couple more goals in their bag of tricks. Ben Jackson was the recipient of a dubious 50m penalty, courtesy of tangled arms in a marking contest, and he nailed a major.
Tatchell courageously waited under a high floater of a pass and he also was on target.

AND then the Roos decided to get going. Lobb and Downie were never going to miss with Downie’s major slashing the deficit to eight points.
Somehow Denis Hickey gained possession deep inside 50 and snapped accurately from inside a massive pack. The margin was back to a single point.
The Magpies managed to just hold on in the desperate dying moments to record a memorable victory as the heartbroken Roos trudged off Princes Park.
Flat coach Darryl Wilson said a vital 10-minute period in the third quarter had been the difference.
“In the midfield we just let them run riot and our guys weren’t accountable. I suppose in the wash-up that period of play cost us the game.”
Wilson added that as a club the Flat really had to win those sorts of games.
“Four goals all resulting from 50 metre penalties after pushing blokes over: we have to work on that and eliminate it.”
Maryborough coach Shane Fisher said although the third quarter effort had been commendable his side had a few players “who’d let their guards down” in the tense final term.
“That was our negative for the second half – that last quarter – but to their credit the Flat came back really hard,” he said.
“At one stage in the second term we had recorded 18 shots (on goal) to their nine so we’d been pretty inaccurate before a much better third quarter.”

Final scores: Golden Square 12.11 (83) def. C’maine 5.16 (46); Sandhurst 10.15 (75) def. Kyneton 7.16 (58), Maryborough 16.16 (112) def. Kang. Flat 16.15 (111) and South Bendigo 16.18 (114) def. Gisborne 12.16 (88). Bye: Eaglehawk.
Top Five: Eaglehawk 6 wins, 0 losses, 1 bye, 28 prem. points; South Bendigo 5-1-1, 24 (219%); Golden Square 5-1-1, 24 (214%); Gisborne 4-2-1, 20; Castlemaine 2-4-1, 12.
Netball: Sixth-placed Maryborough celebrated a one-goal win over Kangaroo Flat in the 7th round to continue the Magpies’ charge for a Top Five berth.
Laura Clarkson, Alicia Cassidy and Jess Fuller were best for the Magpies while Lauren Cowling and Yasmine Thomas were the Flat’s best.
Ladder leaders Golden Square maintained its unbeaten run with a dominant display against Castlemaine.
Scores: Maryborough 38 def. Kang. Flat 37; Golden Square 70 def. C’maine 16; Gisborne 57 def. Sth. Bendigo 37 and Sandhurst won on forfeit over Kyneton.
Top Five: G. Square 6 wins, 0 losses, 1 bye, 28 prem. pts; Sandhurst 5-1-1, 24 (172%); Gisborne 5-1-1, 24 (163%); Kang. Flat 4-2-1 20 and Eaglehawk 3-3-1, 16.

By Richard Jones