Geelong Advertiser |
ONE goal separated Barwon Heads from a potential finals berth as it lost narrowly to Drysdale on Saturday afternoon.
In the end, the final margin was probably indicative of the Seagulls' season - so near, yet so far.
The mood was subdued as the players trudged off the field and coach Peter O'Connor's spirits were noticeably dampened.
But while the initial reaction of anguish was tough, O'Connor could still take solace from the inspiring effort that his side put in during the second half.
The fact that Ocean Grove defeated Torquay on Saturday night to cancel out the afternoon's result also takes a bit of the sting out for the Seagulls.
After being 45 points down during the third quarter against the Hawks, captain Nick Hill and star forward Daniel Hovey led the Seagulls to within five points before the final siren blew.
"Credit to the boys, I think it's something that Barwon Heads sides of the past might not have done," O'Connor said.
"We dug deep and kicked some goals and got back in the game.
"In the end (we were) probably just not quite good enough.
"We had some flat patches in the game where they got too far in front and we just couldn't peg them back."
O'Connor admitted that a lacklustre July eventually cost his side a shot at September action.
"It (finals) wasn't ripped away so much as I think we gave it away," he said.
"We had a bad month of football (losing to) Torquay, Ocean Grove (and) Modewarre.
"Take nothing away from them, they played well, but we didn't play up to our best and that cost us in the end. We've got no one to blame but ourselves, really."
Sixth position may seem like a disappointment after having been entrenched in the five for most of the season, but it is still an improvement from last season.
Six wins in 2012 turned into eight wins and a draw in 2013, while O'Connor unearthed some young talent as well as nurtured the existing squad.
It's the youth that has O'Connor - who has been reappointed for the next two years - so excited.
Although the lack of experience has affected his side's consistency over the course of the season, their exuberance and enthusiasm has made for an attractive style of football.
"A lot of our supporters say they like coming to watch us play, because we do have spurts where we can kick goals quickly, as we did today," O'Connor said.
"We've got a very, very young side. Apart from Eddie (Erftemeyer), our ruckman, the next oldest is 25 or 26 and it drops away (and) at times that showed.
"There's a feeling that once we get more games into the players and they get to know each others' style of game, we'll get some natural improvement."
