Border Mail |
NORTH Albury superstar Jason Gram faces a race against time to be fit for Thursday’s Anzac Day blockbuster against Albury.
The former St Kilda ace sat out the second half of Saturday’s 117-point thrashing of Wangaratta with hamstring tightness.
Gram, who had 10 kicks in the first half, left the ground soon after slotting home a brilliant banana goal early in the third quarter.
He didn’t return.
Despite having his right leg heavily iced after the final siren, Gram said he would be right to take on the Tigers.
North Albury coach Jason Akermanis said he had full confidence his best player would do whatever he could to play.
“He’s just got a tight hamstring,” Akermanis said.
“He’s so professional that he said he wasn’t going to risk this with the turnaround we’ve got.
“I have no doubt he’ll do whatever he has to do to play.
“I know he won’t miss it for the world.”
The Hoppers, meanwhile, were nothing short of impressive during Saturday’s demolition job.
They booted 21 of the game’s final 23 goals and at one point kicked 12 on the trot as the Magpies wilted under the intense pressure the Hoppers applied.
Adam Prior, who went goalless on debut, bounced back with a vengeance to bag a seven-goal haul and looked a far better player than he did against Yarrawonga earlier this month.
Kane Godde added six majors of his own in a lively display and was a constant presence around the ground.
Four-time best and fairest winner Brandon Ryan had the ball on a string and shut Wangaratta star Ben Davies out of the contest at the same time in a clear best-on-ground display.
Magpie forward James Wong booted four goals in the first quarter but was rarely sighted after North Albury skipper Dan Leslie moved onto him late in the opening stanza.
Akermanis was nothing short of scintillating in the third quarter as he booted three goals and played a leading role in setting up a handful of others.
Recruit Josh Branchi showed plenty of promise on debut but still won’t commit to the club any longer than Thursday.
Wangaratta is now pegged to the bottom of the ladder after three rounds and first-year coach Mark Knobel didn’t beat around the bush after Saturday’s embarrassing defeat.
“We’ll be as honest about it as we can,” he said.
“It was extremely disappointing.
“North Albury worked a lot harder than we did and we didn’t play how we wanted to play.
“Our blokes shut up shop.”
