NTFL 2024-25 live stream: Watch Southern Districts v Nightcliff Tigers men’s semi-final
Inspired by three goals from star man Steven Motlop, Southern Districts has secured it’s spot in the NTFL grand final – but not before being pushed all the way. Watch the REPLAY here.
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Southern Districts have backed up their minor premiership by going straight through to the grand final, despite Nightcliff blowing the game wide open in the third quarter.
The Crocs won the previous encounters by 28 points and 53 points, but this was a much tighter affair as Nightcliff rose to the occasion that also marked game 250 for Jonathon Peris.
The Tigers broke the game open in the third quarter and had the chance late to score a winner if not for some gutsy last-gasp efforts from the Districts defence.
The Crocs, as they have done all season, found a way to stay ahead when it mattered getting the win 9.11 (65) to 9.8 (62).
Districts had the early run but missing two of their main scoring options in Matt Shannon, to suspension, and Jarrod Brander, to injury, were inconsistent in front of the posts.
Steven Motlop showed a couple of his vintage moments of brilliance, but the side would have rued not building on their early chances when matters grew tight later in the piece.
In both their previous meetings Motlop had scored four goals against the Tigers and again he was the leading goal kicker for the match.
Jed Anderson, though marked well by Lewis Rinaldi, ensured the ball went forward but it was the work of the contested players such as Jack Sexton and Matt Johnston that set the sides apart.
Nightcliff wouldn’t score a goal until midway through the second quarter when a fortunate bounce found defender Nathan Brown in the unlikely position in the goal square and he soccered through.
The Tigers had other issues beyond the scoreboard to worry about when Ryan Nyhuis left the field early, and later on Alexander Mountauban and Tom Boyd also disappeared through injury.
Down those crucial interchange options Nightcliff were forced to find something extra and put aside their obvious fatigue as the match wore on.
They did break the game open in the third though using the pace and experience of the returning Brandan Parfitt, in place of last week’s best on ground Lachlan Tardrew, to make an impact.
It set up a goal rush spearheaded by a huge Brodie Filo effort that temporarily sent the Tigers ahead deep into the third, while Fergus Greene and Felix Henderson built on strong outings with two each.
But Ryan, who had been immense all night in the ruck and the contest, showed his cards up forward as well slotting one on the siren to send them ahead.
The game was on from there and Nightclfif shot everything they could down the throats of the Districts defence steered by Thomas Clurey, Jordan Johnston and Connor Giddings.
The Crocs got some space from Motlop, Will Sexton and a brilliant skipper goal from Michael Bowden, but the Tigers kept it within a score.
And still they threatened late only spurned by a miskick and giving away a 50, which ultimately with so little time left determined the result.
“To rock up and be challenged, and to be able to stand up to the challenge was a great test for the group, and it’s a reward for all the hard work we’ve put in all year,” Motlop said.
“It’s all in the contest. Finals are always about having the moment and winning the contest so the more we could do that and have the ball going our way the more we could score.
“Credit to Nightcliff, they’ve been great all year, they have a great group and to challenge us like they did they could be there in a couple weeks’ time and we’ll have to be ready for them again.
“For me I feel I’ve predominantly played forward, but I can play wherever they need me but with Brander injured it’s up front and I’m really enjoying being with the group there.
“It points to our really strong list, they’ve recruited really well over the past four years to give themselves a chance, didn’t get there last year but we’re in the right space now.
“Another week off will suit us well, we had strong legs in the last quarter so we’ll have a good hit out in training next week and then freshen up for the grannie with a few guys back in.”
Score:
Districts: 2.2 3.6 6.10 9.11 (65)
Nightcliff: 0.4 2.6 6.7 9.8 (62)
Goals:
Districts:
Steven Motlop 3, Will Sexton, Matt Dennis, Jed Anderson, Wyatt Ryan, Beau Schwarze, Michael Bowden
Nightcliff:
Felix Henderson 2, Fergus Greene 2, Nathan Brown, Cam Ilett, Brett Kennedy, Brodie Filo, Adrian Scott
Best:
Districts:
Jordan Johnston, Steven Motlop, Matthew Johnston, Thomas Clurey, Connor Giddings
Nightcliff:
Felix Henderson, Brodie Filo, Alexander Paech, Adrian Scott, Brandan Parfitt
PREVIEW
Southern Districts and the Nightcliff Tigers will clash in the biggest match of the season so far – and this time all their stars will be there.
The NT News and KommunityTV will stream every moment of this clash from 6.45pm on Saturday.
Districts have come out on top both times these teams have met this season, but it’s fair to say this Nightcliff outfit will be a different beast to what they’ve seen so far.
The Crocs have been the dominant side of the year owing to their elite inclusions across the ground and being a team that has managed to stick together all season.
Jed Anderson is a clear Nichols Medal favourite after a stellar year where his weight of possession and ability to kick goals has got the better of many a side.
He’s joined by a plethora of strong mids, including the competition’s premier ruckman Wyatt Ryan, and a solid backline run by Michael Bowden, Matthew Mazzini and Connor Giddings.
If that wasn’t enough they have a handful of top five goal scorers in Steven Motlop, Will Farrer and Matthew Shannon, though the latter will miss out due to suspension.
Over in Tigerland, Nightcliff showed the fire in their belly after a successful appeal against mislaid fly-in breach sanctions in their big defeat of Tiwi.
Nightcliff’s dominance was led by the best on ground performance of Lachlan Tardrew and big contributions from the likes of Boyd Bailey and Brodie Filo.
Adrian Scott and Peter Politis were also busy contributors in the qualifying final, as was young recruit Sean Hunter, who has more than held his own in this midfield.
There are names across the ground in this one all vying for the early entry into the grand final, or to be thrown into the mixer to take on the winner of Tiwi and St Mary’s in the preliminary final next week.
The full match replay will be available at the conclusion of the game.
The NT News and AFL Northern Territory have come together in a partnership to live stream both the men’s and women’s Premier League games for this TIO NTFL season.
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