Panthers’ six-goal quarter sets up big win over Roosters
NORTH Adelaide has suffered its third loss on the spin, undone by a game-busting, six-goal second term from the Panthers as they recorded a season-restoring 41 point win, cementing fifth place on the ladder.
NORTH Adelaide has suffered its third loss on the spin, undone by a game-busting, six-goal second term from the Panthers as they recorded a season-restoring 41-point win.
In brisk conditions at Hickinbotham Oval in front of a thin crowd, the home side repeated the dose from Round Seven (beating the Roosters then by 37 points), cementing fifth place on the ladder.
The Roosters’ season has taken a further turn for the worse as Ben Heaslip starred for the home side with 23 possessions and two goals in a match where no midfielder stood out.
Tasting its first win since mid-June, Panthers coach Jarrad Wright said an outstanding second quarter had got its season back on track after three straight losses.
“It would probably be up there in the top three or four,” he said of the performance.
Aided by a stiff breeze favouring the southern end, the Roosters started off the stronger team through a hanger and goal from Lewis Hender and a Connor Rozee chip from inside the centre square which caught the wind and sailed through the big sticks.
The Panthers would strike back though with a superb into-the-wind major from Tom Fields, while Joseph Haines was mopping up everything in defence with nine touches.
A point to young debutant Rooster Boyd Woodcock just before the buzzer squared the scores at quarter time.
The Roosters may have been thinking they’d blown their use of the breeze as the home side slammed home six majors in the second term.
It all began with mountaneous forward Alexander Aurrichio, who kept his feet and slipped off a Rooster defender like a knee-hugging toddler to goal and give the Panthers back the lead.
The Roosters would get no closer, taking until the 11th minute to score through a Woodcock goal.
It was all South Adelaide for the rest of the term through a run of goals to Kreuger, Heaslip, Whittlesea, Szust (his second) and Fitt as they took 33-point buffer at half time.
That lead would be chiselled back to just nine points as The Roosters hit back in the third.
The resurgence was jump-started by 18-year-old Rozee and Hender, with the latter slotting a pair of opportunistic goals inside two minutes.
But to the chorus of tooting opposition cars, Aurrichio kicked a steadier.
North had its chances to draw closer but Fitt iced the game in the 14th minute with his second.
Roosters coach Josh Carr said without Jarred Allmond and Keenan Ramsay, youngsters Rozee and Woodcock showed promise.
SCORECARD
SOUTH ADELAIDE: 3.2 9.5 11.7 15.11 (101)
NORTH ADELAIDE: 3.2 4.2 9.4 9.6 (60)
GOALS
South Adelaide: Kreuger, Szust, Aurrichio, Fitt, Heaslip 2, Fields, Whittlesea, Rankine, Brooksby, Cailotto.
North Adelaide: Hender, Rozee 3, Tropiano, Woodcock, Spina
BEST
South Adelaide: Davis, Noble, Heaslip, Hunter, Liddle, Brooksby, Kreuger, Kappler, Haines.
North Adelaide: Spina, Tropiano, Wilkie, Hender, Rozee, Smith.
UMPIRES
Sobieraj, Bryce, Bowen
CROWD
1267 at Hickinbotham Oval.