Woodville-West Torrens claim 10-point win over West Adelaide at Richmond Oval
WOODVILLE-WEST Torrens outlasted West Adelaide in a thrilling contest featuring eight lead changes at Richmond Oval last night.
WOODVILLE-WEST Torrens outlasted West Adelaide in a thrilling contest featuring eight lead changes at Richmond Oval last night to maintain its unbeaten start to 2014.
Both sides had their moments in and often scrappy but very intense contest where the game high lead was 12 points to the Eagles during the second quarter.
Westies will look back on the match and know it had its chances to win. The Bloods had 41 more possessions and 15 more marks but couldn’t chalk up their first win under coach Mark Mickan.
West had the ball in its attacking half for large parts of the first and third terms but it was the resilient Eagles, lead by pocket rocket Lachlan McGregor who claimed the win.
McGregor, who spent last season playing at Langhorne Creek, kicked four goals to bring his season tally to 10 in two games.
The Bloods were also left to rue a heavy injury toll with Jacob Templeton (ankle) leaving the field in the first term and not returning, and Alex Scott dislocating his shoulder. Ryan Anderson left the field late in the match after receiving a heavy knock in a marking contest.
The Eagles kicked the first goal of the night when Michael Wundke goaled curtesy of a good pass from James Boyd but it was the Bloods who dominated much of the first term.
West’s forward tackling and pressure meant much of the quarter was played in its attacking half and it should have led by more than nine points at the first change.
The Eagles got their game going early in the second term and looked dangerous going forward. Livewire McGregor kicked two goals for the term, three for the half and helped set up another with a fierce attack on the footy opposed to Ben Macreadie to create a loose ball from which the Eagles goaled.
The Eagles kicked four of the first five goals of the term and almost had a fifth when McGrgeor hit the post with a soccer that would have been his fourth. The Bloods got some reward for handwork late in the term when Taite Silverlock goaled from a scrappy period of play to pull the margin back to a goal at the main break.
Travis Tuck rammed home a goal from outside 50m inside 30 seconds of the third term to level the scores and West would flood the goal front for the opening 15 minutes of the third term without enough reward.
The Bloods kicked the opening 2.4 of the third term, but missed chances meant they only led by 10 points.
It was the Eagles turn to waste chances late in the quarter. McGregor, Tasmin McMahon, Wundke and Scott Lewis all missed gettable chances late in the quarter, as the sides turned for home level.
Sam Martyn got an early one in the final term but West debutant Mason Middleton hit back with his third. Matthew Goldsworthy just missed with two brilliant attempts from the pocket, the second hitting the post, before McGregor kicked his fourth to give the Eagles breathing space.
Andrew Hayes replied for West and, in a thrilling final few minutes, Goldsworthy won a free kick with a brilliant tackle.
He found Chris Hall who goaled from the pocket.
Scoreboard
WOODVILLE-WEST TORRENS 2.0 6.4 7.8 10.12 (72)
WEST ADELAIDE 3.3 5.4 7.8 9.8 (62)
BEST
Eagles: Boyd, Powell, McGrgeor, Von Bertouch, Hall, Sumner
West: Schmidt, Beech, Fisher, Milne, Keough, Macreadie.
UMPIRES: Toby Medlin, Curtis Deboy, Michael Schramm. West: Middleton 3, Macreadie, Schmidt, Newell, Silverlock, Tuck
CROWD: 1945
INJURIES
West: Caire, Scott (dislocated shoulder), Anderson (possible concussion)
Eagles: Templeton (ankle)
Reserves: Woodville-West Torrens 1.2 4.5 5.5 10.9 (69) def West Adelaide 3.1 3.4 6.7 7.9 (51)