Cygnet remain undefeated after a nail biting win over a premiership contender

Cygnet remains unbeaten but coach Lachy Watt is cautious about what lay ahead. See the verdict from both coaches after the Port beat Huonville lions.

Cygnet has kept its undefeated season streak but coach Lachlan Watt said his side won’t be looking any further than one week at a time.

The Port lost to Huonville in round 12 last year, almost 12 months on the two sides me in a finals-like clash with Cygnet holding on to claim a 8.10 (58) to 7.10 (52) victory.

“It is great to be undefeated but it isn’t about how good we are playing right now, it is more about how we are playing when September comes around,” Watt said.

“It was a great contest and we back ourselves in every time we get challenged to get ourselves out of it.

“We knew it was going to be a tough contest against them and when it gets to June and July, the colder months, it does get a bit scrappy.

“No side really got a big run on, they did kick out to a bit of a lead but we never really felt like they had all the momentum.”

Cygnet’s Jakob Lister looks set to spend some time on the sidelines with a potential hamstring tear. Picture: Jake Garland

The Lions kicked out to a 24-point lead midway through the second quarter thanks to Mitchell Walker kicking three goals in a row.

But The Port responded with two goals of their own to close the gap, heading into the main breakdown by just 11-points.

A scrappy third and fourth quarter saw just five goals kicked as the cold, wet conditions played havoc on the two best sides in the competition.

Lions coach Callen Daly said it was a battle.

“We had our chances, we missed a few easy ones but overall I think we’re narrowing that gap,” Daly said.

“Cygnet are the benchmark, we continue to hunt them, we know they are a good side and they wrestle back the momentum throughout games at some stage.

“Trying to halt them is obviously a tough task, which I thought we did well at times.

“Every time we play them it’s a massive game, especially at home, there would have been a couple thousand people there, it was a big crowd.”

The Lions sit second, now two games behind Cygnet with last year’s grand finalists Lindisfarne now just one win behind Huonville.

While Dodges Ferry have sent a warning to the competition letting the fellow top five they are still kicking around with a massive 86-point win over Sorell.

The Sharks booted 17-goals after the first quarter to just five to claim a 22.14 (146) to 8.12 (60).

“To be honest it shook me up a bit,” Watt said.

“Obviously those two sides are two quality sides and when two quality sides come up against each other, you don’t really expect one of them to blow the other out by nearly 100-points.

“So Dodges obviously had a plan that they took into the game and did a really good job executing it.”

Cygnet’s Jakob Lister could miss next week’s clash with New Norfolk with a potential hamstring tear while the Lions are hopeful they will get a few players back for their clash with Hobart.

Originally published as Cygnet remain undefeated after a nail biting win over a premiership contender