Hawks and Magpies fly high

It was a weekend for the birds with Hawks and Magpies recording wins

Willowburn captain Beau Partridge (left) and Saher Khidir of Hawks in Toowoomba Football League Premier Men round one at West Wanderers field two, Sunday, March 8, 2020. Picture: Kevin Farmer

FOOTBALL : Hawks ruffled the feathers of their more fancied rivals at the weekend.

Back in the TFL after a prolonged absence, the south Toowoomba club enjoyed a near-perfect return to action, winning two of their three games and drawing the other.

"The Premier men and women got wins and our Conference men drew with USQ," Hawks coaching director Craig Bearkley said.

"It's a great way to start the season.

"I think that's pretty impressive considering the two premier sides are basically brand new - they've only come together this season."

Hawks fly against Willowburn

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Up against defending premier Willowburn, Bearkley said he had been impressed by how well the Hawks (Premier Men) played as a unit.

"It was a tough battle between two determined sides," he said. "I thought our boys really came together as the game went on.

"They played as a unit, communicated clearly with each other and defensively looked pretty solid.

"At halftime, the coach sat them down and helped them settle, they came out of the break looking sharp and were able to get the winner."

Mixed Magpies bag

Willowburn experienced all the highs and lows football has to offer at the weekend.

The Magpies kicked off their Brisbane Capital League 3 campaigns in style - winning both their games and scoring 13 goals in the process.

The club's Premier Women's team easily accounted for West Wanderers 3-1, but their Premier and Championship Men's teams recorded defeats.

"It was a big weekend for the club with our return to action Brisbane and our TFL fixtures," midfielder Adam Daly said.

"We would've loved to see all our teams get wins, but it didn't pan out that way.

"Our men's TFL teams will bounce back next week, though."

Daly was part of the club's Brisbane contingent that kicked off the season with wins over Teviot Downs - a dream come true for many of the squad.

"I lot of us grew up listening to stories about the club (Willowburn) playing the XXXX League," Daly said.

"We idolised those players, so to be part of a Willowburn side playing in Brisbane again ticks off massive personal and clubs goals for all of us.

"Our new players have really bought into it as well - the atmosphere and the attitude has been amazing."

After going behind early in the BCL Premier division, Daly was impressed by how well the team regrouped before going on to win 4-1.

"I think the sense of occasion did get to us," Daly said.

"They scored pretty early, but we turned things around.

"We got a goal back and had a good honest chat at halftime.

"We looked at they were doing tactically, assessed our tactics and adapted well.

"As players we took ownership and the win was a result of those decisions.

"The win is a testament to our coaches and the attitude of the playing group."

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