EFL 2022: Top-two finish alive for Warrandyte after 19-point win over Ferntree Gully
Warrandyte’s hopes of a top-two finish remain alive in the EFL’s Division 3 following Saturday’s win, which also marked the impressive debut of a 17-year-old.
Eastern
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Warrandyte simply needed to win, senior coach Paul Donahoo says.
The Bloods bounced back from a heartbreaking one-point loss the previous week, overrunning Ferntree Gully in the final term to win 11.11 (77) to 7.16 (58) in the Eastern league’s Division 3 on Saturday.
It’s been an inconsistent past month for Warrandyte, which hasn’t won two matches in a row since rounds 8 and 9 – but the weekend’s result sets it back on track according to the coach.
Ferntree Gully had banked three wins and a draw from its past four outings leading into last Saturday, while the Bloods had lost two of their past three.
“I think Ferntree Gully is a huge one,” Donahoo said.
“There’s a lot of talk around them and how good they are – I don’t question that at all – they’re fighting against relegation but also they’re fighting to try and keep an unlikely finals appearance alive as well.
“I thought it was a really good game from both sides … we had a big month with Waverley, Coldstream, Donvale, Ferntree Gully and then we’ve got Whitehorse this week before the bye.
“We’d lost two out of three, it was nearly a must-win for us to get back on track.”
No more than five points separated the pair at each break, with the Gully ahead at the final change by three points.
Donahoo said there was a key focus on “continuing our workrate and our energy” after a lapse in the previous week’s nail-biting loss to Donvale, which translated into his charges taking advantage of momentum in the final term.
Quinn Clark was a commanding presence in attack with five majors, while 17-year-old Lachlan Guymer also finished among the best in his senior debut match.
Playing across half-back and in the back pocket after pushing his case in the under-19s, there wasn’t a role too big for the emerging talent.
Donahoo said Guymer proved he was more than capable at the level, even taking on the task of dual Premier Division flag star Luke McComb at stages.
“He (Lachlan) is only a 17-year-old kid … we just thought he was ready and up to it,” Donahoo said.
“He backs himself and doesn’t overthink it – he played parts of the game on Luke McComb and threw himself in front of leading forwards and he’s got a lovely kick on him as well.
“He proved that he’s more than capable at senior and he probably also proved that some of these (NAB League) squads should be having a look around.
“I think he’ll go well with his footy and he added a different dimension that we needed.”
Warrandyte sits third on the ladder with an 8-4 record as it continues to hunt a top-two spot.
Donvale occupies second – ahead of the Bloods by just under 21 per cent.
“We’ve played the rest of the top-four teams twice already now, and they’ve all got to play each other again,” Donahoo said.
“Hopefully with a couple of results our way, we’ve got to look after our own backyard, and hopefully top-two is still available for us.”
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