Lower Plenty stun Heidelberg in NFL Division 1 upset of the season

Last against second. On paper it was an obvious result but no one told Lower Plenty as the Bears stormed home in the final quarter to stun NFL Division 1 premiership contenders Heidelberg.

Lower Plenty claim an upset win over Heidelberg.

Lower Plenty delivered one of the upsets of the NFL Division 1 season on Saturday, knocking off second-placed Heidelberg by four points.

Matthew Duckworth was the Bears hero, sneaking forward from defence and clinically slotting the winner with just 20 seconds left on the clock.

Trailing for the majority of the match, last year’s Division 2 premier stormed home in the final quarter at Montmorency Park to win 12.5 (77) to 10.13 (73).

It was a drought-breaking victory for Lower Plenty, its second of the campaign after defeating Montmorency in Round 1.

Bears coach Ben Turner was rapt with the result after a difficult few weeks.

Lower Plenty coach Ben Turner. Picture: Josie Hayden

“We’ve had a tough initiation to Division 1,” he said.

“We often talk about the learning curve and the fact we’re on a steep one.

“The week before the long weekend we had a really disappointing performance against West Preston, so we went into the game wanting to ensure the effort was there and changed our attitude.

“It was quite a close tussle all day and they missed some opportunities early in the last quarter and we took ours.

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“We were very happy just to get a win.”

Duckworth was superb off half-back for Lower Plenty, while Tom Keys played his best game of the season, his second back from injury.

Corey Sleep was at his dangerous best with six goals in a new role in the attacking half.

“Corey has been playing most of his time in the midfield, splitting time between there and the half-forward line,” Turner said.

Corey Sleep kicked six goals for Lower Plenty.

“We threw a different role at him and he responded to that really well, gave us another avenue to goal and hit the scoreboard.

“Tom had a setback early in the season and he’s just starting to get his fitness levels back up.

“It was a great opportunity for us to get him back in the midfield and he just showed his talent. He was terrific all day, and kept us in the contest at stages.”

However, it wasn’t all good news for Lower Plenty with captain Patrick Flynn undergoing surgery last week on his ankle.

The talismanic big man went down in Round 2 against Greensborough and faces an uphill battle to return this year.

“The likely scenario is he’ll miss the rest of the season, which is unfortunate given he’s the captain of the football club,” Turner said.

“He’s around the club every training session and game day, and we’re still benefiting from his leadership.

“It’s hit us pretty hard, the injury bug, but the boys out there are doing a fantastic job for the footy club.”

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