Wallan comeback snatches thrilling RDFL draw against Woodend-Hesket
Woodend-Hesket coach Josh Pound was emotionally drained after seeing Wallan come back to snatch a draw but proud of his club’s performance.
Riddell
Don't miss out on the headlines from Riddell. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Woodend-Hesket coach Josh Pound described it as an “emotional rollercoaster”.
The Hawks let a golden opportunity to knock off Riddell District premiership favourite Wallan but avoided a heart-breaking loss in a nerve-wracking draw at Gilbert Gordon Oval on Saturday.
Magpies ace Matthew Perri kicked a goal to level the scores with two minutes on the clock and the points were shared, deadlocked 10.6 (66) apiece.
After a difficult build-up, Pound was proud of his players resolve.
“I’m pretty drained if I’m honest, it’s been an emotional rollercoaster,” he said.
“So many mixed emotions but I suppose we’ll take it, as clichéd as that sounds, we definitely could have won the game but we could have had to pinched from us as well.
“We always knew they were going to come late, they’re a really good side, everything’s good in hindsight but maybe we tried to slow the game down too much.
“Through adversity, we had a pretty tumultuous week, I think we had seven or eight changes none by choice – COVID during the week, injuries and guys going away.
“I feel like I’ve learnt a lot about the character of our group.”
Woodend-Hesket led all day, charging out to a 38-point lead at quarter-time thanks to a seven-goal opening blitz.
Wallan battled back in the second, reducing the margin to 14 points at half-time, but the Hawks charged away again in the third and held a 24-point buffer at the final change.
The Magpies then kicked 4.2 to 0.2 in the final term to snatch two points in a thrilling finish.
Tayte Pears and skipper Alistair Rae booted two goals each for Woodend-Hesket, while Perri finished with four majors and Corey Grindlay added three.
Marcus Stapleton, Tom Gawthrop and Frank Fazzolari were the home team’s best.
Missing the likes of James Hicks (COVID), Courtney Johns (shoulder), Elliott Beckett (ankle) and Harley Giddings and Jordan Reeves (overseas), Pound was particularly proud of his depth players.
“Considering the changes I couldn’t have been more proud of the guys that stood up and played a role on minimal game time,” Pound said.
Lachie Randle-Hewitt, Ethan Gove and Samuel McCaskill have barely done a pre-season but we asked them to come in and play a role and all three of those guys stood up in big moments.
RDFL: WHY DIGGERS REST’S RECRUITS MUST BE PATIENT
LEADER: GET YOUR RIDDELL DISTRICT FOOTY NEWS HERE
EDFL: WHY WEST COBURG COACH IS DEMANDING MORE
“That’s half the battle, getting your depth players to stand up when you need them.”
Wallan was without AFL Victoria Coach of the Year Dan Nolan due to COVID.
The Magpies were best served by Sean Morris, Nathan Fowler, Jarryd Bonello and Will Brock.
Woodend-Hesket now turns its attention to the RDFL’s standalone Good Friday clash against Riddell at Riddells Creek Recreation Reserve, while Wallan visits Melton Centrals on April 23 in the second week of the split round.
Riddell flies up to win the premiership flag
Riddell has capped a dominant RDFNL season with a dominant grand final performance, defeating Wallan to claim a second premiership in three seasons.
Ex-AFL names star on local footy’s biggest stage
Local footy grand finals were highlighted by stunning performances from ex-AFL names and even a state cricketer. Here’s a full wrap from across Victoria.