NTFL 2023-24: Watch Tiwi Bombers vs Southern Districts Round 16 live stream

The towering timbers in the ruck proved crucial for the Crocodiles as they took full advantage of a wounded Tiwi side. Watch the full match REPLAY.

Southern Districts used their natural height advantage and the big boot of Jarrod Brander to force the Tiwi Bombers out of the contest and further stake their top three claim.

The Crocs need all the points they can get now, with a Round 18 bye looming large, to get their hands on a finals double chance.

And despite more than a couple of flashes of brilliances from the Bombers, it was the Crocs day with Brander kicking seven goals to help his side win 20.13 (133) to 11.3 (66).

WATCH THE FULL MATCH REPLAY ABOVE

The resurgent Tiwi Bombers were never out of the contest, but the loss of x-factor man Kim Kantilla in the middle of a long 31 minute second quarter was felt heavily.

Tiwi still had their moments on the attack after his departure, but the impact Kantilla brings on the ball and with the odd scorcher of a goal was lacking.

It was his goal, which brought Tiwi fans to their feet, early on alongside an effort from Brendan Kantilla, which had given the Bombers the early lead.

Sam Darley, getting plenty of the ball down back, as well as youngsters Thaddeus Puautjimi and Karlson Kantilla across the midfield were also big contributors.

But Districts height advantage was always going to come into play with Wyatt Ryan and Samuel Smith having a big day through the ruck contest.

Their tap outs gave one of the league best and fairest favourites Jed Anderson plenty to work with, alongside Beau Schwarze and Jye Bolton, who got plenty of the ball.

From there the big frame of Brander was the perfect target in the goal square having a more than accurate night against his Bombers rivals.

His collection of seven goals has seen him overtake Waratah’s Jayden Magro as the league’s leading goal scorer, with just the two rounds left to play.

Southern Districts forward Jarrod Brander kicked seven goals against the Tiwi Bombers in Round 16. Picture: Celina Whan / AFLNT Media

When it wasn’t Brander, Jonathon Ross, who kicked nine the week before against Palmerston, and Dylan Barry were also helpful in keeping the scoreboard ticking over.

The Tiwi youngsters kept bringing moments of excitement and had brief spurts of momentum, but not for a long enough to take the score back from the Crocs.

And Brendan Kantilla continued to be a standout throughout the match.

Districts had their own injury concerns late in the piece with Anderson missing the final quarter, while Stanley Waistcoat, Matthew Mazzini, Kayne Davison and Sam Smith all hurting themselves too.

But coach Shannon Rusca was optimistic they would all return to the fold ahead of their final regular season game against top side Nightcliff next week.

“It was a tough game, Tiwi came out the blocks very well and brought speed and flair to the game, and we were slow to react in the first ten minutes,” Rusca said.

“But from there we played some really nice passages of play, we grinded them out of the game, we used and switched the ball well and we won some contested ball, even though we leaked some easy goals at times.

“You have to respect this Tiwi side, they bring unpredictability and are playing well this season, and it took us time to get to playing our style of footy.

“For us Bolton was fantastic, would have had 40 odd touches, while Brander played well up front and Zac Smith and Jordyn Cotter were exceptional down back.

“We’re looking forward to Nightcliff next week, everyone is touting them as the best team, we’ll test them out and test ourselves out and see if our style can handle theirs.”

Score:

Bombers: 2.0 5.2 7.2 11.3 (69)

Districts: 4.1 9.5 14.10 20.13 (133)

Goals:

Bombers:

Thaddeus Puautjimi 2

Michael Thompson 2

Stanley Tipiloura 2

Brendan Kantilla

Roy Kantilla

Kurt Dunn

Jason Jr Puruntatmeri

Kim Kantilla

Districts:

Jarrod Brander 7

Dylan Barry 4

Jonathon Ross 3

Samuel Smith 2

Brandon Rusca

Jed Anderson

Ronald Fejo

Beau Schwarze

Best:

Bombers:

Brendan Kantilla

Michael Thompson

Thaddeus Puautjimi

Kurt Dunn

Sam Darley

Districts:

Jye Bolton

Jed Anderson

Jarrod Brander

Dylan Barry

Jordyn Cotter

PREVIEW

For Southern Districts, a final round bye is looming large, so every match matters if they are to claim their spot in the top three heading into the finals.

First up, it’s a clash against the impressive Bombers.

And the NT News and KommunityTV will be at Gardens Oval to stream all the action from 6.30pm on Saturday.

The Crocs have been among the league standouts all season, posting big wins when they need to and coming out on top in the tight battles, too.

But all they are thinking about at the moment is competition points to claim the finals double chance, and they have the squad to get the job done.

Jed Anderson, Matthew Johnston and Beau Schwarze is as good a midfield group as any in the league, and when you add in twin rucks Matt Dennis and Wyatt Ryan, it becomes an bigger challenge for opponents.

Then up forward you have two of the most potent goalscorers in the league in former AFL player Jarrod Brander and Jonathon Ross, fresh off kicking nine against Palmerston.

Tiwi Bombers v Districts will be one of the highlights of the weekend.

And goalscorers are what you need against the Tiwi Bombers, who do enjoy turning matches into shootouts when they can.

The Bombers gave Districts a real scare way back in Round 2 when they lost by just 10 points.

The likes of Thaddeus Puautjimi and Karlson Kantilla have been among the league’s best juniors, while Sam Darley, Kim Kantilla, Brendan Kantilla and Stanley Tipiloura have become real leaders in the squad.

A full replay of the match will be posted here at the end of the game.

The NT News and AFL Northern Territory have come together in a partnership to live stream both the men’s and women’s Premier League games for this TIO NTFL season.