St Mary’s have tasted premiership glory once again using all their pace to beat Waratah in the grand final
St Mary’s have once again tasted premiership success with a thrilling grand final victory over a fighting Waratah, with goal scoring machine Jackson Calder winning the Chaney. ALL THE GRAND FINAL ACTION HERE
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ST MARY’S have once again tasted premiership success with a thrilling grand final victory over a fighting Waratah.
Both sides brought the intensity from the off with hard, contested footy played by both sides meaning plenty of hard runs and hard hits.
But after a difficult opening quarter where Waratah ground out a four goal lead the Saints powered on to secure a 15.10 (100) to 10.5 (65) win and the 2021-22 premiership.
Saints had the early run of the game getting the ball into the hands of key onballers Jack Kluske and Josh Smithson, but despite their early run could not get beyond the Tahs defence.
The key battle in the Saints forward 50 was between the league’s leading goal kicker Jackson Calder and key Tahs’ defender Daniel O’Dwyer, who had won this contest in the semifinal.
An early chance for Calder went begging after he took a strong mark from the midst of Waratah defenders, but only came away with a point.
That almost score ignited Tahs, particularly the Collis brother, Dylan and Will, who were everywhere in the opening quarter setting up a platform for their big forwards.
Kurtley Silver showed his x-factor, Brodie Carroll got his fair share of the ball and Corey Rich put himself in position to nab goals.
However, Saints were determined not to go in to quarter time without a major and a swift break from speedster Nick Yarran gifted Calder the opener.
The score activated the Green Machine and they burst into life in the second quarter with a 55m kick from Kluske set the tone.
Dylan Landt and skipper Nate Paredes came into the game as well and all of a sudden Saints were finding themselves first to the ball at every contest.
Joseph Salmon showed off his speed while Justin Robinson also had plenty of moments in the limelight, and after kicking four goals on the bounce to see off the half Saints were away.
They never let up the pressure from there getting in plenty of strong tackles and winning free kicks to put the pressure on the Tahs, an almost reverse of the same encounter two weeks before.
Meanwhile, Waratah lagged for ball with the match fitness of the Saints showing in the later stages of the game.
Calder had plenty of it throughout the third quarter while Kieran Parnell played a significant role down back to keep Tahs off the ball.
Waratah had a brief resurgence in the final quarter kicking junk time goals to form a more favourable margin but for them it was not to be the drought breaker season.
“It’s so special. It’s my second now but I reckon this is the most special one. We’ve had a tough couple of years and to come through is just awesome,” Paredes said.
“I love these boys, it’s been a massive couple of years for us. The club has gone through a massive couple of years and to come away with that is reward for so many people’s efforts.
“It came down to our speed and intensity. We just tried to bring effort and intensity that whole game. That’s what the coach (Anthony Vallejo) said from the start and we brought that all game.
“Particularly in the second half where we ran them over for the win so I’m pretty proud.
“We knew they were going to come, we just have to withstand them. We’ve been working on our fitness all year and we knew that would come out on top.”
Saints’ coach Anthony Vallejo was more than proud of the effort put in by his troops after two losing grand finals in a row.
“It’s more relief than anything, I’m happy for the boys and this win is about them,” Vallejo said.
“I was yelling to my assistant coach on the bench right to the end, I didn’t know when the siren was going to go or what was happening after last year’s effort.
“The last couple of weeks have been about coming out and having some fun. We’ve been at this dance for the past couple of years so it was about loosening the roof and letting the boys have some fun.”
Score:
Waratah: 3.2 4.2 5.5 10.5 (65)
St Mary’s: 1.1 6.3 11.5 15.10 (100)
Goals:
Waratah: C Rich 4 W Collis K Silver T Cree J Magro J Bowd A Ankers
St Mary’s: J Calder 5 J Kluske 3 J Robinson 2 S Edwards N Yarran J Salmon D Landt J Smithson
Best:
Waratah: W Collis D Collis D O’Dwyer A Gulden C Rich
St Mary’s: J Calder (Chaney Medal) N Yarran J Kluske N Paredes K Parnell
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BEST ON GROUND - JACKSON CALDER
ST MARY’S star full forward Jackson Calder has capped off an unbelievable year in front of the posts winning the best on ground Chaney Medal in the NTFL grand final.
If winning the Dennis Dunn best goal kicker award after booting 58 goals in the regular season wasn’t enough Calder added a further five in the grand final to secure the Chaney.
Those goals were hugely important for the side that have had their fair share of grand final heartbreak in recent years losing consecutive finals to Nightcliff Tigers.
But against Waratah everything clicked for the side and they found themselves with all the momentum post the opening quarter.
“It’s so sweet after losing those two in the past couple of years, we’ve worked so hard for this. It’s the best,” Calder said.
“It’s a good honour to get best on ground, it’s not why you play and I was a bit surprised as we had a number of good mids but it’s good to see a forward get a prize.”
Calder was always going to be one of the focal points in the grand final with his big frame up forward a key target for the Green Machine’s mids.
However, Waratah back line star Daniel O’Dwyer had the big forward’s number last time the two met in the semi-final.
That contest was key to the outcome of the game and this time, with the support of his onballers, Calder managed to gain the upper hand.
“I was lucky to get a few goals. He’s probably the toughest opponent I’ve had up here and has had my measure this season so I was really keen to get the job done.
“Everyone played well. Our midfield was brilliant, the usual suspects in Nate Paredes, Josh Smithson and Nate Paredes.
“We didn’t have any passengers and that’s what wins you games.”
For the Dry Season Calder has committed to staying in Darwin rather than heading back to the Mornington Bulldogs, where he slotted 69 goals from 13 games in 2021.
“I’m actually staying up in Darwin. I might go off to Cairns to play a few games for the Cairns Lions but I intend to enjoy the dry season up here mostly,” Calder said.
“I just love the lifestyle and I want to enjoy it.
“If I’m still here next year I will definitely be playing at Saints once again hoping to go back to back.”
“WE JUST DROPPED THE BALL FOR 10 MINUTES,” TURNBULL
TEN minutes of “bad footy” cost Waratah’s chances of breaking its 22-year premiership drought, co-captain Robbie Turnbull says.
Turnbull told NT News after the match he was “gutted, absolutely shattered” by the loss and his team failed to answer as Saints kicked four consecutive goals to close out the half.
“That’s what happens when you don’t put the pressure for four quarters,” Turnbull said.
“We didn’t go that man-on-man footy, and we just dropped the ball for 10 minutes, and they made us pay for it, and all credit to them, they’ve been a great side.
“We’ll come back bigger and better next year.”
Waratah coach Ryan Ayres said he was shattered by the 35-point loss to a team which simply outplayed them
“It’s going to hurt, it’s really disappointing but we’ve just got to regroup and come back next year,” he said.
“(I’m a) bit distraught, obviously, not the result we were after.
“St Mary’s were far too good for us on the day, when you’re not ready for it, this is what happens.”
He said Tahs started well, taking an early lead, but were unable to answer a strong St Mary’s response.
“We always knew they were going to come at us at some stage, and then it was all over before we knew it,” he said.
Tahs president Rohan Langworthy said he was “super proud” of his players despite the loss and would still “celebrate the season” over coming days.
“This will only make them stronger. We’re not going anywhere,” Langworthy said.
“It was a big step forward for the footy club (this year), it’s been a while since we’ve got in a granny.”
Waratah last played in a grand final in 2008, eight years after its last flag.
“We’re on the upward path, we’ll keep building, we’ll come back stronger,” he said.
“It’s a place people want to be at. Flags, they’ll come. They won’t define us.
“We’ll be defined on how we bond together, how we rebuild from this.
“Having all the kids in the grandstand, chanting. I reckon we won the crowd today, we had the best turnout today.”
Saints aim for three times lucky
ST MARY’S are aiming to make it third time lucky when they take aim at what will be their third grand final in as many years.
The talented Green Machine haven’t had it all their own way in recent years playing and losing the past two grand finals.
But this year they have plenty of reason to believe they can turn their fortunes around particularly after a miraculous and dominant win over their previous grand final rivals Nightcliff in the prelim.
Captain Nate Paredes said the pressure of previous finals was off after beating the Tigers and that they were ready to solely focus on the game ahead.
“I feel like the pressure is off a bit and we just want to go out there to enjoy the moment and be able to enjoy the game together,” Paredes said.
“We’re not as worried about the past two years, we’re just focused on this game.
“After the past couple of years there was a bit of pain so we wanted to rectify that and get a good win on the board.
“Last week against Nightcliff we did that, it was one of those nights where everything came together.”
St Mary’s have this year been heralded for their pace around the ground particularly across their forward line.
They often score a goal within the opening minutes off the back of their strong and deadly midfield including Paredes, Jack Kluske, Dylan Landt and Josh Smithson.
Pacy half-forwards Nick Yarran and Joseph Salmon have also been scoring catalysts while the league’s leading goal scorer Jackson Calder is a stalwart up front.
Then down back Matt Green and Grant Gallus have proved themselves defensive forces while Lucas Jellyman-Turner showed plenty of skill in the prelim final.
“The changes we made from the first final a couple of weeks ago have paid off allowing us to bring more pace and inject more pressure into our game plan,” Paredes said.
“Having the smaller and pacier forward line that we have adds that pressure on their defenders and hopefully we can lock in the ball in and beat them on the spread.
“Our midfield is full of quality players. I believe Landt is the best player in the comp while Kluske is really dangerous around the ball.
“We’ve got a really strong midfield but so do they and that’s where they probably beat us in the first final. We will need to improve there and if we do we can win the game.”
WARATH LOOKING TO BREAK 22 YEAR LONG DROUGHT
WARATAH are into their first grand final since 2008, but after triumphing in their past two finals bouts know they have all the tools to get the job done.
It was an all-team pressure game that saw the Tahs leap past both St Mary’s and Nightcliff on their way into the grand final.
That feat was made all the better for the side, as up to that stage the red and white outfit had beaten neither of the 2020-21 grand finalists.
But in beating them Waratah had surged into their first grand final since 2008 and put themselves in the hunt for their first flag since 2000.
Waratah co-captain Robbie Turnbull said the whole club had got around the players in their hunt to break the flag drought.
“After 22 years the place is absolutely on fire at the moment. Everyone is getting down and the support is coming from around Australia,” Turnbull said.
“It’s really great to see the place up in the limelight for once and there are a lot of people that have worked hard from behind the scenes that should enjoy the moment.
“For us we know of the drought. But droughts are there to be broken. I’d rather be going in as the finals underdogs having not won in a while and over-perform than the other way around.
“This game is looking pretty even, both sides have been pretty good all year. It’s going to be a tough contest and I don’t think anyone is going to go in as clear favourites.”
And with the whole side buying in the Tahs will once again be looking to that method as they look for premiership glory once again.
Waratah have plenty of strength across the board from the backline including Jake Bowd and Daniel O’Dwyer right up to their x-factor forwards including Kurtley Silver and star recruit Jayden Magro.
But it’s the midfield where they’re perhaps most potent with co-captains Turnbull and Brodie Carroll, Will Collis, Dylan Collis and longtime star Abe Ankers.
“We definitely pride ourselves on our 22 man pressure,” Turnbull said.
“It’s not just one person, it’s everyone, and it’s infectious. Manic pressure is definitely something we pride ourselves on at the moment and that put pressure on St Mary’s to deliver their skills.
“Mags and Silver bring a little bit of magic up front, it’s always good to see them perform in the forward 50 but we’ve got really good contributors across the board.Mag
“All the way back to Jack Bowd and Daniel O’Dwyer, who’s done a good job on Calder in previous matches.”
Tahs are primed to break drought: Magro
Waratah has sourced all the necessary ingredients for a drought-breaking premiership this Saturday, gun recruit Jayden Magro believes.
The 25-year-old East Perth product believes the Tahs have clicked at the right time, with their best team of the year accounting for its big dance opponent, St Mary’s, by 15 points in the qualifying final at TIO Stadium.
Magro agreed with Tahs’ last premiership captain, Anthony “Herby” Hoban, who has theorised the club has peaked perfectly, just like it did back in 1998-99 to win the first of back-to-back flags.
“It took us a while to hit our straps,” Magro told NT News.
“Blokes are in and out, it took a while to get all the boys in.
“We had our best side overall (against St Mary’s), we had everyone together for the first time.
“There was a bit of thought about when it would all click, but it did. That’s when it all came together.”
It’s why Magro is confident coach Ryan Ayres won’t tinker too much with the game plan, or personnel, which kept the likes of Jackson Calder, Nick Yarran and Joseph Salmon to just one goal between them on February 26.
However, he believes a united, collective mindset is just as important as any strategic tweak, even though the Tahs will need to reproduce the same levels of finals pressure.
“The main thing is we believed in each other and we held each other accountable,” he said.
“We picked each other up... it went a long way (towards winning).”
That togetherness has extended to off the field, too.
“We pretty much do everything together,” he said.
“We’re definitely the best of mates off the field, it’s tight-knit.”
Grand final week is traditionally a walk down memory lane, and Magro admits the players are well aware of expectations with Waratah’s last premiership coming 22 years ago.
“Everyone talks about it, it’s obviously been a long drought,” Magro said, who will head deep south for his next football adventure, signing with Lauderdale in the Tasmanian State League.
“There’s talk about creating history. But there’s not a lot of pressure (from the club).”
On a personal level, Magro, who polled nine Nichols Medal votes on Sunday night, singled out his 27-possession, three-goal performance against Wanderers in round 12 as his best of the year.
The explosive left-footer, who has won one previous flag in country Western Australia, said he will definitely return to the Top End next season.
“It’s probably been the best decision of my footy journey so far (to play in Darwin),” he said.
“I’ve loved every minute of my time up here.
“The lifestyle’s awesome. The footy has topped it off.”
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