SFL Livestream: Lindisfarne put undefeated record on the line against Brighton
Undefeated Lindisfarne got a huge shock before normality was restored in the final term of a pulsating SFL clash against Brighton. RELIVE all the action from our LIVE STREAM>>>
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BRIGHTON dared to bop Lindisfarne in the face, but it was the Robins who ended up with a bloody nose.
The final 35-point margin does not tell the full story as Lindisfarne was made to work extremely hard to shake off the revived Robins, 15.12 (102) to 10.7 (67), at Anzac Park.
When Brighton’s Jacob Whitney kicked their second goal of the last quarter, the scores were tied at 67 apiece, despite Lindisfarne having five more scoring shots.
But the visitors audacity to take it up to the SFL top team only seemed to inspire Lindisfarne.
The Two Blues then turned on the power to render the Robins flightless.
Lindisfarne booted 6.3 to zip for the rest of the game to turn a thriller into a cakewalk.
And it was two of their biggest names who did the damage.
Lindisfarne playing coach Michael Cassidy has always led from the front and Saturday was no different, kicking two of this goals for the game in that last quarter.
Former Brisbane and Essendon forward Josh Green also turned it on when it was needed most with a stint on ball and some crucial centre clearances and a brace in the last stanza to give him four for the game, while Jake Briggs also stepped up in the middle and across half forward.
Brighton’s efforts are to be commended though as the young squad were 35 points down at the long break and staring at a heavy defeat, but rallied with a 5.4 to 1.1 term of the
The young Robins certainly caught Cassidy’s eye.
“Their third quarter was outstanding and their pressure got us on the back foot,” he said.
“We got belted in the midfield for most of the day so in the last quarter we turned that around and won that. It is really hard at Anzac Park if you get beaten in the middle of the ground.
“We had the game under control going into half time, we kicked 4.7 in the second term and if we turn that 7.4 they are nearly out of the game.
“They are a quality side and they’ve got some good young kids. If they keep them together they will push for a premiership in the next few years.”
Fellow premiership contender Cygnet had no issues with the trip to Shark Park, with a 73-point hiding of Dodges Ferry, while a seven-goal haul to Jacob Smith saw Sorell thrash New Norfolk by 85 points and Huonville cruised to a 61-point win over Hobart.
PREVIEW: ‘We can get better’: Lindisfarne’s ominous warning
Lindisfarne issued an ominous warning to their SFL rivals, with star forward Michael Cassidy saying the undefeated Two Blues can get ever better.
Heading into their round nine match against emerging Brighton, who are fifth on the ladder, at Anzac Park on Saturday, Cassidy believes the SFL’s ladder leader are yet to hit their peak.
Lindisfarne has withstood every challenge so far, with only Cygnet giving them a real challenge when they met at Anzac Park in round six.
They started their season with a 141-point win over Claremont, followed by a 70-point win over Sorell, and was pushed in their 16-point win over Cygnet.
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The Two Blues then posted a 45-point win over Hobart, a 126-point win over Claremont, 146-point demolition of Huonville Lions at Huonville, and 43-point win over Dodges Ferry last weekend.
The team regained half-backs Alex Gaul and Dylan Zantuck and onballer Angus O’Meara this week and Cassidy said the Two Blues have been in “reasonably good form”.
“We’re 7-0 and playing some good footy,” he said.
“There are still areas where we can get better. We’ve started fairly slow in a few games, so we really want to make sure we get as fast start this week and hopefully get a score on the board.
“Our transition lacks at times. We have patches where we’ve let teams get a run and kick goals against us and get back in the game.
“Our back six have been solid but we’ve let opposition mids flow into their forward line and kick goals, so we need to stop the bleeding in the midfield and stop teams from scoring against us.”
Brighton has a 3-4 win-loss ratio and caused a major upset by downing Dodges Ferry at Shark Park to earn a place in the top five.
“They are up-and-coming and ‘PK’ (coach Paul Kennedy) has them going nicely,” Cassidy said.
“They’ve got a couple of good young players we know we have to put some work into.
“If we let them get on the outside and run and use their speed they will get dangerous, so we need to make sure we turn it into a solid contest and our bigger bodies go to work around contest.”
In other games this week, Huonville Lions host Hobart at Huonville Oval, Sorell is at home to New Norfolk, and Dodges Ferry plays Cygnet at Shark Park.
All games start at 2pm.