Devil for Life Day a success on and off field
With the sponsors and past players gathering to watch the Devils take on the ladder leaders, the scene was set. Noosa are comfortably on top and the Devils had to win to keep their finals hopes alive. Kevin Tandogac broke down in the warm up and was replaced by Jordan Keays at the last minute. Keaysy had already played a full game in the reserves but enthusiastically said he was right to go.
In perfect conditions, the Devils took the game right up to Noosa with both teams taking the game on at a furious pace. Matt Rolla got the Devils on the board early and the defence was doing a brilliant job holding out Noosa. Dom Willi was giving us first use of the ball in the ruck and our onballers were combining well, giving the forwards plenty of opportunities. Early in the quarter, our centre half back, Jack Lush, rolled his ankle and could not return.
Early in the second quarter, Declan Jordan was knocked out by an errant boot and was unable to return. So the Devils were at a big disadvantage with 2 rotations down and another playing his second game. Managing rotations was not going to be easy and it showed in the second as Noosa controlled most of the quarter in their attack. To the credit of the Devils, our tackling count increased and therefore the pressure was maintained. Noosa managed 4-6 to the Devils 1-6 to get themselves back in the game. Poor goal kicking by both teams contributed to the growing tension of the supporters.
The third quarter was a fantastic contest by the Devils. The bench was being frequented by fatigued players regularly, yet all the players maintained their commitment to winning. Ben Cody and Keaysy both goaled from 50m penalties and the momentum was with the Devils.
Holding out in the final quarter was going to be tough as we expected Noosa to make a charge. They dominated most of the quarter in their forward line and it was a sterling effort of the backline to repel so many of those attacks. At no point did Noosa hit the front as the Devils lead fluctuated between 2 and 10 points. With a few minutes on the clock, the Devils goaled to go 8pts up again. Surely enough to win, but Noosa didn’t give up and capitalised on an opportunity for Robby Copeland to goal. The last minutes were nail biting, but the relief was evident around the ground when the siren finally sounded with the Devils 2pts in front.
Now the players need to capture this determination and form in the last 3 games to make the finals. This was indeed a great win and highlights our belief that at our best, we can beat all teams in Division 1.
Yeronga South Brisbane: 5.1, 6.7, 10.12, 12.13 (85)
Noosa: 2.4, 5.10, 7.12, 11.17 (83)
Goal Kickers: G. Boyd, M. Rolla 3, H. Livesey 2, J. Keays, S. Hall, J. Thomlinson, B. Cody Best Players: D. Wili, H. Livesey, B. Davis, J. Keays, M. Johnson, B. Cody, R. Johnson, D. Shewell, C. Lyon
Next week Yeronga South Brisbane play the bottom of the ladder team, Bond Uni, on Saturday 5th August at 2pm at Bond Uni.
In other results
QFA Division 1 Reserves
Yeronga South Brisbane 7.0-42
Noosa 11.11-77
QAFA Division 5
Yeronga South Brisbane 14.14-98
Ipswich Cats 3.3-21
Bond University QWAFL
Yeronga South Brisbane 9.12-66
Coolangatta 6.5-41
QWFA Division 1
Yeronga South Brisbane 13.6-84
Wilston Grange 1.0-6
QWFA Division 2
Yeronga/Coorparoo 0.2-2
Wilston Grange 5.7-37