OUR VFL GRAND FINAL COVERAGE
Picture gallery: Footscray v Box Hill VFL grand final
Match report: Footscray premiers after beating Box Hill
Footscray player reactions to premiership
Footscray enjoyed a 22-point victory over Box Hill Hawks in the 2014 VFL grand final on Sunday.
Sports reporter Lance Jenkinson dissects the game to tell us how the premiership was won …
First quarter
It is par for the course to have a feeling-out process in a grand final and this lasted all of six minutes before Box Hill’s Liston Trophy winner Alex Woodward broke through for the game’s first goal.
Woodward lit the spark for an entertaining quarter of football that would see the two sides split eight goals down the middle.
Footscray’s first major came through bearded big man Tom Campbell from a strong overhead mark in what would be a precursor to a dominant aerial game from the ruckman.
The goal-for-goal continued when Box Hill’s second goal through Dallas Willsmore was countered by Footscray’s Jack Redpath – both on the back of strong contested marks from the forwards.
Footscray’s first term was blighted by skill errors and Hawks forward James Sicily needed no second invitation when a sloppy kick-in landed in his arms and he sent it back with interest.
Sicily kicked a second two minutes later to give the Hawks a two-goal advantage.
Michael Fogarty, a Bulldogs homegrown product out of WRFL club Spotswood, halved the deficit when he marked from a kick-in and fired home from the set shot, then defender Tom Young slotted a team-lifting goal on the run to have the scoreboard all tied up at quarter time.
Brett Goodes was superb in the Bulldogs midfield from the get-go, making an early impression in the minds of the voters for the Norm Goss Medal for best-on-ground, while Jordan Russell had a big first term.
Quarter-time: Footscray 4.2 (26) Box Hill Hawks 4.2 (26).
Second quarter
Footscray started the second term like a house on fire with a Jarrad Grant soccer goal seconds into the quarter giving his side the lead for the first time in the match.
With the half-back line of Young, Russell and Michael Talia providing plenty of drive out of defence and youngster Fogarty impacting in the midfield, the Bulldogs enjoyed a period of sustained attack.
The rewards would come through goals to Jason Tutt and Liam Jones and by the 14-minute mark the Dogs had opened up a game-high 18-point lead.
The skill errors that hurt the Bulldogs in the first term crept in late in the second and none hurt more so than Mitch Jensen’s howler from the last line of defence, which saw Mitch Hallahan pounce to goal for the Hawks.
The Hawks booted the last two goals of the quarter through Hallahan and full-forward Sam Grimley to cut the margin back to just one point at half time.
It was Grimley’s only goal of the game with the competition’s leading goalkicker well held by Dogs defender Mark Austin.
Half-time: Footscray 7.4 (46) Box Hill 7.3 (45).
Third quarter
Box Hill maintained the rage early in the third term with Luke Lowden wrenching back the lead with a 50-metre bomb that momentarily took the wind out of the sails of the massive Bulldogs following.
The Hawks were not done yet, with Ben Ross making it five goals in a row when he pounced on yet another kick-in error to stretch the lead to two goals.
Footscray needed to arrest the slide and Daniel Pearce took it upon himself to rise three-deep for a nice contested mark and went back and kicked truly.
The Bulldogs finally got back into their groove, utilising the full width of the playing arena to set up Tory Dickson for a goal that trimmed the deficit to two.
Then Jones soared over a Hawks defender to mark and goal, putting the Dogs four points in front in time-on.
Box Hill owned the red time period with goals to Sam Collins and Billy Hartung.
Hartung’s was one of the goals of the year. He gathered the ball on centre wing, used his blistering pace to take three bounces and steadied up to put the Hawks out to a seven-point lead.
Three quarter time: Footscray 10.7 (67) Box Hill 11.7 (73).
Fourth quarter
When Box Hill extended their lead to 18 points through Sicily and Ross six minutes into the last term, there were serious doubts over whether the Bulldogs had it in them to mount another comeback.
The Hawks were running on top of the ground, despite a limited bench rotation.
The message went out to the Bulldogs players to just get the ball forward by any means.
The ensuing centre bounce after the Ross goal, the Dogs cleared through a long forward 50 entry from Mitch Honeychurch and Dickson was able to turn onto his preferred right foot to goal thanks to a shepherd from teammate Jason Johannisen.
It amped up the largely Bulldogs contingent and breathed life into the players for one last push.
Jones kicked a third two minutes later and scores were locked up when Redpath laid a ferocious tackle on Hawks defender Ryan Schoenmakers and goaled from the resulting free.
Christian Howard put the Bulldogs six points in front when he delicately goaled from a set shot on a tight angle.
Box Hill would not roll over, generating a number of frenzied forward thrusts.
One would end up in a rushed behind by an out-stretched Talia, another resulted in a Collins miss from 20 metres out directly in front and there was an important mark taken by Jones on the last line.
With most players out on their feet, youngster Will Hayes bobbed up to play an important late role for Dogs, including an 80-metre lead to mark a clearing kick out of defence that had a settling effect on his side when the Hawks threatened.
Moments later, the Bulldogs would get their backbreaking goal, when Jones booted his fourth to stretch the lead to 13 at the 27-minute mark.
Jones put the icing on the sweetest of cakes with a fifth goal.
Full time: Footscray 16.13 (109) Box Hill Hawks 13.9 (87).
STAR WEEKLY’S FIVE STARS
Brett Goodes (Footscray): Set the tone early in the game with his endeavour at the contest and never let up en route to the Norm Goss Medal for best afield.
Lin Jong (Footscray): So often the player breaking away from a pack situation to turn a 50-50 ball into a Bulldogs’ forward thrust.
Liam Jones (Footscray): When the big moments came, the athletic forward stood up, booting five goals to be the best forward on the ground.
James Sicily (Box Hill): Worked tirelessly across half-forward to create an option and was his side’s most damaging player close to home.
Mitch Hallahan (Box Hill): When Box Hill was surging, so often it was Hallahan who was the creator.
