YOU could hear a collective sigh of relief among the faithful at Williamstown.
Nothing came easy for the Seagulls in the Victorian Football League during a winless June.
The Gulls’ fans finally got to enjoy a stress-free afternoon at the footy with a cruisy 48-point win over Collingwood at Burbank Oval on Sunday.
Four points were in the bank at three-quarter-time and a launching pad was established for the rest of the season.
And who doesn’t like to bring down the famous black and white army?
On face value, the Seagulls’ form in June with a draw and three losses would suggest a slump, but a goal here or there and they might well have been sitting on an upper rung of the top eight and not on the outside looking in as they were before the round.
Two single-figure losses hurt – so, too, did the draw. What it shows is how even this VFL competition is.
Seagulls assistant coach Andrew Mirams said tough losses were part of the education of a young and developing team.
“We haven’t been playing badly … haven’t been too far away. That’s part of the teaching and learning for a young team. The competition is just really close.”
But it was the Seagulls who handed out the lessons on Sunday. They dictated the stoppages with Ben Jolley, Brett Goodes and Ed Carr at their ferocious best. The home side had a whopping 38 scoring shots of which only 16 were turned into goals.
That was perhaps the only moot point for coach Peter German.
James Wall was ‘best on ground’ for the Seagulls for the second game in a row. His value to the team is priceless because of his ability to hold down multiple positions, ranging from mobile ruckman, to big-bodied onballer, tight-checking defender to key forward. Finding consistency across the four quarters was the key.
“He’s put his nose to the grindstone these past two games,” Mirams said.
“He’s put two four-quarter games together and started to show the footy world what he can do.”
Jason Johannisen was another to catch the eye.
The young Western Australian is becoming the man opposition sides must blanket.
“He’s got elite pace,” Mirams said. “It’s something that doesn’t grow on trees.”
But the surprise packet for the Seagulls was 23rd man Charlie Nastasi. On loan from TAC Cup affiliate Western Jets, Nastasi had a memorable debut in senior football, kicking the first two goals of the game and getting involved when it was his time to make his presence felt.
“He crashed right in and didn’t look out of place,” Mirams said. “He was a positive addition to our side.”
The Seagulls are back in the top eight but could be displaced without kicking a ball in anger.
They have one of their four byes this weekend to freshen up for a western derby with Werribee on July 22.
