SPOTSWOOD has earned a reputation as one of the premier contested ball sides in the Western Region Football League division 1.
When the Woodsmen arrived to wet and muddy conditions for their penultimate round clash with Hoppers Crossing at Hogans Road Oval on Saturday, they were licking their lips with anticipation of a good-old-fashioned slog.
Woodsmen player-coach Chris O’Keefe told the Weekly that his onball brigade, led by captain Tom Langlands, Dylan Ayton and mobile ruckman Ben Perry, thrived at the stoppages to orchestrate a workman-like 48-point win.
“It was pretty tough out there,” O’Keefe, another onballer, said.
“It was wet and slippery, and as you would expect from a game against Hoppers Crossing, it was a hot ball and a fierce contest.
“We made winning the contested ball first and foremost in our minds and we did that.”
The Woodsmen burst out of the blocks like a certain Jamaican in a 100-metre dash.
They opened up a 27-point quarter-time lead and it would prove unassailable in the conditions. The green and golds were outstanding at applying forward pressure.
Christian Elliott, Will Langlands, Ben Pope, Torin Baker and Chase Morgan were constantly chasing and harassing the Warriors defence into errors and ensuring the ball spent the majority of time in their forward half.
“All those small forwards were working super hard,” O’Keefe said.
The only blot on the Woodsmen copybook was their errant kicking for goal. Eleven goals was all they had to show from 26 scoring shots.
Perry, who bucked the trend with a team-best three goals, was a standout for the Woodsmen in all departments.
The former basketballer has come on in leaps and bounds since his arrival from Ainslie in the AFL Canberra competition and he showed against a finals opposition that he could be an X-factor for the Woodsmen in September. Not only did Perry win his fair share of hit outs to advantage, his tireless coverage of the ground set the tone for his teammates.
The Woodsmen are still a slim chance of snatching the minor premiership from under the noses of ladder-leader Altona Vikings.
The Vikings lost for just the second time when they travelled to Deer Park on Saturday, leaving both sides on equal points heading into the final round.
The Woodsmen will be heavily favoured to beat North Footscray at McLean Reserve this Saturday, putting a bit of pressure on the Vikings.
