ROUND 9 PREVIEW:
Well the last 4 games of the first full round upon us (4 games this weekend as in the original draw Brighton and Holy Spirit were scheduled to play). There are 3 games scheduled for Friday night, and one for Sunday.
In the early game on Friday night, Logan Bros return from 2 weeks on the sideline and travel to Pinklands to take on Redlands. A Redlands win (or draw) will cement the Parakeet's place in the Chairman's Flag final against Arana. Logan Brothers will not make it easy however, and will want to erase memories of "the game that got away" against Arana the last time they were on the field, and their thrilling 2 point loss to Redlands in the last round of regular fixtures last year. The Logan boys always lift against Redlands and the 2001 Premiers will have to be at their best to win this one.
In the second Friday night game, Slacks Creek will want to continue with their improved form of last week when they travel to Centenary. The "other" Panthers will be buoyed by their narrow win against Redcliffe on Sunday and it is hard to see the Slacks Creek boys being able to match them.
The late game on Friday night sees the injury hit competition leaders Arana host the Dolphins. The Redcliffe side is the only team to come away from Dawson Pde with a win in the last 2 years so the Panthers will want to extract revenge for that! The pre-season encounter between these two teams was a great game with Arana snatching a win after the full time hooter, so this game promises to be a real beauty. Arana have the added incentive of completing the first round undefeated, but this will be a tough ask against a Redcliffe team that is desperate for a win after three consecutive losses - should be a great battle.
By the time they take the field on Sunday against the Tigers, Souths will know if they have any chance of making the Chairman's flag final (Logan Bros will have had to have beaten Redlands on Friday night), and if so exactly how much they have to win by to overhaul the Parakeets. The Easts team will not be a pushover, and they will certainly want to extend their performance in the first 30 minutes last week to the full 60. Souths will not be able to be as cavalier with possession as they were last Friday night, or they may find themselves on the end of an upset.
Should be a great weekend of footie to conclude the first round - hope everyone enjoys themselves!!!
Brad T
13/5/2002
ROUND 8 WRAP:
Three more games in Round 8 completed with one on Friday night and two on Sunday. Logan Brothers and Arana picked up the 2 points for the bye.
In the Friday night game, Slacks Creek, despite missing a couple of key players through injury, put up a much better display against a Souths team seemingly intent on self destruction, holding the Magpies to a 30-12 scoreline. Souths put down the ball 23 times in the match, so in the end were probably lucky to get away with the win.
The first Sunday game saw an Easts team, fresh from 2 weeks of byes take on the in-form Redlands side. The Tigers roared in the first half, going to the break with a 12-8 lead over the Parakeets. Ross Strudwick's halftime talk worked wonders however with Redlands taking out the second half 26-0 against a fading Easts side.
As expected the third game of the weekend was a real cliffhanger between two teams desperate to break a losing run. Redcliffe and Centenary both put on some big hits in a terrific struggle, and when the fulltime whistle sounded, the visiting Panthers had managed to eke out a 2 point victory, 22-20. The match featured the return from injury of Brisbane centre Tim McIlwain who pleasingly got through the full game at fullback. Matt Marshall, who has been training with the Brisbane squad as shadow player for Rohan Ahern, also had a big match.
Redland's win finally ended the hopes of Redcliffe and Centenary making the Chairman's Flag, with only the Magpies having any hope of heading off an Arana - Redlands final. Further info of this in Round 9 preview.
Brad T
12/5/2002
