@DamoH With only two players left each the equation is pretty simple...Ryder & Cunnington need to outscore I.Smith & Hartlett by 48 points to win. It's going to be damn close. Go Sandgropers!
Smith fired and Cunnington flopped to leave Ryder having to outscore Hartlett by 88 points to take the win. He's currently in front of Hartlett by 5 points with half a game to go.
@DamoH's Smugglers have taken out the 1st QF by 70 odd points. Well done to Christmas Island on advancing to the semis. Post mortem to come.
The Barracudas finish up with 1,294/15 86.3 and the Armadillos @insider on 1,167/15 77.8 An absolute massive final term at the paddock! The home side bolted with Lewis muscling his way around the centre as he usually does, young Hannan was quite to start the session however picked up as the game wore on. Burgoyne played through the middle and up forward booting 2 goals while first time Cuda Turner put one through the big sticks playing off the wing. Phillips racked up the touches and slotted one through himself to cap off a good day at the office. The visitors dynamic duo TMac and Weekend at Bernie's tackled and crashed through defence with the later slow to start. The big bearded Gawn was out gunned in the big tap especially giving up 5 free kicks through out the game The little Mac put in a stellar effort running up the wing racking up touches even slotting a sausage with Dumont playing the tagging role and Timmy O'Brien firmly stuck in the forward pocket. In a desperate attempt to swing the momentum the visitors way the on fire Treloar gathered 31 possessions, 2 marks and 5 tackles and Wingard who started deep forward making his moves across the 50 meter arc. After the dust had settled, the Barracudas emerged vanquished against the mighty Armadillos to end their finals campaign and extend their stay in the hunt for glory.
thanks @YAD69 ... but not really good luck on the back to back or 3 peat or whichever one it is. Ive had a track record of playing teams into form so might be smooth sailing for you from here! cheers.
The sun was shining, the lions were roaring, the crowds had flocked. It was finals time down in the Crater. It had been a long and at times painful wait for the home town supporters to experience finals action and the whole town was keen to taste finals success now that the opportunity had finally arrived. Standing in the way of that dream was @JPK and his Coolgardie Prospectors who brought with them plenty of finals experience and knowledge. Spurred on by the vocal home town support there were winners all over the park for the Buffaloes. Danger (141) did as Danger does and Josk Kelly (132) followed his captain's lead. Down back Pittard (111) was motivated by the finals opportunity and put in one of his best performances of the season while up forward key pillars Dixon (102) & Daniher (96) continued their strong seasons. Unfortunately for the Prospectors they had been limping to the finish line and were unable to pull out one final effort. Big man Martin (129) did his best and repaid the faith by team managements choice to go with him as the one man ruck team while youngsters Sicily (107) and Wines (98) showed that there is future hope for Coolgardie's supporters. Final score: Serengeti 1373 def Coolgardie 952 Although the final margin was a big one, the Prospectors will take heart that neither of there loved teammates who were traded during the mid-season break took part in the match and that they have a bagful of early picks that used wisely will put them right back into contention sooner rather than later. For the Buffaloes the dream continues on and with the for shown by the team without a few of their stars some are furthering those dreams to potential premiership glory. Before that dream becomes a reality though they will have to get passed @bryzza and the Nuytsland Vikings in a prelim final that matches two of the top performing teams all season and promises to be a match of the highest quality. Nuytsland have probably been favourites to take out the title for most of the season but a few untimely suspensions and unlucky injuries is putting pressure on the squad but with plenty of talent at their disposal a grand final spot is going to have to be thoroughly earnt
Wow.... what more can I say? Thanks for the updates mate. I think now its time for me to move onto planning for 2018. Good luck to the remaining four teams.
I think I just got my team record score... 1490! The thing is, I've known for a while that we've been capable of this level (or at least 1300+) but we've had outs, off-days and depth issues. Definitely a sign of things to come
@Mick After last weeks disappointment and shock suspension of Grundy, revenge was served....flies were squatted....flies were squashed, flies were drowned in blood....flies were caught in our web and the flies were extinguished. Blowflies reality came crashing down around them as last weeks hero Tipungwuti 36 showed his true colours, Goldstein 32 lost the big tap to an opp in Motlop 36. In what could only be seen as a capitulation not one score over 100 until the game was well and truly over retiring Hodge 110 and beep test record holder Hartung 101 produced the goods. A Midfield not raising the bat averaging 90 will never get you win neither will a forward line averaging 70. Is another list overall required or will the coach persist with only two genuine stars in Sloane and Docherty. Vikings have gone one better this season but face a talented Buffaloes outfit @wrightbrendan. Nuytsland will hope the long trip from the Serengeti will hold us in good stead but fear having no ruckman will cost us a crack at the flag, predicting a 40 point lose. 3. Crouch 139 2. Heeney 130 1. Rampe 126
Assuming I haven't stuffed anything up, then this weekends fixtures should be uploaded into TSL Finals: Christmas Island v Groote Eylandt Nuytsland v Serengeti Biggest Loser: King Island v Pakenham Staghorn Flat v Eden Good luck to all remaining coaches.
Match review 1st Elimination Final: Southern Cross Sandgropers 1315 defeated by @DamoH's Christmas Island Smugglers 1373 It was 1st vs 8th at the Sandpit. Two teams that had been in red hot form coming into the finals. In fact when ranked by points scored over the last 5 rounds Christmas Island were the third highest scorers. They had timed their run perfectly. After Nutsyland they were the team we least wanted to face. With their best 15 in tow they arrived, primed to make up for their loss against the Sandgropers earlier in the season. It promised to be an epic match, one that the winner could gain confidence from, one that should supply a grand finalist. Either way one set of supporters was going to be heartbroken, what neither expected was to be enthralled, excited and gripped by the drama right until the final whistle. The first stanza was disappointing. Two teams bristling with quality would have hoped for a better start. Roughead (74) played his part as stand in ruckman but team mates Wallis (37) and Stringer (51) totally underwhelmed. They'd left the door open. A fast start is what was required and throughout the season proper it had been the norm in Southern Cross. The Smugglers could smell the apprehension, was the big stage overwhelming for the Sandgropers? The returning Deledio (64) looked rusty but his contribution ensured that Christmas Island were in the game. Punch after counter punch ensued in the second period with tons galore for both sides. The home side found their stride. Hurley (120), Taylor (110), Fyfe (115) and Prestia (126) did their utmost to keep up the pressure. But whatever the Sandgropers could do, the Smugglers could do better. Martin (108), Beams (138), Hall (122), Kreuzer (133) and Taylor (129) all flicked the switch. Their finals experience showed and if it had been a regular season match there would have been some very worthy POOYA nominations for the visitors. With the good however came the bad as Sheed (58) and Darling (63) were like rabbits in the headlights for Southern Cross but poor performances from Johnson (42), Heppell (59) and Menzel (54) ensured that Christmas Island took a slender and catchable 86 point lead into the last term. So with everything on the line, out they came. Hibberd (107) and Harmes (101) played their roles to perfection narrowing the lead to only 47 points as Dunstan (88) and Tyson (81) faltered. As with most big games someone needed to stamp their authority on the match, make a statement, be the difference. Cometh the man, cometh the hour; better known for shanking match winning opportunities, perennial finalist Isaac Smith (118) thumbed his nose at the home town supporters as he ran the wing. His contribution was in stark contrast to Cunnington's (81) as he blew the lead back out to a match winning margin of 84 points. The equation was simple, inform ruckman (swung forward) Ryder just needed to outscore Hartlett by 85 points. Could it be done? The supporters ran the numbers 120 to 35? Nope wasn't going to happen. 135 to 50? A possibility. Ryder had pumped out some big scores during the season and 135 wasn't beyond him; conversely Hartlett had been known to go missing, 50 points may have been below his average but it certainly wasn't out of the question. The Sandgropers fans watched in anticipation of a strong finish; the Smugglers fans held their breath hoping they could hang on. Ryder (102) didn't rise to 135 and Hartlett (81) didn't fall to 50. The Smugglers had won! The Smugglers had won! The hometown fans couldn't believe it, a season that had started so poorly (1&3) then promised so much (12&1) had ended. One final, one loss. The limited edition jumper hadn't helped, had it hindered? Was the weight of the fans expectations too much? Maybe they just shat their pants. Whatever the reason, it was over. The dream had died. The players looked on as the Smugglers celebrated, salty, salty tears flowed. There was no tomorrow, no coming back. All that remained...was the pub. The Club Hotel had been booked (prematurely) for victory celebrations. The beer flowed, but it was to help forget not to celebrate, 2017 & ORFFU 4 was over for Southern Cross. The supporters talked of what could have been. If mid season recruit Selwood had played would it have made a difference? If Duncan had kept his temper under control could they have won? If Devon Smith had taken the field could he have been the match winner? Too many ifs really. The better team had won, Christmas Island had announced themselves as contenders. The only consolation for the Sandgropers was that two ex-players (Johnson & Kreuzer) had a chance for ultimate glory. Comgratulations to Christmas Island on a great victory. It was a match worthy of the big stage, a win worthy of a (potential) grand finalist. Attendance: 907 (new Sandpit record) BOG: D.Beams (CIS)
It's Semi-Finals time, the inform Smugglers verses their islander rivals Barracudas. Christmas Island are on a high after knocking off the minor premier while the Cudas took out the Ararat lads. For the first time finals campaigners @DamoH CIS have got their FU together and want a different type of cup in their club room. The GEB tribe have a feeling of something special coming as they head west. 1/9th through the Smugglers are 74/1 74 to the Barracudas on 163/2 81.5 to start us off. A solid start for both team with Lever for the home side and Lloyd & Hanna's for the away side.