Under 16
The Rochester Under 16 team came up against all the conquering Sandhurst in the Bendigo Junior Football League competition. Sandhurst is unbeaten in Division 1 and showed the Tigers why it is the team to beat. All over the ground the Sandhurst boys were bigger and stronger than their Rochester opponents.
The game started with a bang, with Sandhurst kicking its first goal inside 30 seconds. Sandhurst continued to pepper the goals and at quarter time the Tigers were 43 points down.
The boys had found the going very hard in the first quarter and could have thrown in the towel, but they upped their efforts in the second quarter, and although the scoreboard didn’t reflect it, the game was a lot more competitive. The Tigers were able to put themselves into some attacking positions and definitely won a lot more of the quarter. At the half-time siren the boys were down by 79 points.
The third quarter was more of the same, with the Tigers battling hard, but unable to string a sequence of plays together to be able to put a score on the board. The boys continued to crack in and although the scoreboard didn’t show it, the game was a lot more even. At three-quarter time the young Tigers were down by 115 points.
By the last quarter, the boys were beginning to look tired and sore. With only 16 players in their team, the boys were unable to get any rest and were continually under pressure. The efforts of the team never dropped off and despite being comprehensively beaten, they can be proud of the fact that they never stopped competing and tried their hardest.
Rory Hayes won the Rochester Hotel MVP, continually providing an option for the team coming out of the backline and using the ball well. Harrison Keating won plenty of the footy through the middle of the ground. Lachie Joyce battled a knee injury but continued to work hard and played some hard footy. Angus Ferguson played his best game for the Tigers, standing up strong and competing hard under immense fire in the backline. He was well supported by Jordy Rasmussen, who again defended desperately and tried his best to limit the damage. Cooper Harbour battled hard in the ruck and never gave up, and Trey White was the best of the forwards. The Rochester Football Netball Club One Percenter Award went to Jack Brennan for his great defensive work and his tireless efforts to tackle.
Although easily beaten, the boys can be proud of their efforts in competing hard right to the end.
Final score: Rochester nil lost to Sandhurst Maroon 21.26 (152).
Best players: Rory Hayes, Harrison Keating, Lachie Joyce, Angus Ferguson, Cooper Harbour, Jordy Rasmussen and Trey White.
Rochester Football Netball Club One Percenter Award: Jack Brennan. Rochester Hotel Meal Award: Rory Hayes.
Under 14
Rochy Under 14s met Castlemaine in the middle on Sunday, at Harry Trott Oval in Kennington. Kassidy Cail, Zac Morgan, Reno Mountjoy and the backline crew were kept busy from the get-go, with Castlemaine dominating the play, kicking four goals and five behinds straight up. Rochy only managed to get the ball into the forward line a couple of times for the quarter, and were therefore left scoreless at the first break. To rub salt in the wound, Tex Jones made an early departure due to injury.
However, things looked more promising in the second quarter, with the ball moving forward more frequently thanks to the hard work of Darby Martin and the midfield. Asher Lehmann took a great mark and looked towards goal, only to be called to play on – much to the surprise of Asher and his temamates! A well placed kick from Tom Drust led to Mitch Skeers getting his hands on the footy and kicking true for the Tigers’ first score of the day. Logan West was also hard at work in the forward line, and a 25m penalty against Castlemaine gave Logan all the opportunity he needed to put one through for goal. Rochy outscored Castlemaine in the second quarter, but not by enough.
There were some great passages of play from the young Tigers in the third quarter. The ball moved up and the down the ground multiple times but scores for each side were harder to come by. Harvey Keating took a great mark, passed it off to Leo Hayes for his trademark ‘long bomb left foot’ towards the forward line, which Cale James converted to goal. Strong tackling from Jag Tarrant and great body work by Zac Morgan stopped Castlemaine from racking up a couple of extra goals.
Castlemaine didn’t falter in the final quarter, marking strongly and kicking accurately all over the ground. A scramble in front of the Rochy goals saw Harvey Keating snap out to Mitch Skeers who lined up his second goal for the day. Good vision from Cale James gave Declan Carmichael the perfect opportunity to get his name on the scoreboard as well.
Rochy ran well, demonstrated some great passages of play and had every member of the team chipping in; but it just wasn’t enough to get on top of Castlemaine.
Score: Rochester 5.2 (32) lost to Castlemaine 13.13 (91).
Best players: Harvey Keating, Cale James, Darby Martin, Tom Drust, Reno Mountjoy, Mitch Skeers.
Goal kickers: Mitch Skeers 2, Logan West, Cale James, Declan Carmichael.
Mayreef Pty Ltd One Percenter Award: Chayse Hutchins. Play of the Day: Charles Watson.
Under 12
The weather certainly turned it on for the Under 12 boys this week, as they faced off against a strong Echuca outfit. Coaches Toby and Leigh continually reminded the boys about the importance of holding their positions and not finding themselves too far forward of the ball.
With many contested possessions early on in the game, Asher Rasmussen did his best to bullock through a sea of green and white and was able to move the ball forward of centre. A strong Echuca defence continued to repel the ball out of the forward 50. Walt James attacked the ball with ferocity on regular occasions, while Judd Cuttriss racked up possessions and found teammates going forward. Noah Makepeace and Zac Howard looked dangerous when the ball was in their vicinity, providing each other with plenty of space to create scoring opportunities.
Some desperate defending was required in the second term as Echuca began to get deeper inside 50 entries and looked to score on numerous occasions. Mason Mundie, Harrison Pangrazio and Jameson Watson were desperate in their defensive efforts, ensuring the ball was cleared from the goal line. Birthday boy Harry Rasmussen worked hard to get into creative positions, allowing him to find targets through the middle of the ground, while Hugh Acocks capitalised on the efforts in defence to accurately put through his first for the day.
A greater emphasis on team football was urged by the coaches at half time, and the boys responded accordingly, laying plenty of shepherds for each other to open up the game and create space for cleaner forward movements. Hugh Acocks was a focal point up forward, as he accurately kicked a further two goals for the term.
Max Lea got the crowd excited early in the final term as he crumbed brilliantly from a contest, although there was still plenty of work to do. Echuca’s repeated entries deep in their forward line tested the young Tiges’ defence, but with some assistance from midfielders working back to help out, they ensured the scoreboard was not bothered on too many occasions. The cool heads of Mason Mundie, Harry Rasmussen and Judd Cuttriss, along with brilliant pressure from Ryder Murray, Will Hayler and Harrison Wilkins, allowed the boys to navigate the ball out of trouble to find key targets in Hugh Acocks and Asher Rasmussen.
A solid contribution from all players now leads the boys into another Friday night game this week.
Rochester Spreading Service One Percenter Award: Jameson Watson.
Rochester Hotel Meal Award: Zac Howard.
Canteen Awards: Harrison Pangrazio, Harrison Wilkins, Ryder Murray, Will Hayler, Noah Makepeace.