Port v Central
Port Pirie
Sunday, May 10
Port and Central will meet at Memorial Oval on Sunday. Patrons will be hoping that the Mother’s Day clash will be a similar contest that was held on the 20th September last year when the 2008 grand final was a one point victory to the Bulldogs.
Port have started 2009 in good style with good wins over Lions in round one by 72 points and Solomontown in round two by 35 points while Central, who had the bye in round one, had a
29 point victory over West in round two and had a surprising 54 point loss to South last weekend.
Central have had a large turnover of players in the off season, with half of their 2008 grand final side no longer with the club the main notable absentees being Matt Keatley, Daniel baker, Andrew Williams and Ben Yeomans.
Port on the other hand have all players from the grand final side except Chad Parrish still playing with the club, although they will be without Chris Stephens and Jess Penny who will not be playing on Sunday due to injury.
Both sides have recruited key forwards with Matt Gale for Port kicking eight goals against Lions and two against Sollies. Centrals recruit Ryan Morris kicked three against West and two against South. Joe Quigley kicked three goals against West and will be another of Centrals newcomers that the Bulldogs will need to watch.
Port on-baller Tom Clarke has started the
season well and he combines well with ruckman Michael Burford and they deliver the ball well into forwards Brodie Mudge and Matt Gale.
The bloods ruckman Mark Fuller and running players Nick Callary and Shannon Wilson who were Centrals best two players against South last weekend must be kept under wraps by the green and whites.
Port wingmen in Matt Kendall and youngster Campbell Smith run all day and have both
contributed well in the opening two games this season, as have the two Aarons, Casey and Featherstonhaugh.
Port should regain the services of key back man Jack Clarke and goal sneak Greg Phillips who have not played since the grand final last year, while Centrals are sure to have a surprise or two in their line up.
Without seeing Central and on their obvious poor performance against South last week I think that Port can make it three in a row to start the season, but Centrals who will still have thoughts of the 2008 grand final in their minds will be here to try and make amends.
– Neville Thomson
Lions v West
Port Augusta
Saturday, May 9
Round four is the beginning of the road trips and opposition town rivalry as West Augusta host the Lions for a definite top four and
probable third place up for grabs on the
SGL premiership ladder.
Both teams feature standout recruits with Gerard Kenny from Goodwood Saints at West impressing in his first two games with 1st and 2nd best-on-ground performances, while Elijah Ware with years of experience in the SANFL for Lions in his first game in round two kicked truly for four goals and stamped his talent in the game.
West Augusta are coming off a bye and will be refreshed, with the likely inclusion of recruitment player from Central Augusta Brett McKerlie and Richie Hobbs (both injured Rd1), combining with the run of Matty Woodforde around the ground and the imposing Lukich on the ball, West will be hungry to sustain their
credentials as a “Top 2” team.
Lions having played last weekend, have received an 8 day rest since their Friday night demolishment of the Solomontown Cats and will be extremely eager to carry on that second half domination and prove finals football is a part of who the Lions Football Club are all about.
What has been so appealing about the Lions both in loss and victory, is their team game, which has seen nine players poll in the best-on-ground voting with up and coming stars Ryan Edwards, Tyron George, Levi Goodridge and Shaun Edwards sharing numerous roles for their team and taking the pressure off named stars to perform above expectations.
In a close game, Lions are a great chance for victory, keeping their momentum of confidence running through West Augusta who although rested, could be a little underdone in match fitness after a 14 day break.
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