PINK RIBBON DAY FOR CASEY

[Demonland 65,437]

PINK RIBBON DAY FOR CASEY by KC from Casey

Gray skies, patches of drizzle and a big crowd were the order of the day as the Scorpions returned to Casey Fields for the first time in several weeks for their annual Pink Ribbon Day in aid of breast cancer research.

In the end, it was a successful afternoon on both scores with Casey, wearing a predominantly pink strip for the occasion, winning the four premiership points on offer in its game against Collingwood as well as achieving the target of $15,000 and raising public awareness for this very worthwhile charity.

The win also moved the home team into equal top position on the Peter Jackson VFL ladder after Port Melbourne's shock defeat down at Geelong as they move into yet another bye next weekend.

The Magpies were full of running and had the first two goals on the board within minutes of the opening before Casey responded with four unanswered goals from Stef Martin, Rian McGough, Tom Couch and Lucas Cook. Despite kicking against a slight breeze, there was plenty of run in the legs for the Casey boys and they appeared in control although a late goal by the visitors saw the Scorpions up by just six points at quarter time.

Casey was winning in the ruck through Jake Spencer and Martin whose dominance allowed Couch and Aaron Davey to turn it on at ground level. The latter was in scintillating form turning the clock back a few years with his brilliant footwork and pinpoint delivery of the football. The result was a goal feast for Martin and Cook who booted his fourth goal late in the second term. By that time the Scorpions were out to a commanding 37 point lead.

Casey was winning everywhere and it surely must have been pleasing for coach Brett Lovett that his VFL listed players were blending in so well with their AFL counterparts and that they were led so admirably by skipper Evan Panozza who is in career best form. Luke Tynan continues to impress and he combined well in defence with brother Josh.

Lesser known Scorpions such as Michael Riseley, Matt Fieldsend and Ricky Plummer were all important contributors on the day and underline the improvement that Lovett's coaching has brought to the team.

The second half opened in scrappy fashion with both sides struggling to kick goals until Martin put his team up by six goals at the eleven minute mark. With Davey off for the rest of the game and Troy Davis, who had been the dominant defender in the game, off under the blood rule, the momentum of the game changed. The Magpies responded with four unanswered goals (the last a booming 70 metre kick from Paul Seedsman) to narrow the margin to 13 points before the lively Tim Smith marked and kicked a crucial goal on the siren.

There were some nervous moments for Scorpion fans as Collingwood opened with the first two goals of the quarter before Smith kicked a steadier but the Pies were not to be denied and replied once more to nudge their way back to a seven point deficit with half of the term gone. Hard nut midfielder Couch, who was recruited from the Magpies' VFL side of last year and hasn't put in a bad game this year, was revelling in the tight going against his former teammates in the latter stages of the game.

Josh Tynan finally bobbed up for a relieving goal - the last of the game although several tense minutes elapsed before Smith marked fifteen metres out as the siren sounded. Unfortunately, he played on causing the game to come to an abrupt end and his attempt at a third goal didn't count.

What did count however, was Casey's eighth win from nine games, an excellent result from a team whose players were recently shunned by selectors when choosing the VFL representative side and currently missing key players co-skipper Kyle Matthews, Danny Nicholls and Wade Lees through injury.

The results show that the future looks bright for the Scorpions who approach the halfway mark of the season in the pink.

HOW THE DEMONS FARED

Jamie Bennell - as always, looked good at this level and produced some classy patches of play but there wasn't enough intensity in his play to suggest he can step up to be a regular in an AFL side at the moment.

Lucas Cook - a commanding presence up forward in the first half when he marked strongly and kicked well for his four goals but was held after that. Far more confident than when he first came to the club.

Tom Couch - kept going all day adding grunt to the midfield and his stats for the day bore out his contribution. Combined well with others in the midfield mix, particularly Jordan Gysberts and, during the second quarter, with Aaron Davey.

Aaron Davey - turned on a real cameo performance of balanced football and precision kicking. Had 15 disposals in one half of football before being removed from the game to maintain his eligibility for Monday's game if required.

Troy Davis - the pick of the tall defenders on the ground and he was undeterred by the fact that he was giving away height and weight to his Magpie opponents. He's another potentially classy key defender who should make the transition to bigger and better things in the next twelve months.

Jordan Gysberts - in his first game back after returning from a broken jaw, he showed he was not afraid of throwing himself into the fray and shrugged off any doubts about his ability to make a swift return to the top level. Given his limited game time this year, he was interchanged a fair bit but was a more than useful contributor right through to the end.

Kelvin Lawrence - was classy in patches but didn't quite do enough.

Stefan Martin - a great game as the back up ruckman to Spencer and was dangerous when he went forward kicking four goals.

Jai Sheahan - steady in defence without being as outstanding in his earlier games and he made a couple of errors under pressure. Still remains a very bright prospect

Jake Spencer - won the ruck duels against the Magpie tall timber and although his kicking action looks awkward, his disposal was surprisingly effective on the day.

Joshua Tynan - a real goer who covers a lot of ground and was in the thick of things for most of the game. Kicked a really important goal at the end to virtually seal the result.

Casey Scorpions 4.3.27 9.7.61 11.9.75 13.12.90

Collingwood 3.3.21 4.4.28 8.8.56 11.11.77

Goals

Casey Scorpions Cook Martin 4 Smith 2 Couch McGough Tynan

Collingwood Boland 3 Farmer Ferraro Hahn Mooney Paine Seedsman Witts Wood

Best

Casey Scorpions Martin Riseley Spencer Fieldsend Cook Couch

Collingwood Sundberg Hine Hellier Farmer Yagmoor Seedsman

Final stats winners Couch 27 (10 hard ball gets & 8 tackles) L Tynan 26 Panozza (& 7 tackles) Fieldsend 20 Martin 19 (& 18 hit outs)

2012 AFL Vic Development League

Casey Scorpions 2.4.16 5.6.36 5.10.40 6.11.47

Coburg Tigers 3.0.18 5.1.31 7.5.47 10.7.67

Goals

Casey Scorpions Galvin Williams 2 Clay Johnson

Coburg Tigers Hore 4 Jordan Murphy 2 Robertella Turner

Best

Casey Scorpions Troutman Rosier Williams Cleven Page Clay

Coburg Tigers Venditti Bamblett Duhau Robertella Hore Price

[hardtack 10,127]

Nice to see Williams getting a couple and being listed in the best for Casey in the Development League.

[Whispering_Jack 28,004]

Good article in the Leader Newspapers - Scorpions hold off Pies