THE MARCH OF THE ZEBRAS

[Demonland 73,264]

by Barry from Beach Road

Sandringham marched into its third successive VFL Grand Final with a resounding 80 point victory over Northern Bullants at TEAC OVAL, Port Melbourne on Saturday.

The Bullants drew first blood with an early goal but Sandy soon established its dominance with a booming kick from Paul Wheatley and from then on it was a one-way street as the Zebras took control all over the ground, scoring goal after goal to take a 31 point lead into the first break after the flow was temporarily stopped on the siren by a shot from Irishman Setanta O'hAilpin.

The Sandy midfield led by Phil Read, Peter Summers, Guy Rigoni, Shannon Motlop and Simon Godfrey who blanketed the dangerous Daniel Harford, provided the supply to its multifaceted attacking line and they weren’t let down by their forwards.

The leader of the pack was Sandringham’s "Mr. September" who once again put in a scintillating display at half forward. He marked everything that came his way and was just too good for anybody who Bullant Coach Barry Mitchell could throw at him. By the end of the day, he had five goals to his credit but he also gave away as many with his creative forward work.

The second quarter was much the same as the first but the Zebras accuracy in front of goal lapsed somewhat. Still, they squeezed what little there remained of any resistance from the Bullants who amazingly lost more games in the final series than they did during the home and away season when they finished on top with 17 wins and just one defeat. That had been enough to put them four games ahead of this week’s grand finalists Sandringham and Geelong but, under finals pressure, they clearly wilted.

That Bullant ascendancy during the normal season had been established with a winning on ball division, a strong defence and a prolific forward line that kicked big scores in many of their games.

The Zebra defence however, was not going to let much through on this day. Even without the injured Andy Biddlecombe, who was one of the stars of the Sandy backline this year, and with two players – Chris Johnson and Matthew Warnock – arriving back in Melbourne on the red eye express from Perth at some ungodly hour of the morning, Sandy was just too strong in defence for the Bullants.

Led by skipper Chad Liddell and Clint Bizzell (19 disposals off half back) the Zebras refused to allow even a light breeze pass through. Bizzell, Ryan Ferguson (who, on return from a month out with injury, held Digby Morell to just two goals) and Alistair Nicholson have all had their fair share on injury this year but were back to their best on Saturday. And Chris Lamb was miserly when at full back and showed his versatility by pinch hitting in the ruck when Shane Neaves, who more than held his own there, needed a rest.

Sandringham continued to grind the opposition into the dust as the match went on. It won every quarter and stretched its lead out to 80 points at the final bell. The last quarter looked more like a training drill than the final stanza of a preliminary final.

The Zebras are making a habit of thrashing the Bullants in finals of late. The Sandy dominance is not accidental as there is no argument in football circles that its VFL playing list is the best in the competition. Rod Crowe shone at half forward and got better as the game went on to finish with 21 disposals, eight marks and four goals and just behind Mr. September as his team’s best. Summers, Rigoni, David Gallagher and Shane Valenti were all dangerous throughout the game.

After the game, dual premiership coach Mark Williams coach was the master of understatement when he said of Sandringham’s 23.14.152 to 10.12.72 victory:-

"It was our best performance of the year, because it was under the most pressure".

Williams and the Zebra selectors will face a difficult task when they sit down to select their team for Sunday’s grand final against the Cats. Of the team that stitched up the Bullants, only Simon Godfrey is ineligible to play but on the credit side they have Daniel Bell, Nathan Brown, Nathan Jones and Nick Smith due to return while Biddlecombe is certain to be back from injury.

The other major task after the easy win will be to keep his players feet on the ground and resolute in their task of creating history for the club by winning its third flag on the trot. The Grand Final will be at Princes Park on Sunday 24th September. The game starts at 2pm and all supporters are urged to be there.

HOW THE DEMONS FARED

Clint Bizzell - a strong performance at half back. Got plenty of the ball and is returning to the form that we know he is capable of after missing the bulk of the year with injury.

Lynden Dunn - flashed in and out of the play and booted a couple of goals but is capable of more.

Ryan Ferguson - stuck to the task on Digby Morell and showed no ill effects of the knee injury he sustained against the Sydney Swans on 12th August.

Simon Godfrey - performed the job of tagging Daniel Harford and frustrated the star midfielder all day rendering him of little value to the Bullants.

Danny Hughes - limited opportunities as an interchange player but did what he had to do well. Might struggle however, to get a game next week when three or four players from Melbourne's finals campaign are eligible to return.

Chris Johnson - was relatively subdued but did enough considering that he spent part of the night before and the morning of the game in flight across the Nullarbor.

Shannon Motlop - kicked a couple of goals and was handy without being outstanding.

Shane Neaves - performed well in the ruck in the absence of Nick Smith and is definitely worth persevering with in view of the shortage of talented ruckmen around the place.

Alistair Nicholson - played one of his best games and at times was positively cat-like in his approach to the football. Will be invaluable next week against the Cats.

Phillip Read - continues his late season stellar form with the Zebras. Hard and tough in the midfield and a bonus around the packs.

Matthew Warnock - did what he had to do and showed some dash moving the ball out of defence.

Paul Wheatley - also returning after a lay off through injury, Wheatley showed his class with his pace and long, accurate kicking.

Sandringham 7.1.43 11.7.73 15.10.100 23.14 152

Northern Bullants 2.0.12 4.2.26 7.8.50 10.12.72

Goals Poyas 5 Crowe 4 Dunn Gallagher Motlop Sautner 2 Ferguson Godfrey C Johnson Liddell Valenti Wheatley

Best Poyas Liddell Bizzell Nicholson Gallagher Crowe

GRAND FINAL DETAILS

Sandringham v Geelong

MC Labour Park (Princes Park, Carlton)

Sunday 24 September

2:10pm

Ticket details are as follows:

Adults $20

Concessions $12

Pensioners $12

Children 15yrs and under FREE! Thanks to TRUenergy

Bus to the Game

There will be a bus transporting Zebra fans from Trevor Barker Beach Oval to the Grand Final on Sunday. The bus leaves at 12pm sharp and will transport fans back to Trevor Barker Beach Oval after the match. Tickets are $15 and BOOKINGS ARE ESSENTIAL. Call the club on 9598 8629 to secure your seat.

Post Match Function

Win, lose or draw all Zebra fans are welcome back to the Zeb Bar and Function Centre at Trevor Barker Beach Oval for the post match function after Sunday's Grand Final.