Search the Community

After recording two strong victories to open their 2016 campaign, the Casey Scorpions crashed down to earth in their match against reigning premier Williamstown at Casey Fields on Saturday night. The Scorpions matched the strong stand alone Seagulls in the opening quarter but were outplayed in each succeeding quarter to finally succumb by the margin of 44 points. It was a comprehensive victory for the visitors who were smarting from last week's loss at the hands of the Box Hill Hawks. They drove home the advantage of a winning ruck and played with far more precision and purpose whether in defence or when going into attack. The Scorpions were best served by Jack Trengove and Viv Michie in the midfield, the former serving notice that he is not too far off a return to AFL football after a two-year hiatus with a serious foot injury. Trengove moved well and used the ball with the class that made him a top two draft selection in 2009. Another player drafted in that position, Christian Petracca might not have been as dominant as in the previous two games, but he too showed enough class to suggest that he is not too far away. The other highlight on a dismal night for Casey was the form in front of goal of Liam Hulett who marked strongly and booted four goals. The solidly built forward is adapting to the pace of the game after missing a lot of football late in his junior days. Max King was back in the goals with a couple but he and first-game beanpole Oscar McInerney (replacing the injured Declan Keilty who was sorely missed) were no match for the Seagull ruckmen. The players generally looked flat after two stellar performances and found Williamstown's pressure all over the ground far too much on the night. With AFL numbers down a little from recent weeks, the young side was lacking in overall experience to counter the drive of the Seagulls but are sure to improve as the season progresses. Another tough encounter beckons next Sunday when Casey takes on Essendon VFL at Windy Hill. Casey Scorpions 4.1.24 6.2.38 10.2.62 11.4.70 Williamstown 5.2.32 10.4.64 14.10.94 17.12.114 Goals Casey Scorpions Hulett 4 Max King Trengove Weideman 2, Grimes Williamstown Siposs 4 Anastasio Conway Cordy Dunnell Masters 2 Hetherington Meese Sing Best Casey Scorpions Trengove Michie Petracca Hulett Max King Munro Williamstown Wheeler Sullivan Masters Siposs Currie Hetherington Like their senior counterparts, the Scorpions' development leaguers were overwhelmed by the Seagulls after a competitive opening quarter. They lost by 35 points but were never really in the hunt after the first break. Ed Carr who has had a lengthy lay off with injury was prolific in the early going and is one player likely to stake a claim for a senior berth in the very near future. Casey Scorpions 3.3.21 5.4.34 9.7.61 10.9.69 Williamstown 3.1.19 9.5.59 12.6.78 16.8.104 Goals Casey Scorpions Wyatt 2 Anderson Briggs Cox Gains Hannon Johnston Machaya Morris Williamstown Di Ciero 3 Carr Owen Shultz 2 Bugeja Condon Di Donato Eales Ebinger Johnstone Minogue Best Casey Scorpions Wyatt Machaya Morris Briggs Gains D Collis Williamstown Shultz Carr Owen Minogue Bugeja Buykx-Smith Statistics Colin Garland 22 disposals 15 kicks 7 handballs 7 marks 4 tackles 94 dream team points Jack Grimes 1 goal 22 disposals 6 kicks 16 handballs 4 marks 5 tackles 80 dream team points Liam Hulett 4 goals 1 behind 7 disposals 6 kicks 1 handballs 3 marks 48 dream team points Max King 2 goals 11 disposals 6 kicks 5 handballs 2 marks 4 tackles 25 hit outs 88 dream team points Viv Michie 27 disposals 19 kicks 8 handballs 6 marks 2 tackles 94 dream team points Ben Newton 20 disposals 12 kicks 8 handballs 4 marks 4 tackles 74 dream team points Christian Petracca 23 disposals 11 kicks 12 handballs 6 marks 3 tackles 4 hit outs 89 dream team points Billy Stretch 20 disposals 13 kicks 7 handballs 1 marks 11 tackles 99 dream team points Dean Terlich 21 disposals 14 kicks 7 handballs 6 marks 9 tackles 91 dream team points Jack Trengove 2 goals 30 disposals 14 kicks 16 handballs 4 marks 10 tackles 140 dream team points Sam Weideman 2 goals 10 disposals 5 kicks 5 handballs 5 marks 1 tackle 56 dream team points Mitch White 18 disposals 11 kicks 7 handballs 4 marks 4 tackles 73 dream team points

The game between two of the VFL's leading teams Casey and Williamstown was strongly influenced by Mother Nature and the strong winds she conjured up that swept across Casey Fields on Saturday night. The angry conditions that resulted provided a suitable backdrop to the Scorpions' theme for the night which was to support the White Ribbon Campaign against violence on women and the club deserves accolades for its involvement in such a worthy cause. It was fitting therefore that the home team would ultimately triumph against the elements and the opposition through hard work, particularly when defending against the strong breeze. The team managed only three goals against the wind but every one of them was significant in terms of the final outcome in a game where subtle changes of direction were significant. The Scorpions came out of the blocks with all guns blazing. With Jake Spencer winning in the ruck and feeding a hungry midfield, the team racked up the goals and had four on the board by mid term through the agency of Chris Dawes, Jesse Hogan, a long bomb from Lynden Dunn and one from Rory Taggert. The visitors then settled defensively and managed to contain the damage to a couple of points for the rest of the term. Casey's cause was not helped when Hogan incurred a knock and left the field with a corkie. His night had ended and, from the team's point of view, the feeling was that a 26 point lead was hardly enough in these conditions. Sure enough, Williamstown wasted no time when its chances came to reel in the Casey advantage by halfway through the second quarter. The Scorpions were facing the possibility of a major half time deficit when, against the run of play, their other young West Australian Dean Kent, produced the highlight of the night. He gathered the ball in defence and ran like the wind that was blowing into his face. Several bounces later, he kicked truly to regain the lead and lift the spirits of his team. The Seagulls struck back but late in the quarter, Jack Fitzpatrick scored a handy goal to make it a two point deficit at the half. As they have done for most of this season the Scorpions turned on their best football in the third quarter. Fitzpatrick was again to the fore booting three further goals to add to the one he scored just before half time to ensure that his team would be defending a lead in excess of five goals in the final term. Casey closed the game down and with the visitors managing only a few points in the first half of the term, Danny Nicholls and Jake Best combined well for a goal to put the game beyond doubt. Willi managed a couple of late goals but could do nothing to prevent their hosts from moving to the top of the ladder with a well deserved 23 point victory. Nathan Page was the best of the Casey listed players. Luke Tynan was another who worked hard all night. Lynden Dunn was the star off half back. Casey Scorpions 4.4.28 6.5.41 13.8.86 14.8.92 Williamstown 0.2.2 6.7.43 7.10.52 9.15.69 Goals Casey Scorpions Fitzpatrick 4 Dawes Dunn Taggert 2 Best Hogan Kent Page Williamstown Cordy 3 Nastasi 2 Addison Grant Howard McCallum Best Casey Scorpions Dunn Couch Fitzpatrick Magner Page Spencer Williamstown Markovic Lockwood Addison Cordy Wood Sing The development league team came up against ladder leader Williamstown who were far too strong and ran away with the game in a frenetic final quarter to win by 69 points. Josh Tynan was Casey's best. Casey Scorpions 2.4.16 3.5.23 7.12.54 7.12.54 Williamstown 2.1.13 10.4.64 11.4.70 19.9.123 Goals Casey Scorpions Hughes 2 Barry McInnes McPhie Pollard Smith Williamstown Ball Coneay Deery 3 Anastasio Burgess 2 Giles Hetherington McConnon Norton Polizzi Williams Best Casey Scorpions Tynan Hill Troutman Pollard Hughes Lindsay Williamstown Hoghton Hetherington Giles Dorgan Deery Casley