By Marc McGowan
THE Parkmore Pirates have tumbled to just their second loss of the Southern Football League Division Three season after Skye narrowly won at home by 10 points in a tight match.
There was not much between the sides all day, with Skye entering the final term with a slender four-point lead.
Skye ran the game out the better, with a three-goal-to-two term allowing the team to sneak home.
The Pirates had several players either injured or unavailable and were unable to keep up their dominant form.
Justin Isaac booted four goals for Parkmore and was joined on the best players’ list by Terry McKinley and Ben Duperouzel.
The Pirates face North Kew at home this week, in an eagerly anticipated top-of-the-table encounter and will be requiring a few players to return if the team wants to win.
North Kew joined Parkmore with 10 wins after a 96-point thumping of Mount Waverley last weekend.
Cobras fight hard
The Sandown Cobras are yet to register a win this season, after losing in windy conditions to South Mornington on the weekend.
The 28-point loss is the Cobras’ 12th straight, but they have been much more competitive in recent weeks.
“The last few games have been much better. Their performance was encouraging,” Cobras’ president Lew Short said.
Three points separated the sides at quarter-time, with both teams kicking six goals after South Mornington kicked the first four of the match.
A five-goal-to-one second term by South Mornington hurt Sandown, but the players got themselves back into the game with a four-goal-to-two third quarter, and trailed by just 11 points at three-quarter time.
The gusty weather worked in South Mornington’s favour in the final stanza, the team kicking five goals to two to run out the comfortable winner.
“The lack of a few key players and a lack of pace probably hurt us in the end,” Short said.
He was also critical of the condition of South Mornington’s home ground.
“It was probably the worst strip we’ve played on this season. The bounce of the ball was a bit hard to gauge at times,” Short said.
The Cobras have also had to deal with a coaching change in recent weeks after former coach Stephen Jasiak resigned due to work commitments. Robert Luke will coach for the rest of the season, but he too will not be able to continue because of work next season.
“We’re not going to do a Parkmore though,” Short said, referring to the Pirates’ player buying spree after last season which has helped thrust the team to the top of the Division Three ladder.
Inconsistency plagues Pumas
THE Lyndale Pumas lost by 14 points to the fourth-placed Oakleigh Districts in their weekend Division Two match, with coach Danny Scott blaming inconsistent form for the team’s demise.
“Inconsistent form has been our problem all season. We play really good in bursts – our performances have nothing to do with a lack of ability,” he said.
The Pumas were goalless in the opening term as Oakleigh put three goals on the scoreboard, and went further behind in the second quarter after conceding seven goals and kicking four.
The half-time deficit stood at 32 points, despite Lyndale having two scoring shots fewer than Oakleigh.
The Pumas cut the margin to 27 points at three-quarter time and kicked the opening goal of the final term, but Oakleigh slammed on the next four to stretch the lead to 44 points and effectively end the game.
Lyndale managed a five-goal streak to finish the game.
The improved second-half showing came despite the Pumas playing without a bench after half-time due to injuries, but Scott was at pains to point out that injuries were not the reason for the loss.
Second term letdown
An impressive performance from Springvale Districts has been let down by a drop in intensity, the Districts losing by 43 points to Division Two ladder leader Tooronga-Malvern.
The Districts drilled three goals to two in the first quarter to forge to a surprising seven-point quarter-time lead.
Unfortunately for Springvale, Tooronga-Malvern ran over the top in the second term, kicking six goals to none to create what proved to be a match-winning 31-point lead at half-time.
“We dropped our intensity for probably 10 to 15 minutes,” Springvale coach Stephen Hughes said. “They’re a really good side. If you drop off they’ll make you pay.”
Ultimately the Districts were left to lament the quarter after the other three terms resulted in just a five-point difference in favour of Tooronga-Malvern.
“Nobody likes to lose a game of footy but I was really pleased with our endeavour for most of the game,” Hughes said.
