Above: Doveton Eagles midfielder Brett Hidgcock sends his team into attack during Saturday’s
By Paul Pickering
DOVETON’S baby Eagles are out of the Southern Football League Division Three finals after losing to Black Rock by 47 points at Mordialloc on Saturday.
Eagles coach Jason Salerno applauded his brave crop of youngsters after the match, conceding that the task of defeating the experienced Rockers was too much for a team with nine teenagers and 12 first-year players.
“It was asking a lot for us to knock them off in a finals atmosphere,” Salerno said.
“We were up against it because they’re pretty seasoned – bigger bodies and more experienced.”
The Eagles were jumped in the first quarter to trail by 24 points at the first break and never recovered.
The Rockers’ dominance was conveyed by their 39 scoring shots to Doveton’s 12, with the Eagles booting just six goals for the match.
Dale Walker was the Eagles’ best, alternating between half-back and on-ball, while designated kicker Brett Colbert and young ruckman Gus Toolepai also displayed some aptitude for September action.
While Salerno could not deny the bitter taste of a finals defeat, he said the Eagles had exceeded his expectations for the season after finishing second last in 2006.
“When the dust settles I think they’ll realise what they’ve achieved,” he said.
“I said to them after the game that I’ve been calling them kids all year, but they’re not – they’re men now.”
Salerno said it would be unrealistic to expect Doveton to retain its bumper crop of young guns next season, but he is confident the club will be better for the run in September.
“It’s just a matter of getting more senior games into the guys and developing their bodies (for next year),” he said.
Black Rock will now meet the loser of this Saturday’s top-two match-up between Mount Waverley and Canterbury in the preliminary final on 15 September.
