By JARROD POTTER
TAC CUP – round 15
“OUR first half I think it was our best for the year by far.”
It was high praise for Dandenong Stingrays from their coach Craig Black following a comprehensive 42-point win over Sandringham.
While the margin doesn’t seem that large, the conditions were terrible enough to halt most transition running and make goals a precious commodity.
Dandenong held the home-side goalless through the first half as defenders Daylan Kempster, Dan Moloney and the run-and-carry of Narre Warren’s Matt Homfray proving too hard for the Dragons to pierce.
At the other end was another Narre Warren prospect starring as Aaron Wilson clunked hard contested marks in the shower stall formerly known as Trevor Barker Beach Oval.
Relentless rain besieged the second half and kept the score low, but the hard-tackling, in-and-under Stingrays still persevered to get the ball out and into the hands of their transition experts Dan Moloney, Mitch White and AIS-AFL representative Tom Lamb.
With two debutants in the side – Liam Hulett and 23rd man Brandon White – Dandenong showed off a little more depth and an enviable batch of players coming through for the 2015 AFL Draft.
A pair of captain’s goals from Jack Lonie and two for the crumbing Hulett sealed the 9.10 (64) to 2.10 (22) victory.
The triumph sets the third-placed Stingrays up for a hard-fought final month as it travels for another season-defining showdown – this week with ladder leaders Oakleigh on Saturday.
“The way the boys applied themselves in that first half – their commitment and attack on the footy – was second-to-none and easily our best,” Black said.
“I think – like I said to the boys after the game – it’s a tough competition and you’ve got to look forward to the challenges.
“We play another really good TAC Cup team and it gives our boys another opportunity to go out against the best and see if they can perform at the top level… if they can we’ll be really happy.”
The match starts at 1pm at Warrawee Park, Oakleigh.
