Springvale Districts trip to Port Melbourne had all the hallmarks of a resounding late fightback.
Referenced at three-quarter-time by coach Kris Thompson was the Dees’ last trip to JL Murphy Reserve when a last quarter burst saw them lose a heartbreaker after the siren.
Once again, many players stood up late as the rowdy Port Colts crowd rode the emotions of a season-on-the-line clash.
In the last 15 minutes alone, interspersed with some costly errors, there was a huge Nick Gay smother which led to a shot on goal; a Toby Arms contested mark and goal; Alex Derzekos’ forward pressure; Mitch Dewar winning a crucial one on one in defensive 50; and a clutch finish on the run from Liam Hamilton.
But for all their momentum and the energy generated by the small contingent of Dees watching on, the visitors hit the lead for only a brief period in the last quarter.
Adam Read kicked the first goal of the last quarter to trim the margin to two points, after Derzekos and Matt Wetering both missed difficult chances.
Minutes later, Liam Giove was hit up by Arms and his shot landed in the goal-square where Stefan Feehan pounced to give Springvale Districts the lead.
But Port immediately responded with a goal from the centre clearance, and then kicked another.
Despite going 10 points down, the benefit of playing on Port’s notoriously small ground was that it allowed deep entries for the Dees when the game was on the line.
Arms converted a set shot from 15 after his big contested mark.
It was one of several key moments for a young player whose calm and inspired efforts continue to show maturity beyond his years.
Port again responded quickly, before Hamilton ran into space inside 50 and converted.
With no working clock on the scoreboard, communication was key from the bench all day, and stakes couldn’t be higher as both camps estimated there were 80 more seconds to go.
Port had all the play, though, and would kick another goal and behind to seal a cracking contest.
The two teams look certain to play each other again in the elimination final, barring any upsets, but Springy Districts will like their chances on a bigger ground.
The visitors won the last quarter 4.5 to 4.4 and while it felt like they could have kicked a couple more goals, it was the lethargic second quarter where the game was lost.
Port put on 6.2 to 2.5 as the home side got on top, preventing the Dees from winning the ball, and moving it as freely as they did in patches of an opening quarter of ping-pong.
“We weren’t able to wrestle back momentum,” Thompson said.
“Something we have been really good at throughout the year is not letting a team get a run of more than two or three goals but the boys dropped their head.
“We didn’t play with the same passion as last week, maybe with finals already locked in we got a little bit complacent.
“After halftime we had a crack.”
Firecracker George Angelopoulos was a key catalyst of the third quarter turnaround and led the way all day with his terrier-like work rate, two crucial efforts illuminating his spirit.
In the first quarter, he stood under a high Port Melbourne exit kick aware of the impending body contact, and was crunched, but bravely stayed out there after being briefly checked on by the trainer.
Then in the second quarter, high on confidence with two goals already to his name, he closed quickly on a Port attacker who looked certain to have a simple shot from 30 to put the hosts more than four goals up, winning a holding-the-ball free kick.
“He has a red hot crack,” Thompson said.
“He plays on the line, sometimes he crosses it, but when he’s in the zone, he’s the best teammate you can have so I was proud of his effort.”
Giove was prominent in the first quarter, standing up in tackles and popping up in the right spots.
In defence, the experienced Drew Stockton led the way with his hardness, especially through the middle of the game, winning several key one-one-ones and standing up to the physicality the Colts brought.
Shakore Bragg-Taylor was lively, while Mitch Dewar, Darcy Warke and Read were also named among the best.
Wetering, meanwhile, got through his first game back unscathed after it had been thought that his campaign was over.
“I’m proud of the way we kept trying to win,” Thompson said.
“We didn’t do everything right in terms of decision making but we’ve trained these situations over and over.
“I don’t think we can make that many mistakes and still be within 10 points of a really good team on a hard ground to play.
“I don’t think we handled the ground well.
“We trained for it – both nights this week, we condensed our oval and trained the exact dimensions but it is a different ball game when you’re playing.
“We were within range of goal a few times but because we were 10 metres outside the arc, we assumed we were too far out.”
The Dees did it with a host of players missing including skipper Mason Russell, Peter Heng and Dylan Quirk.
SOUTHERN DIVISION 1
Results R17: Bentleigh 20.12 132 v Chelsea 8.12 60, Port Melbourne 15.13 103 v Springvale Districts 13.15 93, Cheltenham 29.21 195 v St Kilda City 0.2 2, Cranbourne 18.19 127 v Mordialloc 1.2 8, St Paul’s McKinnon 21.9 135 v Dingley 4.12 36.
Ladder: Cheltenham 64, Cranbourne 48, Dingley 46, Springvale Districts 46, Port Melbourne 44, St Paul’s McKinnon 40, Bentleigh, 20, Mordialloc 16, Chelsea Heights 12, St Kilda City 4.
Fixture R18: Chelsea Heights v Cheltenham, Port Melbourne v Mordialloc, St Kilda City v Cranbourne, Dingley v Bentleigh, Springvale Districts v St Paul’s McKinnon.
