HE’S back!
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Star forward Robbie Hare returned from injury to lead Port Fairy to a 18.10 (118) to 12.5 (77) victory over Camperdown at Leura Oval on Saturday.
Hare, who missed last week’s loss to Koroit with hamstring tightness, kicked five goals, a haul that included a match-winning second half. While Hare and the Seagulls were soaking up the thrill of victory after the game, the state of play was vastly different at half-time.
Camperdown needed to win to keep its finals hopes alive and the desperation of the home team was evident.
Not only were the Magpies getting more of the ball in general play, they were also more efficient up forward, kicking eight goals from nine shots to lead the Seagulls by a goal at half-time.
While he had one goal to his name at this point, Hare looked to be short of a run and found himself on the bench at the start of the second half. When he came back on the ground Hare was sent into the ruck and all of a sudden he started to look dangerous, getting his hands to the ball in ruck contests and dragging in some marks around the ground.
In the meantime Camperdown had kicked the opening goal of the quarter to extend its lead but goals to Jonathon Proud, Tyrone Bean and Daniel Nicholson got the Seagulls back in front.
With the game in the balance it was the resurgent Hare who made the biggest mark, kicking three of the next four goals to give his team a 31-point lead at three-quarter-time.
Two of those goals were set shots from beyond the 50, the last bringing particular joy to Hare. A group of boisterous Camperdown supporters had perched themselves in the grandstand and after Hare’s early struggles had started up a “Harey, Harey” chant. When he kicked his last for the quarter Hare turned to the fans and let them know what he had just done, his response bringing an even louder reaction from the good natured crowd. Hare kicked another in the last quarter as the Seagulls cruised to victory, in the process almost certainly securing the club’s first senior finals appearance since 2005.
Port Fairy coach Brett Evans was happy with the way his team had worked its way back into the game.
“We knew Camperdown had a lot to play for today and they were really good in the first half,” Evans said.
“They had a lot of the play and they didn’t miss their opportunities so we needed to lift. I was really happy with how we responded after half-time, Camperdown at Camperdown is always a challenge and a poor first half made it even harder but we did well to turn it around.”
Nicholson finished with four goals while Jackson Hollmer made an impact in his first game back since round five, kicking two goals and providing a lively forward target.