Kolora-Noorat is eager to test its 2017 credentials against Warrnambool and District league’s biggest challenge in Old Collegians after seeing off flag hopeful Merrivale by 30 points on Saturday.
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The Power kept its unbeaten start alive with the 9.12 (66) to 5.6 (36) win at Noorat Recreation Reserve, but slid to second on the ladder after a percentage-boosting win for the Warriors over Allansford.
The healthy win should be taken with a grain of salt, given the Tigers were missing key forward pillars Jason Rowan and Brenton Webster – and it showed early.
The Power ran rampant in the first quarter – repeatedly rebounding from the midfield and half-back as the Tigers struggled to get the ball forward with any intent missing its usual targets – and had nine scoring shots to nil to lead by 29 points at the first break.
But Kolora-Noorat did not have it all its way, with a stalemate evolving in the second quarter, before Merrivale lifted its intensity in the third.
The Tigers chipped slightly into a 30-point half-time deficit, booting 3.3 to 2.4, but were noticeably lifting their work rate through defence and around stoppages, generating more scoring opportunities.
“We wanted to make sure that we applied a lot of pressure and we were able to do that and they turned the footy over because of it and we made them pay,” Power coach Danny Finn said of the win.
“I think we sustained that for two-to-three quarters and then Merrivale came back.
“They’re a good team, they were always going to come at us; we just had to weather the storm.”
A quick shot at goal in the opening minute of the last term could have seen Merrivale close within four goals, but the kick was touched.
The Power quickly catapulted the ball down the line, with a long, straight kick from Ben Fraser putting the game beyond reach for the Tigers.
Finn lauded the efforts of his charges to dig deep and see off the challenge, given they were a couple down on the bench, with midfielder/forward options Matt (knee) and Sam (hamstring) both done for the day.
Finn said Sam’s hamstring was “not too bad”, but given his history, the club took a cautious approach.
Merrivale assistant coach Matt Brown said the coaching staff was proud of how the Tigers responded after the slow start, but was eager to claim a win against one of the top teams.
“We’ve really got to start claiming one of these big scalps against (the likes of) Nirranda, Kolora and Old Collegians,” he said.
“The first quarter really hurt us … we were chasing tail from there on in, but we probably just couldn’t get quite close enough to put the pressure on them.”