Pigeons final quarter heartache

GOALS: Wangaratta Rovers: Alexander Marklew 4, Jake McQueen 3, Thomas Boyd 2, Lukas Webb 1.

Yarrawonga: Tim Lawrence 3, Bailey Frauenfelder 2, William Wheeler 2, Mark Whiley, Nick Fothergill, Jackson Meade 1.

BEST: Wangaratta Rovers: Jake McQueen, Alexander Marklew, Jace Mcquade, Tristan Lenaz, Dylan Stone, Brodie Filo.

Yarrawonga: Leigh Masters, William Wheeler, Lach Howe, Ryan Bruce, Tim Lawrence, Jordan Urquhart.

Pigeons final quarter heartache

A complete fade out in the final term has seen the Yarrawonga Pigeons concede a 38-point lead to a rampaging Wangaratta Rovers outfit on Saturday afternoon.

With the weather staying clear, ideal conditions greeted players and supporters for round four action at the WJ Findlay Oval in Wangaratta.

The opening goal of the game came through Tim Lawrence who has made a fantastic start to season 2022. Lawrence received a handball from Jacob Adkins to nail the goal from long range on his left boot.

Shortly before the quarter time siren, Ryan Einsporn was able to find Nick Fothergill in a pocket of space. Fothergill converted truly to give the Pigeons their second and holding a 3-point lead at the first change.

The man in stellar form so far this year, Leigh Masters, yet again controlled the defensive end of the ground in the air and on the ground. The Former Williamstown and reigning YFNC Best and Fairest has led superbly in the early stages of the season as newly appointed captain of the club.

Masters was the recipient of high praise from opposition coach Cresswell labelling him one of the better players he has seen running around at O&M level and is unsure how he did not make it onto an AFL list.

The second term was a hard-fought contest with the ball mainly played between the arcs. The prolific Ryan Einpsorn who ended up with 30 disposals for the day was involved in everything whilst Ryan Bruce and Harry Wheeler were running on top of the ground.

The Pigeons were able to capitalise late in the quarter yet again with two late goals. The ever-improving Jackson Meade found himself on the end of a brilliant passage of play from the Pigeon midfielders whilst livewire Bailey Frauenfelder played on from a Mark Whiley assist in the pocket to extend the lead to 6 points at the main break.

‘Momentum’ is the buzzword in football currently and the second half at the WJ Findlay Oval was no exception. The Pigeons dominated the third term, as they were able to slam on six goals to the Rovers one.

Frauenfelder was the catalyst as he sliced his way through the Rovers defence to goal on the run from 45 metres out in the opening minute of the half. Coach Whiley was then able to shark a ball off the pack deep inside 50 and snap through a goal with pure class.

Logan Morey showed his elite foot skills to find ‘Tik Tok’ sensation Tim Lawrence inside fifty. Lawrence’s electric 10 minutes in the third term included two goals and a hanger in a scintillating display.

Willie Wheeler also joined in on the action, showing the crowd how damaging he can be in front of the ball, weaving past the defence to bang through another.

In the blink of an eye, Wheeler was having another shot on goal thanks to the stoppage set play from superstars Howe and Fothergill. Wheeler’s goal opened up a game-high 38 point margin with the Pigeons looking set to go on with the job and start their season 4-0. However, Darryn Cresswell and the Wangaratta Rovers had other ideas as they were able to flick the switch at the three-quarter time break.

Coach Cresswell shuffling the magnets to get his big guns into the game which in the end proved the difference.

Champion ruckman Shane Gaston combined with former Morris Medallist Brodie Filo and former AFL players Sam Murray and Lukas Webb to will their side over the line and completely overwhelm the Pigeons.

Defenders in Beau Seymour and Masters were doing everything they could to repel the rampaging Rovers but it was all was too much for the Pigeons to handle in the final term. Marklew and McQueen are two names the Pigeons won't forget as they lit up WJ Findlay Oval in the final term.

A late passage of play on the grandstand side was the Pigeons last roll of the dice, however the Rovers were able to quickly close it down. The Pigeons left stunned at the final siren going down by a narrow 3 points.

Although shattered with the result, Yarrawonga still find themselves in a brilliant position heading into a winnable game. A chance to go 4-1 will be the focus for the Pigeons in a great opportunity to rebound from a disappointing result.

Will Mick Gibbons make his long-awaited Pigeon debut this week? All roads lead to the JC Lowe Oval this week as the Pigeons take on long time archrival Wodonga Bulldogs.

Reserves

Wangaratta Rovers 7.6.48 defeated Yarrawonga 5.8.38.

The Pigeon Reserves have let a game slip that they had controlled for majority of the day, leading at all changes barring the one that counted.

Forced to make multiple changes to the side again this week, Coach Matt Grinter remained confident that his core group could lead the charge against an undefeated Wangaratta Rovers.

New and old faces in Tanner Nyholm and Pigeon legend Nick Dykes pulled on the blue and white hoops, both contributing well at different stages. It was Dykes’ first game back since he led the Pigeons to the memorable 2016 premiership against the Albury Tigers in the pouring rain.

The Pigeons controlled the opening term, as they were able to keep the Rovers goalless whilst booting two of their own.

The engine room in Tyler Bonat, Xavier Leslie and Reed Bonat were busy at the coalface whilst Jess Koopman and Max Hemphill were mobile up forward. Koopman, back into the forward line after a stint down back, looked at home in his preferred role.

With the Rovers playing a clear short chip-kick game style, the Pigeons were required to apply their man-on-man game style for the full four quarters. Holding a more than handy 14-point lead at half time, the Pigeons still felt like they could make improvements and tidy up their ball movement moving forward.

As the game further progressed, the Rovers seemed to have more run in the legs, as they were able to bridge the margin slowly but surely.

Kyal Tyson, Doug Arnold and Matt Holgate were all giving enormous effort to keep their side in the contest.

With the Rovers hitting the lead late in the game, the Pigeons still had a something left in them. However, missed opportunities in front of goal were deflating.

The final siren sounded with Yarrawonga going down to the Rovers by 10-points in a tight battle. These two teams look destined to cross paths again later in the season.

Like the senior side, the Pigeons are still in a great position coming into a winnable game against the Wodonga Bulldogs.

Goals: Jess Koopman, Jack Forge, Matthew McCabe, Matthew Holgate, Ben Radford.

Best: Kyal Tyson, Douglas Arnold, Tyler Bonat, Xavier Leslie, Matthew Holgate, Nick Dykes.

Thirds

Wangaratta Rovers 9.14.68 defeated Yarrawonga 6.4.40.

The Yarrawonga Pigeons Thirds have gone down by 28 points in a spirited contest at the WJ Findlay Oval. Decimated with numbers, the Pigeons managed to show good fight right until the final siren.

Missing the captain in Sam Hemphill, other players were required to stand in and fill the void of their skipper. Oscar Elliot continues to show fantastic attack on the ball and has impressed senior on baller Harry Wheeler who is working with the young midfielders this season.

The Psaltaris twins in Addie and Daniel both showed their potential putting in strong performances in the blue and white hoops whilst Harry Nagle showed great leadership across all four quarters in an impressive display.

The Pigeons never being able to bridge the gap of 2 to 3 goals all day however, that did not deter them from cracking into the contest.

Griffin Surrey and Noah Iddles are two players who have been consistent throughout the first four rounds whilst Hunter Frauenfelder was the lone hand up front, booting four majors, which impressed onlookers.

Coach Fraunfelder remaining positive with this side after the loss as he is seeing plenty of good signs for the near future.

Frauenfelder particularly impressed with his sides ability to outscore the Rovers late in the piece.

Goals: Hunter Frauefelder 4, Oscar Elliot, Daniel Psaltaris.

Best: Oscar Elliott, Daniel Psaltiras, Addison Psaltiras, Griffin Surrey, Noah Iddles, Harry Nagle.

Awards: Oscar Elliott (Wingates), Aerial Muscle (Mac Pendergast), Yarra Fish & Chips (Tom Oliver).