Not since the Hawkesbury days in the early 90s have the boys from Bensons played finals in the old SFA 1st Grade, what is now known as Division 2. In their tenth year of existence, under the guidance of new coach Garry Bull and his assistant Darryl Hillier, the Nor-West Jets Seniors have made a little piece of history by finishing 4th after winning a come-from-behind win over St George at Olds Park.
Taking only 21 players across the city was a gamble, and the tired legs of the travelling Jets told early, as the Dragons fired up and took hold of the game with the first two goals, before the Jets added one of their own. 16 year old wunderkind Josh Cass was dominating on his flank, as were his younger team mates Lachlan Eldridge, who has been a great success in his first year of senior football, collecting in excess of 30 disposals, and Owen Butcher on his wing with a fine display.
St George continued on their merry way, adding 3 more in the 2nd term, and threatening to end the Jets season. Trent Hurst was dangerous up front with 2 goals, but he didn’t have much support as the Jets trailed the Dragons by 10 points at the long break.
If not for inaccurate kicking by the home side, the game would’ve been done and dusted by the 3rd break, as the Dragons slowed the game down, but kicked 2.4 to the Jets 1.3 and kept a faint hope of finals alive at 3 qtr time. The efforts of Paul Webster, now looking forward to a Sunday game, and Jack Pascoe on his endless search for votes were crucial in holding off a smart St George team.
The Jets responded to their coach’s plea at the break, and climbed their way back from an early goal to add 4.2, with incredible goals to Owen Butcher and Aaron Bayne, to the Dragons 1.1 to lead by 2 points with seconds to go, but Ben Cain made a rare but critical error late, however the siren sounded and St George needed a miracle, but the Foot Gods were on Nor-West’s side, as they clung to a 2 point win, 8.9-57 to 8.7-55.
Goals- T. Hurst 2, P. Sherwood 2, O. Butcher 1 , M. Yee 1, A. Bayne 1, L. Ayling 1.
Best- L. Eldridge, O. Butcher, B. Cain, J. Cass, P. Webster, T. Hurst.
The Jets now face Holroyd-Parramatta in an Elimination Final this Sunday at 3pm at Henson Park Marrickville, ironically the home of the famous Bluebags, Rugby League’s Newtown Jets, hopefully a sign of luck. With a possible 8 inclusions into the squad this week, the Jets are out to cause an upset over the Goannas and keep their grand final dream alive.
In the Division 4 game, the Jets headed down to the water at Maroubra to face UNSW/East Sydney, with the focus on securing the points and 10 wins for the season. With livewire forward Chris Kyle returning for one last game with the General, who heads off to Aruba next month to defend his World Uno crown, the Jets headed into a fierce wind in the first quarter, as the Bulldogs, who kicked long and claimed some lucky bounces for cheap goals, but the Jets clawed back and carried the ball into the wind, as Kyle did as he pleased, helping himself to two goals. Chris Lowe proved himself as an aerial specialist, taking some big grabs, and Daniel Graham and Jesse Bray fed the smaller runners as the Dogs led the Jets by 7 points.
With the wind at their backs, the Jets did as they pleased, kicking 5 goals to 1, with Milkins adding 2 in his final game, fed well by Chris Collins, who was in devastating form on the ball, ably supported by Hibbins medal favourite Steve Chase and a disciplined Brad Goodwin, who showed great poise at fullback, and demonstrated how much of an impact he can have with the right mindset. Nor-West took a 25 point advantage at half time, but with the gale force wind in the home team’s favour, the Jets had a few tricks up their sleeve.
The Jets managed another 2 goals to the Dogs 4, but with Bray and Steve Steasek controlling the backline, and using speedsters Daniel Harding, Pete Richardson and Evan Dutton to send the ball forward. The final quarter saw the game swing in the Jets favour, as they added 5 more goals and keeping the Dogs to only 1, to finish 36 point winners, 14.7-91 to 8.7-55, and end the 2010 season in 8th spot.
Goal Kickers: C. Kyle 7, N. Milkins 2, S. Chase , M. Davidson , S. Steaszek , D. Graham , D. Harding
Best Players: C. Lowe, C. Kyle, C. Collins, J. Bray, S. Steaszek, B. Goodwin.
The Jets ask all supporters and local sports fans to head down to Henson to give the boys a crowd and hopefully an advantage, as they continue their march towards the flag.
Last Modified on 27/11/2010 17:11
