Penrith Rams Under 18's ended off their 2011 season with a valiant three goal loss to finals side, St Ignatius at Riverview on Saturday. A storming finish saw the young side come home hard on a muddy pitch to just fall short of completing a double against the strong Riverview side
Next Saturday sees the senior teams both head to Rosedale Oval to clash with Holroyd-Parramatta Goanna's (First Grade) and Macquarie Uni (Reserve Grade) in the major semi-final with the winner progressing to the Grand Final.
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Match Report. Under 18's V St Ignatius
With the Rams out of contention for the finals it was their last game of the year today. The overnight rain had made the conditions wet, slippery and windy as the boys took on St Ignatius, Riverview. The team was confident after their previous win over Riverview at Greygums Oval earlier in the year.
Riverview won the toss and kicked with the aid of a strong breeze. The conditions seemed to suit the Rams early and although they were running into the breeze, they dominated the first few minutes of the game. The Rams held the play in their forward half but missed some easy opportunities in front of goal and finished the quarter with only 2 behinds. Riverview took control late in the quarter but could only manage 1 goal from their 4 scoring shots. The second quarter saw the battle continue with Riverview kicking 2 goals while the Rams could only manage one and the Rams went into the half time break 13 points behind.
The third quarter saw Riverview run away with the game and a lack of discipline from the Rams proved costly. Riverview added 4 goals for the quarter and extended their lead to 32 points. It all came down to the last 20 minutes. The Rams had a challenge in front of them and needed 6 goals to win. To their credit the boys set about it the same way they have approached everything this year and gave it 100%.
Liam Murphy led by example today collecting kicks around the ground and leading from the front. George Paneras used his speed and agility to set up several goals for the Rams. Tom Noble was rock solid in defence as always and worked hard when moved into the ruck in the last quarter. Joe Hunt played another solid game today taking several marks and driving the Rams into attack. Nathan Walker played his best game of the year and kicked 3 goals to be the leading goalkicker for the Rams today. Ben McGovern kicked another 2 goals to take his tally to 39 for the season.
David Looyschelder played a solid game in the ruck today and helped the Rams win their share of centre clearances. Harry Doyle was also instrumental in the midfield continually driving the Rams forward. Ben Mayer and Jack Ponton worked hard today to provide the Rams with some drive out of the middle however both were quiet in the third quarter. Both Josh Jenner and Will Taylor played a solid game today winning the ball for the Rams and creating opportunities for their team mates.
In true Rams fashion the boys never gave up and gave it everything in the last quarter kicking 4 goals to narrow the gap, however Riverview hung on for a deserved 18 point win.
Penrith Rams 0.2 1.3 2.4 6.7-43 def by St Ignatius Riverview 1.3 3.4 7.6 9.7-61
Goal Kickers: N. Walker 3, B. McGovern 2, B. Wilson
Best Players: L. Murphy, J. Hunt, D. Looyschelder, T. Noble, G. Paneras, H. Doyle
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IceBreak Best on ground, Liam Murphy, on the boil
Photos courtesy of Christian Triffitt
Last Modified on 19/10/2011 15:47