""Now is this winter of our discontent, made glorious summer"" William Shakespeare
As a footy follower, I love this time of year. Late August not only waves farewell to the depths and gloominess of winter, but heralds the arrival of longer days and a sweet tinge to the very air that only the approaching Spring can impart.
Thus it was on Saturday in Bendigo, with a glorious azure sky and warm sun punctured only by a few high lazy clouds to gently remind one that the last fleeting tendrils of the bitterest season have not yet fully departed. The surroundings also chimed in to complete the picture, the towering Cathedral Spire bathed in afternoon sunshine providing a perfect backdrop to an oval possessing a bowling green surface and the unmistakable scent of freshly cut grass.
Taken all together, for anyone familiar with Australian Rules football, it almost tangibly screamed “finals”. Fortunately, as it proved for those of a Bendigo-supporting persuasion, it was an early illusion, and not yet quite the real thing.
Nonetheless, playing host to fellow regional rival North Ballarat, with both teams entrenched in the final eight and a possible September meeting firmly on the cards, was always going to make for a much-anticipated trial-run.
Off-field, things were far from ideal before the match for Bendigo. Scott Gumbleton and Travis Colyer were both withdrawn. Added to Colyers’ absence from the midfield was the requirement to take Alex Browne and Ricky Dyson to Perth for the Essendon match. As it turned out, both would have added some needed size to a fairly light-weight outfit.
Once the field of battle was entered, the game proved to be a tale of starkly contrasting halves.
And yet both, in their own unique way, managed to be disappointing for the home side. The locals opened brightly enough, with Matt Little making use of perfect conditions to kick the games first goal from a difficult angle and range.
North controlled play after that, managing to kick 2 goals and claim a lead. The centre-square looked to be a problem for Bendigo, with North’s big-men threatening to control the stoppages. However, the defence stood firm with Trent Shinners and Luke Davis taking some nice marks. Henry Slattery, notionally playing in the midfield, tended to work back hard and swept the ball away from half-back multiple times.
Some good running from James Webster on the wing allowed him to be the release-mechanism for Slattery more than once, and coupled with some patchy cameo’s from Michael Ross Bendigo were able to negate the visitors edge around the congestion through run.
Ben Duscher played a good first term on the ball, and managed to get forward twice in two minutes for consecutive goals. It was badly needed, as several chances had been squandered via missed shots and it looked likely that effort would not find its reward.
Another set-shot was missed, but Sam Dunell provided a fitting outcome to build on the lead when he neatly plucked the ball off a marking contest and snapped truly from thirty metres out. The Roosters managed to claw one back late, and when the first siren sounded the quarter time score of 4.5 to 3.1 provided an accurate assessment of both teams efficiency.
For Bendigo, the worry remained that stoppages looked vulnerable, and that over-use of the ball was costly.
The second term again was largely notable for Bendigo controlling much of the play, but letting itself down both in front of goal, and through general turnovers.
Tyson Slattery, playing in an unaccustomed role across half forward, created real headaches for North, but he failed to cash in with some poor kicking for goal and a couple of bad options. Even the super-reliable Tory Dickson kicked behinds.
When Ben Duscher stormed through half-forward but bombed long for a point, there was a real feeling that the visitors were being let off the hook.
Eventually, Webster rammed home a long goal to put the Bombers 19 points in front.
Moments later Dickson pounced on a loose ball to make it 25 the difference and finally things seemed to be ticking along.
That margin, however, was to be the high-water mark. And again, Bendigo proved to be the source of their own undoing.
A young midfield group tended to attempt to over-handball their way through midfield congestion rather than kick quickly. Several bad turnovers left the defenders exposed and two goals to North eventuated.
Tyson Slattery then had a chance after some excellent work at half-forward, but rather than take the shot storming into goal he opted for an awkward handball to Little. The defense stopped the attack dead in it’s tracks, rebounded out via the far side of the ground and the Roosters had kicked a third unanswered goal on the overlap.
Bendigo managed to restore a 13-point buffer when Jay Neagle marked on the lead and kicked truly with 5 minutes to play, but again North were able to capitalize fully at the end of the half on Bendigo errors. Two late majors for the visitors originated with midfield turnovers and led to un-marked players running into goal.
The half-time siren – blown with Bendigo down to a 1-point lead - drew the curtain on a wasteful hour of football from the Bombers. Not so much the inaccurate scoreline – 7.9.51 to 8.2.50 – but rather the fact that North had survived largely on the back of Bendigo errors.
North’s counter-punching was impressive, but the disappointment for the home side was tangible.
As often happens when sides are let off the hook, worse was to come.
If the tale of the first half had been wasted Bendigo chances, the tale of the second was sheer lack of them. From the opening moments of the third quarter, the Roosters dominated. Everywhere.
The first four centre clearances were taken away with ruthless efficiency, and an 8 minute burst built a 29-point lead. The inside ball was won by North Ballarat with aplomb, and fed out to a myriad of runners. Bendigo became completely reactive and the game became a procession of leap-frogging handballs as multiple goals were kicked from inside 10 metres out.
Without any meaningful protection being afforded by a midfield unable to cope with the physical task against stronger opponents, the Bendigo defense was continuously under siege for 25 minutes of mayhem. With momentum completely against them, even seemingly routine spoils from the likes of Shinners - who managed to stand tall amidst the carnage - managed only to find their way into Roosters hands.
Ross showed a willingness and propensity to remain undaunted, several times bursting through a sea of foes with adroit footwork and speed whilst deep in defense, but invariably the thrust would fail.
Cale Hooker, hesitant and out-of-touch in the first half, started to get his hands on the ball in the second, but like Shinners could make no impact on stemming the flow.
Davis also managed to provide some rebound, and in fact got forward of the wing several times to initiate some of the fitful forward entries amassed by Bendigo for the term. But these minor positives aside, it was a bleak quarter of football for the hosts.
North kicked an amazing 11 unanswered goals in a scintillating display to hold an unassailable lead late in the quarter.
Two consolation Bendigo goals just before three quarter time – the first of which was Matt Little’s 50th for the season – whittled the lead back to under 10 goals, but the last change scoreline of 9.13 to 19.3 merely illustrated the frustration of the day for local fans.
Unsurprisingly, the last quarter also went clearly to the visitors.
Dickson managed to kick a second goal for the hosts, but his was more than cancelled out by 5 at the other end.
The Bendigo midfield was again out of gas, and if the avalanche was at least smaller in quantity, it showed no signs of ceasing.
In a pattern that has reared its head several times this year, the bigger and stronger VFL sides have been able to score heavily against the Bombers in second halves.
For the coach, Shannon Grant, the issue perhaps is not so much how what should have been a 4-goal half-time lead can turn into a 13-goal trouncing, but rather what steps can be taken to minimize such occurrences before September starts in earnest.
The Essendon injury problems will likely prove crucial to this conundrum.
Having some stronger bodies available, particularly in the middle of the ground – whether they be youngsters like Browne and Colyer, or seasoned players like Dyson - will make a vast difference, as would the return of an Essendon ruckman.
Similarly, streamlining the handball-to-kick ratio will be aided if players can stand up in congestion a tad better.
Either way, whilst the top-four sides appear a cut above the rest at the moment, Bendigo have shown an ability to more than match it with other teams in the bottom of the eight.
The final hit-out next week is at home against Coburg, before entering an elimination final at the business end of the year.
The chance to be a realistic shot at winning a final this spring should bestow hope - on the myriad of young Essendon players and Bomber fans alike- that Bendigo’s metaphorical winter of 2006-2009 is indeed still heading for a glorious summer.
Final Score
Bendigo: 10.14.74
North Ballarat: 24.8.152
Best Players
Shinners, Duscher, Dickson, Ross, Davis, T. Slattery
Jason Hannigan, our Bendigo Bomber fan-in-the-outer
