Torquay ruthless in victory

VICTORIOUS Torquay coach Dom Gleeson refused to believe his side had won the premiership until late in the final quarter despite what appeared a comfortable 51-point win.

“I don’t think the game was over until the 20-minute mark of the last (quarter),” Gleeson said. “Because we all know what Ammos can do and how quickly they can score.

“I’m over the moon with how we rallied when they kicked a couple and we broke the camel’s back and kicked a couple to seal the game.”

Having failed when the two sides met in a fiery grand final two years ago, the Tigers made sure there would be no repeat.

Seven points up at quarter-time in an engrossing arm wrestle, the Tigers blew the game wide open in the second quarter to lead by 34 after Ammos continued to waste chances in front of goal.

Gleeson outlined the importance of having a strong start to shut-out a threatening Ammos side that had not lost since June.

“The start is so crucial, the last two times we have played Ammos we’ve dropped the ball early but we started well,” he said. “I thought we really brought the heat and pressure around the footy, we were good enough to hold them for four quarters.”

“We just stuck to task today and we made them play bad, which we have been on the end of a few times from them.”

Ammos enjoyed plenty of the ball inside their forward 50 in the first quarter, but could only muster seven behinds allowing Torquay to lead by seven points.

And they had to wait until the 12th minute mark of the second term before they kicked their first goal.

Torquay was ruthless, winning the ball on the inside and getting it into space.

When the Tigers pushed forward they moved it with venom. Billy Henderson was electric with his speed, while the mobility of Paul McMahon and Scott Hughes caused problems.

Dom Gleeson and James Darke were crucial with their contested work, allowing the likes of David Allitt to find space and hit targets further up the ground.

A six-goal-to-one second quarter blew the margin out to 34 points at the main break. Matt Walsh kicked Ammos’ second goal 14 minutes into the third term, but it was all one-way traffic as they struggled to gain back any momentum.

It was party time in the final term for the Tigers with Ammos deciding to throw numbers forward in a bid to get back into the game.

But it was to be Torquay’s day. Veteran coach Gleeson kicked a goal that had the Tigers faithful on their feet, while Hughes and Henderson also enjoyed moments in the spotlight late.

Ammos star Hamish Dahl was his team’s best, putting in a big performance in the ruck. Ross Fagan, also stuck to his task, shutting down Torquay star Sam Wormald. Ben Lavars and Riley Mattner also had good days in a losing side.

“I think our effort was paramount all over the ground,” Gleeson said. “I felt that the midfield were good at times, the backs were outstanding.”

“They (Geelong Amateur) kicked poorly (at goal), too, which certainly helps the winning side.

“Our forwards finished fantastic. Billy Henderson, Paul McMahon, Scott Hughes, Aaron Gleeson, just the list goes on in our forward line.”