The best way to be for flying wingman
STAR wingman Ethan Floyd says his side’s best football will be hard to beat as the Falcons stormed into week two of TAC Cup finals.
The second-placed Falcons were clinical and comprehensive in an 85-point elimination final win over Gippsland, in which the Colac product was a standout over four quarters.
Floyd’s run and dash, and ability to pinpoint kicks with a sharp left boot, led coach Dan O’Keefe to pick the Vic Country representative as his side’s best player yesterday.
But Floyd is more focused on seeing the Falcons produce even four-quarter efforts as they march into this Sunday’s preliminary final at Simonds Stadium.
“Yeah, super effort from our team all around and I reckon a big credit to our back six especially — the ball was firing in all day and to keep the Power to a really low score, all credit to them,” Floyd said.
“There’s a massive focus on defensive running and getting back to support. The back six is there to help us and we’ve got to be there to help as well.
“It’s just a massive credit to the work that our high-performance staff has done to give us that fitness level to get back and help out.”
This year’s TAC Cup finals system is different to previous years. No longer the typical final-eight system over four weeks, all finals this year are knockout over a three-week series that culminates on Sunday week.
Floyd continues to put every foot forward in a bid to earn a spot on an AFL list next season.
He took advantage of an opportunity against Western Australia in game three for Vic Country, lighting up Etihad Stadium with his agility and nous, and that was again on display in yesterday’s final.
“I’m pretty happy most of the time, but I thought I ran a bit more today and used my speed to my advantage a lot more today,” he said.
“DOK (coach Daniel O’Keefe) is always there to tell me to back myself in and so is the whole coaching team as well. My kick is probably my strongest asset, so I use it to the best of my advantage.”
The Falcons played Dandenong last week, in which Floyd was busy logging 21 touches, of which 16 were kicks.
But Floyd said this weekend’s preliminary final would be a different ball game.
Dandenong is coming off a 13-point win in its elimination final win over Eastern Ranges on Saturday, after the Stingrays trailed by 50 points at half-time.
“We won by four points last week and probably didn’t play our best footy, but if we play like we did today, we’ve got a fighting chance against Dandenong next week,” Floyd said.
“It’s so exciting to play at Simonds. It’s our home deck — that big ground is going to suit the way we play. We’re a contested team but we’re good outside runners as well, and to be at home with the crowd is massive.
“If we do rock up to play, I reckon good luck stopping us.”