Finals fever in check
Tigers flex muscle
THOMSON co-coach Reece Holwell is confident his squad is mature enough to not get caught up in the big picture heading into finals.
The Tigers flexed their muscle in Saturday’s 104-point victory over finals contender Winchelsea at Godfrey St, backing up the 27-point win over powerhouse Bell Post Hill.
The Tigers are within reaching distance of the minor premiership with a clash against Inverleigh in Round 17 set to decide who finishes on top.
But before that Thomson has must-win clashes with neighbourhood rival East Geelong and Bannockburn to come.
“We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. We have started to build over the past couple of weeks,” Holwell said.
“We are playing good team footy and we don’t want to go away from that. We know as soon as we start going away from that things may change.
“We are keeping things simple, sticking to our game plan, sticking to our structures. That’s what has got us a couple of good results over the past couple of weeks and we just have to focus on doing that week in and out.”
Thomson’s win was set up with a strong first half, keeping Winchelsea to just one goal at halftime.
It then ran away with the contest in the second half, extending the margin towards 100 points by three-quartertime.
“We knew we had to start against them. Last time we played them they got off to a fast start and they are a young team,” Holwell said.
“They have the ability to score quickly and if they do that then they hurt you on the scoreboard. It was important for us to put some scoreboard pressure on them early.
“Winning the centre clearances, it was 5-1 in the first quarter. That gave our forwards a lot of opportunities.
“The midfield was exceptional, especially early.”
Paul Davis kicked seven goals, Daniel Freeman bagged four goals, while Matt Baden, Holwell and Matt Egan were all shining lights.
The Tigers were able to get game time into a couple of injured players including Ethan Solly, Alex Denham, Josh Pan and Noah Scott.
“We have got full confidence in them. We just want them to play their role on the day and they have bought into that and that’s what is getting the end result at the end of the day,” Holwell said.
Crucial forward Jared Matheson, who booted a goal, also made his senior return after spending the majority of the season out with a meniscus injury.
“We pulled him off halfway through the last quarter. He pulled up really well,” Holwell said. “His touch probably wasn’t quite there, but he still looks dangerous around the footy. We are hoping his best is still to come.”