WERRIBEE WINS AFTER THE SIREN
JOSH Sutton knew he’d done it the moment the ball left his boot.
With the weight of Werribee Centrals’ finals dreams on his shoulders, the young forward went back and drilled his 30-metre set shot after the siren to give his team a stunning one-point win over Inverleigh in yesterday’s first semifinal.
Rewind 30 seconds and the 20-year-old had taken a strong pack mark to give his side one last shot at winning the game. Luckily for Centrals, Sutton was ice cool.
“I knew straight away,” Sutton said after the 7.6 (48) to 6.11 (47) win.
“I was a bit scared at first. One of my teammates told me (it would be after the siren) and I just wanted to take my time. I just looked at the slide there (behind the goals) and kicked for there.”
Sutton was mobbed by teammates and fans straight after the ball sailed between the big sticks at Gordon TAFE Oval and the scenes in the rooms were pure chaos.
For a young bloke still trying to make his way in the game, this was as good as it gets.
“I’ve played for Werribee since under-10s, my whole career. It my family’s club, it’s pretty special,” he said.
So what’s Sutton’s reward? Playing in a preliminary final on his 21st birthday. What a present.
Centrals coach Nick Smith had probably the worst angle of Sutton’s shot as it left his boot.
He was at the opposite end of the ground near the radio broadcast box as Sutton ran in.
“It’s funny. I was numb,” Smith said as he watched Sutton line up his shot.
“You know, I think it might be the dad in me, and I just thought there’s so much (pressure) on this kid. He’s 20 years old, like most of my team.
“And I was thinking, ‘ oh, poor bugger if he misses it’ because there’s always that feeling of costing the team.
“But when I saw our guys celebrating on the line (I knew he’d done it). I’m just to happy for him, he’s a great kid and it’s a great result.”