Pies loving Roo rivalry

There’s a lot of history ... and today a double chance is at stake

GLENORCHY coach Paul Kennedy wants his team to embrace the rivalry against Clarence as the two teams fight it out for second spot today at Blundstone Arena.

The history between the two clubs is enough to make this a significant game, but an opportunity to cement a double chance in the finals has provided greater importance to the encounter.

The Magpies sit second on the ladder and the Roos sit third, both with 10 wins next to their names, and a win today will almost guarantee a topthree position for the victor.

Kennedy admits he missed a trick early in the season to not embrace the club’s historic rivalry against the Roos, but changed his approach heading into the two teams’ clash in Round 13.

“As I’ve said previously, the big thing that I have been indoctrinated into at Glenorchy is the need to beat Clarence,” Kennedy said.

“Some of our older players and people around the club have really been big on that this year, particularly after we lost the first game to them.

“We just felt like we didn’t play how Glenorchy should play against Clarence on that day.

“The guys responded really well the next time.

“We expect Clarence to be breathing fire on Saturday so we need to make sure we come out and match that.”

A chat to assistant coach Adam Henley made Kennedy realise the importance of the rivalry between the two clubs.

“He said the first time we just treated it like another game,” Kennedy said.

“I guess for me at the time it was.

“That second time we changed our focus and we really built up to it.

“We looked at the history of Clarence and Glenorchy and even went back to the demographic differences of the two and how that rivalry emerged.”

Glenorchy turned a 14point loss to Clarence in Round 6 into a 53-point win against the Roos in Round 13 and Kennedy is expecting both teams to come out firing today.

“Playing for the BingleyLinton Cup against the arch rivals in a game that determines a double chance — if you can’t get up for that, you shouldn’t be playing,” he said.