Crocs snap to it late in the piece to overcome Palmerston
A FOURTH-quarter surge saw Southern Districts come out the better side in a scrappy encounter against Palmerston Magpies, winning 10.10 (70) to 6.9 (45) at Cazalys Oval.
For much of the game the two sides flowed back and forth, with every goal scored by one side seeing another scored by the other side in response. Magpies skipper Matt Dennis was dominant around the ruck, while Eric Guthrie was efficient across the ground to supply his forwards with opportunities.
A massive kick from Tyrell Lui to feed Jack Berry for a score and a quick-left foot snap from Tosh Kurnoth seemed to shift the momentum toward the home side. But the Magpies were unable to pull away at any stage, with Districts fighting on, particularly with Jay Dahlhaus and Nik Rokahr scoring to put the Crocs in the lead. The Crocs finally pulled away in the fourth quarter with the Magpies failing to kick a goal while Districts notched four.
Districts captain Dean
Staunton credited his side’s ability to grind out the win and come out victorious in a close game for the first time in the 2020-21 season.
“We did exactly what we set out to do, coming in with the mentality of taking it quarter by quarter, and I think we did that,” Staunton said.
“They got up in the second quarter but credit to our boys, we just ground it out, and our hard work paid off in that final quarter where we scored a few extra.
“It’s always hard rucking against Matty Dennis, he keeps you on your toes each centre bounce, but our boys such as Rok kept us in the game. It’s a bit of relief to get the win after all these tight games we’ve had.”