Tall’s seven boosts claim

Forward Loersch inches closer to shot with Suns

THE development of South Fremantle recruit Cameron Loersch as a possible future tall forward option for the Gold Coast has taken another step.

Loersch, 21, kicked seven goals for the Suns NEAFL side in a big win against Aspley on Saturday and earned some encouraging words from coach Steve Daniel.

“That was Cameron’s best game I’ve seen for the Suns,” Daniel said of the 203cm tall after the Suns won by 25.13 (163) to 5.6 (36).

As the final scoreline suggests the Suns dominated the Hornets and, in fact, they kept the Hornets scoreless in the first half.

Loersch aside, the Suns also had tough-at-it Mitch Hallahan starring on the ball and Darcy Macpherson again featuring in the top three players.

If Macpherson was disappointed at being dropped back to the NEAFL after only one game in the AFL the previous weekend he did not show it.

The return of superstar Gary Ablett for his 300th AFL game against North Melbourne probably cost Macpherson his place.

“Darcy has arguably been one of our best players for the past seven weeks,” Daniel said.

“He dropped back and took it in his stride.”

At Victoria Point, Southport destroyed all the positives that came from their win against the Northern Territory Thunder with an ordinary effort against Redland.

The Sharks went down by 16.15 (111) to 13.12 (90) and slipped back to second from bottom on the ladder.

Coach Nathan Bock thought the Sharks were nowhere as intense against the Bombers as they were in Alice Springs the previous weekend.

“We seemed flat from the get-go and there was definitely not the same intensity there.”

One bright spot was a sixgoal haul from reinstated halfforward Mitch Johnson and a prolific display from co-captain Andrew Boston who played basically as a defender.