Gulls punished by perfect Parrots
Things were never going to be easy for Warragul on the weekend.
The Gulls were up against the very best side in the competition in Leongatha, who up until this point have yet to taste defeat in 2022. And while Warragul have pulled off some great upset wins at home this year, this one always loomed as the biggest challenge they would face this year.
In the end, things panned out just about as expected, as Warragul fell 3.7 (25) to 12.16 (88).
The result was not entirely unexpected, given that the Gulls were giving opportunities to plenty of their more youthful stars. The seniors side included seven junior players, with six thirds players and one fourths player. All of them made a strong showing to give a solid endorsement of the club's future.
But while the Gulls were spirited and their effort couldn't be questioned, against a team like Leongatha effort alone is rarely going to be enough to get the result.
To beat the Parrots, a team has to be playing at an incredibly high level in their contest work through the midfield, their skill level with ball-in-hand and their application to defensive pressure without the ball.
And, while Warragul's pressure around the ball was solid at times, the Parrots are simply a team on another level to not just the Gulls, but to most other sides in the league.
Things were not helped by the fact that Warragul was without Nick Graham, one of their star players who has helped to keep their midfield together on multiple occasions. Against a midfield like Leongatha's that boasts the likes of league superstars Tom Marriott, Cameron Stone and Luke Bowman, it was only ever going to make things all the more difficult.
The game didn't begin too poorly for Warragul, however, as the Gulls were able to limit Leongatha's damage on the scoreboard somewhat. While the Parrots were certainly getting their hands on the ball, some solid defensive pressure coupled with some poor goalkicking from the visitors, allowed Warragul to concede just one goal in the first quarter.
A clear factor in this was the inclusion of centre half back Jack Maibaum. Maibaum, who normally plies his trade for Coburg in the VFL, put in a brilliant performance for the Gulls, creating a tandem duo with Sean Masterson to help the relatively inexperienced Warragul defence.
Youngsters Kai MacLean and Liam Serong were also making strong cases for themselves, more than holding their own against the toughest opposition in the league.
While this was a positive, the issues in Warragul's forward half were apparent, as the Parrots made a point to deprive Gulls spearhead Jed Lamb of the ball as much as possible. Lamb had been a thorn in Leongatha's side when the two sides last met, booting six goals in an effort that would not have gone unnoticed by Leongatha coach Trent McMicking.
The other thing that wouldn't have escaped McMicking's notice was the fact that these six goals were the only ones Warragul kicked for the day. With Lamb unable to find the space and delivery he normally enjoys, it meant the Gulls struggled to put together too many scoring opportunities. Lamb would finish the game with two of his side's three goals.
By half time, the home side had managed just the two goals, but had pleasingly kept the powerful Leongatha forwards to just the four. It meant that the door was ajar, however slightly.
From there though, the experience and strength of the visitors won out. The Gulls would kick just one more goal for the day while the Parrots put Warragul to the sword, kicking eight in the second half.
The relative inaccuracy of Leongatha meant the margin didn't blow out as much as it perhaps could have, but this was in part thanks to the solid aforementioned defensive efforts of the Gulls.
Luther Juric, Jake van der Pligt and the returning Cade Maskell all helped the Parrots to control the ball, as they shared the load up forward with Tallin Brill, Kim Drew, Lachie Wright and Justin Pellicano all kicking two goals each.
The Parrots, with the minor premiership well and truly secured, will now turn their attention to a potential piece of history as they eye off a possible perfect season, assuming they can finish it all with a premiership.
They'll be acutely aware that none of this will matter if they don't end up with the cup in September. Still, their current win streak now stands at a whopping 23 including their results from the 2021 season, and it will take a special effort for someone to end it.
For Warragul, their attention will have to turn quickly to next week's match against Sale. The Magpies are in fine form, which could spell danger for a side that has succumbed to a few thrashings in recent weeks.
We'll just have to wait and see how they approach it.