PHELPS FIRING ACROSS BRIDGE
MITCH Phelps was not sure how they would react.
But the goalkicking ace knew exactly how the rustedon Ocean Grove fans felt about his decision to overlook their beloved club and instead play with the mob over the water when he darted past the crowded wing in the recent Battle of the Bridge.
“There was a little bit of carry on in the crowd,” said Phelps, who has proved a revelation in his first season at Barwon Heads as the league’s leading goalkicker.
“When I ran past the Ocean Grove supporter crew there was a bit said, but not too much. They were into me, saying, ‘you’ve made the wrong choice’.
“I can’t actually remember a lot of what they said. I don’t think I had much of a kick before halftime, so they were into me about that as well.”
It was a harsh introduction to the biggest home-and-away match on the BFL calendar for Phelps, who opted against signing with the Grubbers to play with the arch enemy.
“There was definitely a choice between Barwon Heads and Ocean Grove,” he said.
“I had a big decision to make. I met with Ocean Grove twice and had a couple of phone calls, but I decided to sign with the Heads.
“I just had a good feeling with the club.
“Much the same as Redan, I felt at home when I met Tim Armstrong and ‘Herbi’ (senior coach Mitch Herbison)
“Initially they showed me around the club and told me what it was all about and it was just good, old-fashioned country footy.
“That’s what I was looking for . . . good vibes, good people and it’s a great spot to play footy, with the ground looking over the ocean. It was a nobrainer in the end.”
Interestingly, Phelps lives on the opposite side of the bridge, having made the move to the region in the off-season.
“I’ve got a family beach house down at Ocean Grove, so I’ve been spending all my holidays and spare time down there for years,” he said.
“I’ve been looking to move down for a while and it just so happened that I landed at Barwon Heads through connections.
“One of my good mates is friends with Herbi and one of the Redan boys, Dan Colbert, played with Barwon Heads last season. So it just worked.”
Phelps started his maiden BFL season with a bang, booting 11 majors against Newcomb in Round 1.
The 24-year-old has contributed three or more goals in each of the next five games to be the outright leader of the league goalkicking with 29.
“It was nice to play against a slightly weaker side in Newcomb first up and get the ball rolling,” he said.
“It has been made much easier by the midfield, which is killing it at the moment, and our defence is standing up really well. It makes my life much easier.”
Playing as a deep, small forward, Phelps has been a real asset for Herbison.
“He’s been great since he came down to the club,” Herbison said.
“He bought into pre-season and on-field he’s had a great start to the year. He’s not only kicking goals but he’s setting up goals for us as well.”
He said Phelps’s ability to be clean with the ball in “tight situations” was one of his strongest traits.
“He’s not super quick but he reads the game really well and gets into the right spots,” Herbison said.
“When our big blokes create a contest, he can really hit the packs with a bit of speed.
“He reminds me of Jarrod Westwood, to be honest. He’s a left-footer, smart around the packs, clean with his hands and hits the scoreboard.”
Booting 39 goals for Redan last season, Phelps said while the BFL was strong, he did not believe it was the equivalent of the Ballarat league.
“There’s a few teams that aren’t overly competitive, but the standard is good,” Phelps said.
“There’s a lot of good players. It’s probably not as good as the Ballarat Football League but it’s not super far off it.
“The best players in the Bellarine are as good as the best players in Ballarat, but I think it drops away a little bit.”