Pain of ’17 drives Joeys
Colac left with too much to do after being over-run in second quarter
ST JOSEPH’S under-19 Division 1 coach Michael King has hailed his up-and-coming group for getting “the result they deserved” after the 42point grand final triumph over Colac.
Spurred on by defeat on grand final day last season, King said the convincing victory was reward for effort.
“It’s been a huge year and I just wanted to make sure the boys got the result they deserved,” he said following the emphatic win.
St Joseph’s asserted its dominance with a five-goalto-one second quarter to open up a 26-point halftime buffer, before Colac came out breathing fire in the third term until St Joseph’s steadied the ship.
“Colac came to play, but in the second quarter we turned it on and that gave us a lead we could hang on to later in the game,” King said.
“They were always going to come, it was just a matter of how we could hold them and try to do some damage the other way.
“It certainly caused a few headaches and nerves.”
Young gun key forward Pat DeGrandi booted five goals in a standout performance, while captain Harry Smith took out best-on-ground honours.
Zack Mongelli, who enjoyed a strong finals series, Angus Humphrey and Jack Purcell were among many Joeys players who stood up to the occasion.
“He (Smith) was huge and he’s been huge all year, the boys look up to him,” King said of Smith, who played four senior games this season.
“Three quarters of our team were bottom-aged kids, so the future is bright over the next couple of years with guys playing senior footy. A lot of the top age boys will transition to senior football really well.”
Bryce McDonald and Campbell Tanis were named best for Colac.