Gulls hold off Hawks
As Drouin and Warragul met for yet another western derby on Sunday, there were plenty of new things at both clubs.
New senior coaches, new recruits and new game plans were all in full effect. One thing that wasn't new of course, was the heated rivalry that fans have come to know and love.
And in the end, it was Warragul who claimed victory in a close, and at times heated, affair at the Drouin Recreation Reserve.
While both sides had their own periods of dominance in the match, the Gulls eventually did just enough to win 10.13 (73) to 10.10 (70).
With a new season and new expectations, both sides clearly saw the value of both a round one win and a chance to beat the old enemy as players threw themselves at the ball all day.
The match was a highly contested affair, as time and space with ball-in-hand was somewhat of a rarity, and the chance of a clean forward 50 entry even more so.
Sam Whibley, featuring mostly in the backline as well as the ruck, was rock solid, while Nick Mulqueen teamed up with recruit Liam Sumner and the returning Tom Hobbs to give the Gulls an edge around the ball.
Gulls senior coach Jed Lamb was certainly unafraid to throw the magnets around in his first match in charge. The league's leading goalkicker put himself in the midfield for much of the match, leaving the forward line primarily to recruits Corbin Sutherland and Lachlan Collihole, who both kicked three goals each.
It did mean that for much of the day Warragul looked a tall short of potentially opening the game up on the scoreboard.
Drouin, meanwhile, under new coach Brent Clinnick, were often trying to use their pace to their advantage. The Hawks stuck primarily to the wings, trying to run the ball and open the ground up to provide their forwards with genuine one-on-one opportunities.
When it worked they looked immense, but when it didn't it often left them caught out in defence.
Ryan Taylor was at his unrelenting best, while Kye Quirk was effective both on the wings and up forward as he booted three goals.
In general though, this was a match won and lost at the contest.
The first term was, as round one often is, a scrappy affair as both teams came to grips with competitive footy once again.
The Hawks found the one goal of the term after Shay Harvey found just enough space to lob through a shot from the boundary, but both sides were lacking some composure going inside 50.
Lamb took little time getting reacquainted with the Drouin players, having kicked 10 goals against them in their last meeting, often being the centre of attention anytime he went near the ball.
The second term began much better for the Gulls, as they found their first after a contested mark from youngster Liam Serong allowed them to hit up Sutherland, who kicked truly for his first goal in the black and red.
After that though, the immense pressure from the Hawks forced Warragul into playing reactive football. A deadlock was broken by two quick Drouin goals within as many minutes, as Kye Quirk became incredibly dangerous.
Adding to that, some costly misses in front of goal had Warragul fans shaking their heads.
They stabilised though, finding Lachlan Collihole twice to keep the margin to just four at half time.
Following the main break, the Gulls jumped their opponents to begin the third, racking up inside 50s and finding a goal through Nathan Sulzberger to retake the lead, before Sutherland struck again.
A gigantic contested mark in the goal square from Hawks recruit Hugo Birks caused yet another shift in momentum though, as Kye Quirk shortly after intercepted a ball, ran 20m and slotted a beautiful goal on the run.
Harvey then dribbled through another, and suddenly the Hawks looked as if they were running out the game better.
Enter Jed Lamb. The Warragul coach marked a ball 45m out essentially on the boundary line, and slotted the shot to keep the Gulls rolling.
Another late goal to Sutherland ensured they would enter three quarter time just five points up, as Lamb implored his troops to put in one final effort and get themselves over the line.
The first blow would be struck by the Hawks, however, as Aden Quirk won a decisive one-on-one to claim the mark and goal, retaking the lead for his side.
Another goal to Collihole minutes later had the Gulls fans cheering, but that was nothing compared to the noise moments later.
Warragul's favourite son Cooper Alger, who returned for his first game after a serious eye injury last year, received a 50 metre penalty that brought him in range of the goals. He nailed the shot, sending his teammates and fans into raptures as the Gulls stretched their lead to 10.
The Hawks, who were two players down on the bench due to injuries, would need a special effort to get over the line. Some costly misses cruelled their chances of getting closer, as Lamb nailed another shot to stretch the lead out even further.
With time running out, a nasty knee injury to Gull Vinnie Caia stopped play for a while, and though Drouin managed the last two goals of the game, including one after the siren, it just wasn't enough as Warragul held on by three points.
After the game Lamb said he was "super proud of the boys" for their effort.
"They had a super pre-season, they've done all the work so it makes my job easier," he said.
"I just kept telling the boys to go back to what we do well, the structures and what we've been working on all pre-season."
While he was pleased with the win, Lamb said the Gulls were far from a finished product.
"So far so far good. I'm a realist, I understand we've got a long way to go but I'll take the wins when they come."
Gulls assistant playing coach Sean Masterson agreed, giving credit to Drouin for the way they played.
"You've got to give credit where it's due, they battled hard all day, as did we," he said.
"We build on it, we get better. There's definitely stuff to work on, it was by no means a perfect performance but I think there were some really good signs from nearly every player on the ground."
Drouin coach Brent Clinnick said spirits were still high after the game, and he was "pretty proud" of them for the fight they showed, even when two players down.
"It's all learning for us. We're a young group so we'll remain pretty positive and keep that self belief high and we'll roll on to next week full of optimism again," he said.
"Full credit to Warragul, I thought they were terrific."
Warragul will meet Moe next week, and will be hopeful of beginning their season with two straight wins having defeated the Lions by one point when they last met.
Drouin, meanwhile, will face Morwell away as both teams search for their first victory in 2023.