Crows out of finals

By Ken Moore
BUNYIP put an end to local rival Longwarry’s slim finals hopes when it beat the Crows by 14 points in a low-scoring affair on Sunday.
The win moved the Bulldogs up to fifth place on the ladder and, importantly, gave them a six-point buffer over seventh-placed Nar Nar Goon, which is waiting to pounce on any team that slips up in the last five rounds.
The game began in driving rain and it was obvious after five minutes that goals would be hard earned and precious.
Slippery and greasy conditions saw both teams skew kicks and make plenty of errors in the first quarter.
Bunyip ruck-rover Michael Laszczyk fired the opening salvo when he drilled through a goal – the only one of the term – that put the home side four points to the good at the first break.
Bulldogs Brad Walker, Callum Pattie, Ben Jostlear and Jake Buckingham made strong contributions in the first term while for the Crows Tye Holland was seldom out of the action.
Goals in the second quarter by Holland and Luke Serong, the latter with a wonderful checkside from an acute angle, saw Longwarry capture the lead and enter the main break with a seven-point advantage.
Holland continued to impress during the term with his determined attack on the ball and in defence Tim Milner, Brock Neve and Shane Eacott did their bit when called upon.
The breeze, which favoured the end Bunyip was kicking to in the third quarter, strengthened during the term and the Bulldogs made the most of it.
Also, in a masterstroke, Bulldogs coach Callum Pattie moved talented midfielder Michael Whyte forward and he turned into the game breaker by snaring three vital goals and, incredibly in a low-scoring game, all in the first 10 minutes of the third quarter.
His first goal was after a top grab, the second a well-educated snap and the third, off the ground, provided the visitors with an 11 point lead – the biggest of the match.
Late in the quarter Longwarry responded with a goal by burly forward Adam Pavlovic from a tight angle but that was soon cancelled out by a Pattie goal after he took a courageous mark and kicked truly to give the Bulldogs the 11-point buffer at the last change.
Pattie started as a loose man in defence in the last quarter, but he did not have a lot to do. Longwarry tried hard but could not set up any meaningful goalscoring opportunities.
Bunyip managed only four behinds in the last quarter, but the Crows scored only one point and fell 14 points short.
Longwarry exceeded the expectations of most pundits this season, but their finals aspirations are now kaput.
Bunyip can thank Whyte and Pattie for its victory. Whyte’s three-goal third-quarter efforts and Pattie’s all-over-the-field drive made the difference.
Michael Laszczyk, Jake Buckingham, Walker and Jostlear were superb in and around the centre. In the second half, Stewy Edwards and Marcus Cleary also made their presence felt in the midfield and Aaron Henwood and Michael Davies were solid in defence.
For Longwarry, assistant coach Tye Holland was outstanding.
He put in plenty of hard yakka and did his utmost to lift his team and get it across the line. Leigh McDonald and Ben Garritty were also strong and willing through the midfield and Scott Hamilton, Milner and Aaron Serong provided stout defence.