By Ken Moore
BUNYIP won its way through to the first semi final after a 37-point victory over a determined Lang Lang at Kooweerup on Sunday.
The Bulldogs always appeared in control, but it did not break the back of the Tigers until midway through the third term, when they notched four unanswered goals to turn a three-point advantage into a matchwinning 31-point lead at three-quarter -time.
Fatigued in the last quarter, Lang Lang could not make any inroads on the scoreboard, which came as no great surprise because most of the first half was played at breakneck speed.
Bunyip entered the game without midfielder Michael Laszczyk, while Lang Lang was far more depleted with Kurt Batt, Sean and Jake Dwyer and Billy Hayes all sidelined.
The Bulldogs kicked with the aid of a two to three goal breeze in the first quarter, but only went into the quarter time break with a 13-point lead, mainly due to tremendous pressure applied by the Tigers.
The endeavour of all players was the highlight of the opening quarter, and all disposals were hard earned. An early second quarter goal to Marcus clearly gave the Bulldogs a 20-point lead, but the game exploded to life when goals by Tigers David Williams, Jarrod Tonks and Clint Fulton trimmed the difference to three points. A late goal by Brent Hues, his third, gave Bunyip, who entered as hot favourites, a nine-point buffer at the main break.
Bulldog coach Callum Pattie goaled early in the third term to extend the lead to 15 points, but the Tigers would not go away, and with majors by Fulton and Williams, who were both posing trouble for the Lang Lang defence, only three points separated the sides mid term. In the final 10 minutes of the quarter, Lang Lang went through a purple patch with goals from Michael Whyte, after a top second effort, and a sensational snap by Cleary. Hues also snagged another two six-pointers as the Tigers took a stranglehold on the match.
The game went into a lull in the last quarter when all players showed signs of fatigue and the goals dried up, which played into the hands of Bunyip.
In a good team effort, Pattie was the heartbeat of his team. Pattie showed he was a big game player, and his fearless attack on the ball and ability to play above his size makes him hard to counter.
Tall forward Brent Hues (five goals) proved hard to pin down with his fast leads and strong hands, and in defence Andrew Henwood produced at least a dozen timely spoils. Ben Jostlear, Jake Buckingham, Brad Walker and Andrew Hobday covered plenty of territory and helped link the defence with the forward line.
“Pleased with our efforts, they had plenty heavy hard bodies and came at us hard early, but everybody stood up to the pressure,” Pattie said.
Lang Lang was gallant, but spent a lot of time chasing, which led to their late fadeout. Coach and ruckman Ben Dwyer was a standout for the Tigers. The 2011 league medallist’s height, mobility and ability to read play gave his side terrific drive.
Bryce Tonks was the Tigers chief midfield playmaker and with Hadley Tomamichel and Alex Saraikin put in a combative effort. Three goals by opportunist small Clint Fulton and two from David Williams, who made some important contributions, kept the Tigers in the contest for a long time. Stuart Casey and Dan O’Hara were steady in defence.
“Our effort was good, but we just didn’t have the class,” a succinct Lang Lang coach Ben Dwyer said.
