SANFL 2015 -- Round 15 Wrap-Up

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raboyle

Norm Smith Medallist
May 8, 2001
5,661
803
X Convenience Oval, Elizabeth
AFL Club
Adelaide
Other Teams
CDFC (SANFL), Port Melb (VFL)
Hi Footy fans...

This past weekend's entire schedule was programmed for Sunday afternoon, but it will probably be remembered as quite the failure seeing as the aggregate number didn't even breach 10,000. It seems only a couple of clubs are really being consistent with their numbers and those are in the bottom half of the ladder! The real match of the round had the second lowest crowd, the biggest crowd was at the Bay and the Unley mob still brave the cold. All this to avoid a direct clash with the AFL of course, the Crows playing the Saturday afternoon at Adelaide Oval so there was no room for a Friday night, maybe a Saturday night fixture at Richmond or Noarlunga? What happened to the other timeslots that the SANFL began to run with? Not everyone is a fan of Sunday afternoon football and its probably been made painfully obvious.

Welcome to the Round 15 edition of the SANFL Wrap-Up.

The opening match for the weekend takes us over to the inner western suburbs, the City Mazda Stadium at Richmond the venue for the match between the Bloods and the Crows. Thus far, the Crows seconds haven't had any joy against the Bloods, all three matches going Westies' way with the last encounter being a 29-point win in Round 3. The Crows have been a bit on-and-off as of late, but after fielding one of their strongest line-ups last week and coming out massive winners against North Adelaide, a loud warning was sent out and only late senior call-ups would stifle that. Such an eventuality wouldn't happen though, in fact almost every spot was taken up by an AFL-listed player. The Crows would start off the afternoon with a five-goal first term, the Bloods scored 3.1 as the visitors held an 11-point lead at quarter-time. The Bloods second term was a horrid one, kept to just one goal while the Crows added a further 3.3 as they stretched their advantage to 26 points going into the half-time break. Had the Bloods been rattled by the Bulldogs challenge last week or was the class gap fully on show? Westies had to respond, which to their credit they did when play resumed, Adelaide's inaccuracy kept the door well ajar for the Bloods to score 4.2 to 1.4 to cut the deficit to 10 points. Unfortunately it would only take a few minutes into the final term for the Crows to slam the door, ramming through 9.6 to the Bloods' lowly 1.1 to run out 63-point winners and take their first victory against West. The Crows named Matt Crouch as their best afield, the Bloods voted in Jason Porplyzia as their best.

Match number two takes us on a trip down south to the Hickinbotham Oval in Noarlunga where the Panthers faced the Redlegs. The Panthers have for some reason always managed to give the Redlegs trouble, even during their down years. While their last two games have been Norwood victories, they have not been big wins with margins of less than three goals. But the Redlegs' last visit to Noarlunga was a day to forget, copping a 40-point loss in Round 6 last season. Despite the loss at The Parade later in the year, it did beg to wonder what could have been on Grand Final day had the Panthers toppled Port. As is the case at Noarlunga most of the time, windy conditions made for a low-scoring contest. The Panthers could have been further in front by quarter-time had they been more accurate, kicking 2.3 to the 'Legs two goals to lead by three points at the first change. The reigning premiers would hit back in the second term, keeping the Panthers to just one point and score 4.2 for themselves. At half-time, Norwood held a 22-point lead. When play resumed, the Panthers would return the favour on the 'Legs by restricting them to just 1.1 and re-take the lead by the final change with their score of 5.4. At three quarter-time, the Panthers were back in front by five points to set up an arm-wrestle final term. The Redlegs threatened to run away with it after kicking three goals to one half-way through the last quarter. But a further 1.2 for South -- the final score hitting the post -- would ensure victory for the blue & whites by the narrowest of margins. Joel Cross was named best for South, while the Redlegs named Matt Panos as their best on ground.

The third game for the Sunday arvo footy-fest takes us over to the beach-side suburb of Glenelg, the Tigers hosting the Eagles at Gliderol Stadium. The last three games have been all Eagles victories, with the last encounter between these two sides resulting in a 23-point win in Round 6 at Woodville. The two games from last season were more painful for the Tigers faithful, with margins falling between eight or nine goals. The Eagles ran into a black & white roadblock last week, while the Tigers fell back into the dumps after a 38-point loss to West two weeks ago. The Eagles have a challenging final run to the finals coming up, while the Tigers, despite showing more fight in recent rounds look set to sit out finals again even though their run to September seems far more doable than their opponents' path. The Eagles first quarter couldn't have been too much better, some inaccuracy stopping them mounting a bigger lead but they would go into the first change with a 26-point advantage after scoring 5.3 to 1.1. They couldn't keep it up in the second though, the Tigers drawing the gap back to 11 points by half-time with their 4.1 to the Eagles' 1.4. The Tigers seemed to be up to the test when play resumed, scoring the first three goals of the third term. But the Eagles put the challenge to bed after the 10 minute mark, the Tigers only managing just one behind while the visitors scored 5.2 to keep themselves ahead. At the final change, they led by four goals. The Eagles would finish the match with a 4.2 final term, keeping the home side to one goal as they returned to the winners circle with a 44-point win. State vice-captain Luke Jarrad was named best for the Eagles, Matt Snook was voted best afield for Glenelg.

Now for the fourth game of the round and we're heading to the inner southern suburbs, the Peter Motley Oval in Unley the setting for the clash between the Double Blues and the Magpies. The Blues haven't been able to take points against the Magpies from their last three encounters, their last match was a close one at Alberton back in Round 6 as Port outlasted the Blues to the deficit of eight points. In that match, the Magpies' kicked 25 scoring shots to 12, with their eventual tally reading 10.15 to 11.1. Sturt came into this one off a week's break following their three-goal loss to the Eagles at Woodville, while the 'Pies handed the Eagles their first loss since Round 2. That win alone would have made most SA footy-heads believe that the Blues would be a pushover for the Magpies. Well were they in for a shock. It was competitve early, Sturt taking a one-goal lead at quarter-time after scoring 2.2 to Port's 1.2. The Blues then held the Magpies off the scoresheet in the second term and added 4.4 to their score to extend their advantage to 34 points by the long break. Port would get back on the scorecard in the third quarter, but wouldn't make much ground on the Blues. Even with several Power-listed players, the Blues were keeping them outside of striking distance, only two points would be chipped off the half-time deficit after Port scored 2.3 to 2.1 as Sturt held a 32-point lead at the final change. The Magpies would eventually find themselves on the tail end of the top five by afternoon's end, the Blues finally taking a victory after six consecutive weeks on the wrong end of the stick. The home side won by 27 points, Port's final term of 3.1 not enough against Sturt's 2.2. Ironically, the Blues named former Magpie Zane Kirkwood as their best afield, Port voting in Kane Mitchell as their standout.

The final match for the weekend finds us heading over to the inner north, the Prospect Oval playing host to the Northern Derby between the Roosters and the Bulldogs. These sides have clashed more often over the last few years than some of the others in the same time frame, the Roosters sending the Bulldogs packing on days when it mattered most, in finals situations or in the closing rounds of the season. Last year's final round encounter at this venue saw the Roosters have one last hurrah for 2014 at their expense, but the Dogs would have a louder laugh come Round 10 this season when they hammered their northern rivals by 99 points at the Ponderosa. The Bulldogs would open the match better off on the scoreboard with their 3.1, the Roosters had a horrid first term with their 1.4 to be down by nine points at the first change. The Roosters found their feet in the second term, but the Dogs' use of the wind would see them extend their lead to 23 points by half-time despite their own bout of inaccuracy, kicking 5.4 to 3.2. When play resumed, the Roosters chipped away at the Dogs' lead as the visitors seemed to grind to a halt attack-wise. Restricting the Dogs to just three behinds, their own inaccuracy stopped them from closing the gap further. North kicked 2.6 as Centrals' lead was brought back to eight points. But just as it looked like the Roosters could steal it, in came mother nature's wrath as the Dogs slipped out of Prospect with the victory, they scored three goals to 2.3 to win by 11 points. Chris Jansen continues to impress at league level with his best afield honours for the Dogs, the Roosters named Nick Amato as their best on ground.

FINAL SCORES IN ROUND 15 OF THE SANFL...

Sunday July 26

Adelaide 18.13 (121)
West Adelaide 9.4 (58)
1,406 @ City Mazda Stadium, Richmond

South Adelaide 9.10 (64)
Norwood 10.3 (63)
1,700 @ Hickinbotham Oval, Noarlunga

Woodville-West Torrens 15.11 (101)
Glenelg 9.3 (57)
2,581 @ Gliderol Stadium, Glenelg

Sturt 10.9 (69)
Port Adelaide 6.6 (42)
2,440 @ Peter Motley Oval, Unley

Central District 11.8 (74)
North Adelaide 8.15 (63)
1,821 @ Prospect Oval


INJURIES
South -- Liddle (ankle)
Norwood -- Bartlett (knee), Wilkins (fractured hand)
Sturt -- Stephen (dislocated shoulder)

REPORTS
Glenelg -- Alleway (misconduct)


LEAGUE LADDER
----------------------------------------
W-WT -- 24pts (12-2-0), 58.3%
Norwood -- 20pts (10-4-0), 52.3%
West -- 18pts (9-5-0), 54.9%
South -- 17pts (8-4-1), 52.5%
Port -- 16pts (8-5-0), 54.5%

----------------------------------------
Central -- 13pts (6-7-1), 51%
Sturt -- 10pts (5-9-0), 49%
Adelaide -- 9pts (4-8-1), 51%
Glenelg -- 7pts (3-10-1), 43.6%
North -- 2pts (1-12-0), 35.1%
----------------------------------------


COUNTRY BOYS TRIUMPH IN THE WEST
South Australian Country has enjoyed its third win in succession against WA Country, with an 82-point win in Mandurah on Saturday. Right from the start, South Australia - captained by Reece Francis - displayed its intent by applying scoreboard pressure on the Sandgropers, who picked a side to make the most of the wide open spaces of Bendigo Bank Stadium. But the Croweaters' class was quick to shine through as they piled on the pain for the host, with veteran forward Adam Merrett leading the way with six majors.

Nine of the visitors registered on the scoresheet with Wade Hancock, Myles Warmington, Ben McIntyre and Campbell Combe all resigetering multiple majors. Eastern Ranges star Jack Kenny backed up his Player of the SA Country Championships with a best afield performance for the SA team, earning the Barry Stringer Medal. South Gambier's Brett O'Neil, United Yeelana's Casey Carr, RSMU's Zack Hier and prolific forwards Merrett (Penola) and Nick Mott (Noarlunga) were also strong contributors.The victory was the second time in three years SA has triumphed over the Sandgropers on foreign soil under the tutelage of coach Steve Lubcke, with the other victory earned at Alberton Oval last year.

SA Country 19.12 (130)
WA Country 6.12 (48)

*above taken from SANFL website, written by Zac Milbank.


Next weekend in Round 16...

Saturday August 1
Woodville-West Torrens vs. South Adelaide; Maughan Thiem Hyundai Oval, Woodville @ 1:10pm
Port Adelaide vs. Central District; Alberton Oval @ 2:10pm
West Adelaide vs. Sturt; City Mazda Stadium, Richmond @ 2:10pm
Norwood vs. Adelaide; Coopers Stadium, Norwood @ 2:10pm
North Adelaide vs. Glenelg; Prospect Oval @ 2:10pm

So until next weekend... see you at the Footy!
 

raboyle

Norm Smith Medallist
May 8, 2001
5,661
803
X Convenience Oval, Elizabeth
AFL Club
Adelaide
Other Teams
CDFC (SANFL), Port Melb (VFL)
BTW for those that come in to read these, I know I'm getting these write-ups in a little late, but my working conditions have recently changed and most times it means less stop-and-think time than I would like on a Monday evening.

Thanks folks.
 

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saintal

All Australian
Mar 29, 2007
937
711
Adelaide
AFL Club
St Kilda
Other Teams
South Adel, Portland, QPR, Penrith
Must be a concern for Westies that they can only attract 1,400 to a game when they're third on the ladder.

Crowds against the 'Ravens' (and Power) have been poor all season. Why go and watch such a match?

But yes, crowds across the entire league are a huge worry. Down 10% or so on last season (not that last season's were great either)
 

Great8

Brownlow Medallist
Apr 19, 2015
16,613
14,162
AFL Club
Essendon
Other Teams
Manchester United, Juventus,
Crowds against the 'Ravens' (and Power) have been poor all season. Why go and watch such a match?

But yes, crowds across the entire league are a huge worry. Down 10% or so on last season (not that last season's were great either)
Crowds will continue fall with the league in its current set up
 

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