Sport
2 May, 2024
Magpies out to tame Dragons
While it was a first loss for the season for Maryborough last week, they showed they had the capabilities of matching it at times with a powerhouse in A reserve. They’ll have a chance to do it again on home turf tomorrow against Sandhurst. The...
While it was a first loss for the season for Maryborough last week, they showed they had the capabilities of matching it at times with a powerhouse in A reserve. They’ll have a chance to do it again on home turf tomorrow against Sandhurst.
The Magpies may have lost by 23 goals against Gisborne last Saturday afternooon, but they showed during the middle two quarters they can compete strongly with the Bulldogs, who were grand finalists in 2023.
In those second and third quarters, the Magpies were outscored by seven goals, including just one in the second quarter, where they successfully held the Bulldogs to just six goals.
However, it was the first and last quarters where most of the damage was done, losing both quarters by eight goals.
Still, there were positives.
Maryborough’s scoring output continued to improve as the day went on, and were able to score 19 goals in the second half, with the Megan Kelly and Jordan MacIlwain combination still working very well. Kelly scored 15 goals, while MacIlwain scored 16.
The young midcourt combination has not been overawed by any challenger so far in the early part of the season, and that was the case again on Saturday as they held their own for long passages of play.
Sandhurst will be a challenge in itself, but if early results are anything to go by, the Magpies will be in for the fight.
Like the Magpies, the Dragons have played both Gisborne and Kangaroo Flat, defeating the Kangaroos narrowly, while losing to the Bulldogs.
Both teams are scoring at around the same clip — 43 goals a game — in the early stages of the season, while also likewise conceding 44 goals a game. On paper, it’s a match up that appears as even as it gets.
Elsewhere at the club, it’s a big challenge for the Magpies’ B grade and B reserve teams this weekend as they continue to seek drought-breaking victories.
The B grade was unable to get into gear against Gisborne, losing 70-15, and it was a similar story for B reserve, who lost 94-18.
However, the 17 and under game looks set to be a blockbuster, with both teams remaining unbeaten throughout the early stages of the season.
Last week’s six-goal victory over Gisborne was an incredibly satisfying result, given the Bulldogs’ status as a recent powerhouse of the competition, which included back to back premierships in 2022 and 2023.
Another win against the grand finalists of last year would go a long way to cementing the Magpies’ status as a potential challenger in 2024.