Sport
4 September, 2023
Trentham get it all together to score big win against Maldon
TRENTHAM 19.10 (124) def MALDON 10.10 (70) Trentham put it all together in their semi-final clash with Maldon on Sunday to record their highest score at Princes Park since the 2018 elimination final in their 54-point win. Eight goalkickers joined in...
TRENTHAM 19.10 (124) def MALDON 10.10 (70)
Trentham put it all together in their semi-final clash with Maldon on Sunday to record their highest score at Princes Park since the 2018 elimination final in their 54-point win.
Eight goalkickers joined in on the party as the Saints kicked 19 goals, and are set to take some good form into a mouthwatering clash with Harcourt in Saturday’s preliminary final, although it wasn’t without a fight from the Dons.
In particular, the first quarter was one where Maldon were able to keep the Saints honest. While Trentham had the run of play, kicking three goals from seven scoring shots, Maldon kicked two goals of their own to keep tabs on the game, trailing by just nine points at the first break.
It was the second quarter which proved a bit of a game breaker for Trentham, as they feasted on the Dons by kicking seven goals to just two in response, giving the Saints a 40-point lead.
To Maldon’s credit, they didn’t lie down in the third quarter, and enjoyed the better of the play as they kicked four goals. However, whenever Trentham were able to get it inside 50, they almost always got on the scoreboard, kicking four goals of their own to maintain a 37-point lead at the final change.
However, needing a response to bring some confidence into next week, the Saints were driven by Jake Keogh’s midfield grunt, kicking five goals to two in the last term to eventually run out comfortable winners.
Joel Cowan was a force to be reckoned with in midfield for three quarters, although the Saints will be sweating on his fitness as a big collision left him with a nasty cut on his lip early in the last term, and took no further part.
Alongside him, however, Ryan Thiesz was busy around the goalmouth, and was rewarded with four goals, while Keogh, Joel Dovaston, the always-busy Harrison Knight and Tristan Newman were also named in the best.
For Maldon, Tanner Bishop, Jordon Collins, Alex Farrow, Callum Buchanan, Brodie Leonard-Shannon and Adam Robinson were named in the best, with Leonard-Shannon rewarded for a good performance across the Maldon half-forward line with three goals.
Trentham coach Clive Raak was relieved to see his charges get back to their standard of football after being well-beaten by Carisbrook last week.
“We redeemed ourselves a little bit from last week, and we just wanted to put it behind us, and focus on how we have done it all year. There were signs that we did that. We put a lot of time in getting back into our structure during the week, which was good,” he said.
“We have a tall forward line, it was a bit off last week as they weren’t marking and playing behind the footy. However, we got a lot right this time.
“We stuck to our plan and it started going our way a bit. There are a couple of things we still need to concentrate on to get better for next week.”
Raak was complimentary of Keogh’s performance, having made a positional change during the season to give him more midfield time, while still hitting the scoreboard with ease.
“Jake was really good in the first 15-20 minutes and set the scene with his hardness at the contest. When he goes forward, he still managed to get two or three goals, which is so handy,” he said.
“The first 10 minutes set the tone for us in that last quarter for what we want going forward. Keogh was brilliant, getting his hands on it and giving it off, and we went forward heaps of times because of his work around the ball.
“We had a good mix through the inside and outside across midfield.”
Raak also praised Cowan for his work.
“Joel Cowan we believe has a loose tooth or a lip issue, so hopefully he will be fine, but again, he was outstanding,” he said.
Raak was also quick to praise Maldon for their game, which did trouble Trentham at times, particularly during the first and third terms.
“Maldon were fantastic. They kept having a crack, even though they were missing a couple of blokes. It didn’t help their cause, but we were happy with how we played in the end, all things considering. Take nothing away from Maldon,” he said.
The challenge of Harcourt, which has now won 25 consecutive games, now awaits Trentham, although the Saints have always provided a massive challenge for the Lions, with all of their last three meetings decided by no more than seven points.
Regardless of that, Raak believes the Saints need to be at their best all afternoon to get over the Lions.
“Harcourt are a very good team and are very well drilled. We have to play at our best to break them down. The way we played this semi-final, if we can bring that to Harcourt, we’re in the mix,” he said.
“We’ve been up and down a little bit with injuries all year, but we are finally getting a settled team at the right end. We’re probably still one or two players away that won’t make it back for the rest of the season, but regardless, we had a couple who have stepped up during the finals.”