Denver Tournament

The bulldogs started the first game a little slowly. KC/OC applied some outstanding pressure around the ball and the bulldogs were slow in adjusting to this. However, after the first five minutes the Bulldogs lifted and started to get on top. The midfield started to find a bit more of the ball and a bit more space to allow quicker movement of the ball. Despite having countless inside 50m entries we were unable to apply scoreboard pressure. It was also around this time that we lost Fedds with a hamstring and Willi with some seized up quads (to Willi’s credit he played another 10 – 15 minutes more of the game). After about the 10 minute mark, the Bulldogs really started to get on top. With Casey grabbing everything in sight and Tait and Ben harling applying fantastic pressure around the ball, the Bulldogs started to kick away. We finished the first half 5.2-32 to KC/OC 2.0-12.

The second half started with the bulldogs showing a lot more intent and want for the football. The midfield started to win clearances and the defense started to provide some serious run and carry. Timmy was again magnificent across the half back line marking anything that came his way. Andy, Dom, Pete, Jeff and Candy provided multiple forward 50 entries with a willingness to run and provide an extra. This was extremely pleasing as it’s something the side had been working on over the last few weeks. The forward line again showed some real intent to ensure the ball would not be coming out. This lead to multiple shots at goals. Despite some inaccurate set shots overall, the forward line worked well together. The game finished with a win to the Bulldogs 9.9-62 to 2.2-14.

Game 2 – Denver 2 vs. KC/OC

The second game was an opportunity for a lot of new guys to play their first game of Australian Rules football. It was encouraging to see a lot of AussieBall players making the transition to the full contact game. We also had a host of new players to the game that finally got to put everything that they had learnt in training in to game day. The Bulldogs 2 team was a little slow out the box with some costly skill errors resulting in scoring shots for KC/OC. However, to the Bulldog’s credit they just kept fighting and fighting to ensure it was close at half time. The Bulldogs trailed by 5 points at the half time break.

The second half was all Bulldogs, allowing only 3 forward entries for the whole second half. The twin towers in Nick and Nick up forward were proving more than a handful for the KC/OC defense. They managed to mark everything and anything that was in a 5m radius. The ruck work of Mike, a first year player, was particular pleasing, and he provided multiple opportunities for the midfield to get first hands on the ball. He also managed to sneak forward and take a fantastic contested mark and finish it with a goal. Overall the final score did not reflect the dominance of the Bulldog’s team. The end score was pleasing however with the Bulldogs coming away with a 2 point victory. 4.2-26 to 3.10-28. A fantastic effort considering only 5 or 6 players had ever played a game at national’s level. This game proved that the depth is quite remarkable for the Bulldogs.

See photos from games 1 and 2 on Facebook

Game 3 – Denver 1 vs. Denver 2

The third game saw the two Denver teams face off against each other. Despite already playing two games, some KC/OC boys decided to join the fun and have a run around. This game was played more like an internal trial than a full-on game. It allowed for a little bit more tinkering of the game plan and also more time to adjust to a new way of playing. Denver 1 was again outstanding throughout the game and came away with an easy victory in this game 13.6-84 to 1.2-8.

Women’s Metro Game

The women’s “non-contact” game quickly evolved into a “plenty of contact but no tackling” game that involved a high standard of play, was fun and excellent preparation for up-coming tournaments. The two rucks (Tracy and Hallie) contested gamefully throughout and the two full-forwards (Kate and Lindsay) proved useful targets. The game was close throughout and all players competed strongly at every opportunity. With relative newcomers Jamie, Emily, Kate, Jordan, Stacy, Abby and Lisa all getting amongst it, it was awesome to see a new batch of quality players joining the Bulldogs ranks. The score could hardly have been any closer, with the red/blue team eventually pulling ahead and winning 7.7.49 to 6.7.43 over the black team. Thanks to Beth for traveling out from OC and playing a great game!

See photos from the women’s metro game on Facebook

A final word from Ryno

Overall as a coaching staff the day went to script. The games were played in fantastic spirit and that’s a credit to all involved. A massive thank you to our three umpires on the day Rich, Wads and Timmy. Also a massive thank you to everybody who either helped to set up or pack up at the end of the day. We all know how easy it is when we have a lot of people helping.

Enjoy your summer break and I look forward to everybody coming back fit and ready to go on the 31st July. Remember that’s only 11 weeks to nationals.

Source: DenverBulldogs.org