Tongala snares win over Hawks

Early signs weren’t good for Tonny as the Hawks were quicker to adapt to gloomy conditions, grabbing a two-goals-to-one lead at quarter-time.

Tongala made a move in the second, drawing things level at four goals each, but Barooga held a narrow half-time lead courtesy of minor scores 4.6 (30) to 4.4 (28).

The team talk at the major break worked for the Blues and they were able to maintain the ascendancy they held in the second quarter into the third, kicking four more goals to the Hawks’ two.

Tonnys’ defence stepped up in the final term, restricting Barooga to a single behind, quashing any hopes of a comeback and securing a 10.6 (66) to 6.10 (46) win.

“They came out quite early and adjusted to the conditions probably quicker than what we did,” said Tongala coach Billy Barnes.

“We were able to fix up a few things and work on how we wanted to try and move the ball and adjust to the conditions and then control the ball a little bit more coming into the second half.”

In a focused scoring effort, Sam Cipriani (4) and Matthew Caia (3) had good days out in front of goal, while Jordan Souter (2) and Bryce Denham (1) provided solid support.

The Blues welcomed the return of captain Kyle Fitzgerald, who had been out with injury since back in round six.

“He gives us heaps; around stoppages, (and) around the ground,” Barnes said.

“He’s our captain for a reason; he’s a great vocally and he collects a fair bit of (the ball) as well.

“He makes our midfielder group a lot better just because he gives them first use, sets them up, and his communication is second to none too, so it was great to have him back.”

Fitzgerald was named among the best for the Blues and there were a number of other impressive performances across the ground for Tongala.

“Jordan Souter was again a clear standout, and he’s been great for us all year, but in those kinds of conditions, sometimes it’s hard to find something in certain areas of the game, but he was able to find a lot of it,” Barnes said.

“I thought our defenders defended really well as well at times because Barooga definitely had momentum at different parts of the game and we were able to shut them down and defend really well.”

Barnes also singled out strong games from Alex Williams, Angus Scoble, Charlie Angley, Riley Clarke, Sam Cipriani, and his best-on-ground Billy McClay.

Tongala will face off with Mulwala next weekend before taking a week off in a split round 16.