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Game Day 1 - Group 4 reports - Ireland dominate, GB press, Timor-Leste shocked

  • Sunday, August 14 2011 @ 12:00 am ACST
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International Cup 2011

Group 4 had the honour of kicking off the first day of IC11 (along with Group 1 on the main oval) at Blacktown International Sportspark Sydney oval two (BISS2).  Warm weather (which didn't last all day) greeted the players which would've been to Timor-Leste's (East Timor's) liking, but the heat was soon on them in their debut as Great Britain quickly showed them the ropes.

There was no respite for the Crocs as they then took on number 4 seed and for many Cup favourite Ireland.  Fortunately the opening day format of 2 x 15 minute halves stopped some of the damage (although one Timor-Leste player was off to hospital with a suspected major shoulder injury).

The group then completed with the European neighbours clashing in what was a reasonable battle but Ireland's Warriors were a class above.

11am Great Britain vs Timor-Leste - report by Tobie Rhyman
 
The Great Britain Bulldogs came on to the field looking ready to take their first win but that didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the Timor Leste Crocs players, looking quick paced and with loud voices going into the warm up. However, as soon as the ball was bounce it was clear that the taller, more experienced Bulldogs were going to dominate the game.
 
The Bulldogs used long, penetrating kicks very effectively in the first half and the tall forward line managed to get some great marks and convert these into early goals for the Bulldogs. The Crocs per persistent though and made good on some mistakes on the Bulldogs’ half back line, surging through in numbers, but in the end they were swept up by the Bulldogs’ imposing back line. Later into the first half, the Bulldogs switched to a predominantly running style of play, which should have given Timor Leste some more opportunities, but with the fast Bulldogs bearing down, the players had a tendency to soccer the ball, rather than pass into space, and so the teams went into the half time break Timor Leste 0, Great Britain Bulldogs 7.3(45)
 
In the second half the Bulldogs kept up their passing play, pressing deep into the Timor Leste 50, but the Crocs showed some excellent defending, keeping the Bulldogs out. But their shorter kicks made it difficult to clear the ball outside their own 50, and anything that broke through was quickly collected and sent back into the danger zone by the Bulldogs’ half backs. But the Crocs pulled back into their own half and swarmed in numbers over the Bulldogs forwards, forcing a lot of mistakes. Couple with some errors from the Full forwards on what should have been straightforward kicks, and the Crocs kept the Bulldogs to 3 goals and 7 behinds in the second half. But size and superior skills won the game comfortably for the Bulldogs in the end.

 

  1/2 Final
Great Britain 7.4 (46) 10.10 (70)
Timor-Leste 0.0 (0) 0.0 (0)
 
 

Great Britain
Goal Kickers: T. Mercer 3, P. Harris , C. James , R. Ashman , L. Tarn , M. Todd , L. Matias , T. Judson
Best Players: L. Matias, W. Worthington, S. Walton, C. James, A. Trigg, T. Mercer


Timor-Leste:
Best Players: C. Britto, M. Afonso Ximenes, A. Soares De Jesus, I. Da Silva Amaral, N. Moniz Da Silva

 

 

12pm Ireland vs Timor-Leste - report by Troy Thompson

The Irish Warriors have kicked off their tournament with a 94 point win over the Timor Leste Crocodiles on BISS Oval 2.  In sunny conditions and with a slight breeze from the Northern end the Irish got off to a solid start with quick hands and hitting targets up forward.  Timor Leste learning from their first match were battling hard to spoil but the height advantage of the Irish shone out in both the ruck contests and the marking contests up forward.  Big man Clifford Richardson kicking two for Ireland.  The Irish going in at half time with a 54 point lead.

The second half saw the Timor boys fight even harder at every contest, tackling fiercely and refusing to give up.  Some better kicking may have seen the Irish further in front but they comfortably put on 44 points in the second half.  Sadly for the Crocs they've already accumulated some significant injuries.

Richmond’s Irish signing John Heslin kicked his first goal of the competition and for his country, and veteran John Enright kicked three goals for the quarter.  Timor Leste lost their full back Carlos due to injury which didn’t help his team’s cause.  Timor Leste had a chance to score after a 50 metre penalty put them 70 metres out from goal but strong rebounding play from the Irish denied them.

The Timorese will go through to Division Two having not won a game but their efforts so far suggest they should perform quite well against some of the other new footy nations.

 

  1/2 Final
Ireland 8.6 (54) 14.9 (93)
Timor-Leste 0.0 (0) 0.0 (0)

Ireland
Goal Kickers: J. Enright 3, J. Flavin , D. Shiels , M. Breathnach , G. Walls , K. O''Brien , J. Heslin , C. Richardson , N. McDonagh , J. Tierney
Best Players: J. Heslin, D. McElhone, J. Flavin, J. Cunnane, J. Tierney, K. O''Brien

Timor-Leste
Best Players: N. Moniz Da Silva, A. Agapito Maria Guterres Da Costa, C. Britto, M. Tavares Pires, H. Brandao

 

 

1pm Ireland vs Great Britain - report by Tobie Rhyman

The teams looked evenly matched for size coming onto the ground, but the Irish Warriors are a hard team to beat and though the Great British Bulldogs have played them many times now, they haven’t been able to match the Warriors for skills and style before.
 
The Warriors came out strong from the start, with impressive kicking and accurate handballing. Their style quickly broke through the Bulldogs ranks and they took first blood, but the Bulldogs came fighting back, surging forward when they got possession and flying in to smother the Warriors kicks. There was a fierce fight in midfield for a while, where both teams struggled to break down the opposition back line, and frustrations either side resulted in a few high tackles and pushes. Eventually the Bulldogs managed to break through, snatching a goal back from the Warriors. However, the Bulldogs’ momentum was short lived and the Irish came back immediately, and got another goal before the siren went for half time.
 
The second half started much the same as the first with both teams battling it out in the midfield, but despite playing two games in a row, the Warriors’ spirit paid off and they began to break down the Great Britain opposition and came to clearly dominate the game. Mid way through the second half, one of the taller Bulldogs players, Anthony Trigg, had to be helped off after straining his knee, and after that the pressure became too much for the Bulldogs. The Warriors showed their true the second half, calm, composed, with penetrating kicks upfield, impressive marking and accurate shots on goal from around  the 50m line, something the Bulldogs have been unable to match today. They fought on bravely but were unable to stop the superior Irish from running away with the game.
 

  1/2 Final
Ireland 2.1 (13) 8.6 (54)
Great Britain 1.0 (6) 1.0 (6)


Ireland
Goal Kickers: M. Carey 2, J. Enright , K. O'Brien , G. Walls , F. Purcell , N. McDonagh , C. Richardson
Best Players: B. Nannery, J. Cunnane, D. McElhone, M. Carey, F. Purcell, P. Sharry

Great Britain
Goal Kickers: C. James
Best Players: W. Worthington, P. Harris, L. Matias, S. Walton, B. McGeever, C. James