Brave Bears get within a whisker

Goalkickers: W Thomson 2, J Irvine 2, A Psaltiras 2, A Miller 2, A Ford, T Green.

Best: J Irvine, W Thomson, S Ferguson, A Miller, J Holcombe, A Psaltiras.

Unfortunately, the Bears are making a habit of being on the wrong side of the ledger at the final siren.

Losing the toss for the seventh time in eight weeks, the Bears were kicking against the wind in the opening quarter.

Addy Psaltaris was on fire early, laying a massive tackle and kicking truly to give the Bears a one-point lead at quarter time. Brady Hayes was a welcome inclusion into the side and was dominant early. As was Andy Miller, playing as a true centre half forward and taking the game on at every opportunity.

Kicking with the wind in the second quarter the boys were not able to capitalise on their opportunities, scoring 1.3 unlike the deadeye Jerilderie who kicked 3.1 in the quarter and took a nine-point buffer into the major break.

The Bears defenders did a commendable job in the third quarter, repelling a lot of inside-50 entries.

Kicking with the wind in the last quarter the Bears needed something special to eradicate the 15-point deficit. Jim Irvine rose to the moment, slotting a massive bomb from 50m out. Then Tyler Green bobbed up and slotted his first for the day, cutting the margin to four points with two minutes to play.

Unfortunately, despite some desperate efforts, the Bears were unable to get their necks in front before the final siren.

Awards: W Thomson - One Zach, J Arnold - Mulwala Water Ski Club, O Connell - Hicks Butchery.

Reserves

Tungamah 4.4, 7.6, 12.15, 19.19.133

Jerilderie 0.0, 0.1, 0.1, 0.2.22

Goalkickers: T Hayes 5, M Bourke 5, D O'Brien 2, J Williams 2, J Jones, M Goldman, S Kellock, D Payne, J Costigan.

Best: J Costigan, J Jones, M Hughes, D Murray, D O'Brien.

The generational gap was never more apparent than Saturday, as the old analogue boys sent out numerous requests for the 11 o’clock tap in the ruck … but obviously that falls elsewhere on the digital watch as Coffey got the first hand to a lot, putting them anywhere on the clock face.

Goldie still remains adamant that he took a hanger, despite the only bloke to reportedly see it being a fourths kids sporting what looked like a paid-off number of lollies. Nevertheless, he’s confident he would have cleared 30cm and is processing an application to be our full-time full forward - his instrumental 1.3 almost certainly clinched the game for the ‘lunch time legends’.

Wasn’t it great to see the two coaches back out on the park. ‘Rangi’, even with one leg and limited training, wouldn’t have lost much value in the B ‘n’ F odds. I’m not saying he is better than you, but I’m not-not saying it either. Whilst his counterpart Patches was like a gazelle at full forward … an older gazelle, possibly with early onset arthritis, and may have been clipped by a Land Rover.

I assume the captain was out the back, finalising his multi, when the coaches made their address to the players to focus on being clean below the knees and not fumbling the ball. I guarantee I’ve seen better hands on a snake.

But with the game in the balance late and some deep entrances into the Demons forward line, you need a man that is cool in a crisis, that has ice pumping in his veins to hold the team together - I don’t think anyone could question why C Johnson was given the mug for best on. The bloke was pivotal in his lockdown roll.

Under 17s

Tungamah 2.3, 5.9, 9.12, 11.14.80

Jerilderie 1.0, 1.1, 3.3, 5.3.33

Goalkickers: J Walker 4, Z Bramich 3, M Beer 3, N Dickins.

Best: B Grant, L Walls, A Walker, B Krywyn, N Dickins, L Lonergan.

The boys were keen to take on Jerilderie but started the game off running at half-strength. They managed to secure a couple of goals with Jerilderie scoring one as well.

As the coach told them at quarter-time, the boys needed to focus on lowering their eyes and locking onto their opponents.

The second quarter saw the boys making some solid plays with Sam demonstrating some good shepherding and Kade's constant attack of the ball contributing to the pressure. The boys still weren't playing at full capacity.

Into the third quarter, the boys went back to the systems they worked on at training. Focusing on building the wall, bringing the talk up and staying on their man. Jerilderie's midfielders were strong and proving a battle for our onballers, with Jerilderie's ruckman winning most of the tap outs.

But the boys finished the game off strongly with Lenny working hard in centre-half-forward and Aaron controlling the ball.

Awards: N Dickins - Doyles Sock; L Lonergan - Coaches Award; B. Krywyn - Credit Union; A Walker - Yarrawonga Automotive; L Walls - Hemphill Award.

Under 14s

Tungamah 2.5, 8.6, 12.8, 14.15.99

Jerilderie 1.1, 2.1, 4.2, 5.2.32

Goalkickers: T Ussher 5, B Doyle 3, J Bamford 2, L O'Brien 2, Z Ussher, C Payne.

Best: T Ussher, L O'Brien, B Doyle, J Bamford, S Goudie, T Saunders.

The first quarter this week proved to be a tough tussle, as a much smaller Jerilderie team came out strongly. However, Tungamah ended up with a slim lead at quarter-time.

The Bears kicked it up a notch in the second quarter and produced some pretty spectacular goal kicking. It must’ve been the Ussher’s day out with both TJ and Zade putting on quite a show in the forward line.

TJ gave Eddie Betts a run for his money as goal after goal just kept going through. The ball was certainly bouncing Tunga’s way this week, as quite a few snaps dribbled their way through the big sticks.

Our boys just kept on tearing away from Jerilderie and had a very convincing lead. Aside from the win, the big highlight of the day had to be the selfless actions displayed by the older kids, led by Chase as he distributed the ball around well to the younger lads. There should definitely be some proud parents out there.

Awards: T. Ussher - Bamford Builders, L. O’Brien - Mulwala Golf Club, Z. Ussher - Intents Fishing, S. Goudie - Doyle Sock, B.Krywyn - Rich Glen.

Netball

A Grade

Tungamah 43 defeated Jerilderie 29

We started out slightly different with the return of Carly from injury. The girl’s first quarter started slowly, only being up by a goal at the first break.

But we came out firing in the second quarter with the goaler utilising the space that was given by Jerilderie’s defence, shooting 16 goals. The defenders wanted to be a part of the game, taking intercepts down the entire court with Amy stepping back into WD and having a best on performance.

The girls held Jerilderie to three goals in the third, helping increase our lead. You would not have known Carly had been out for a couple of weeks, slotting back into goals and doing exactly what was asked of her.

The last quarter saw Grace Whitelock take to court for the first time in A Grade, showing all her hard work throughout the season had been worth it. Fantastic game by all the girls - was great to come away with the win.

Awards: A Perry - Miss Dolly; C. Gamble - Yarrawonga Pilates.

B Grade

Tungamah 55 defeated Jerilderie 29

The girls got off to an excellent start, best of the season, and led by a commanding 23 at the conclusion of the first quarter.

Their ball movement on the court was exceptional with the goalies showcasing their skills.

The defenders demonstrated their usual solid performance, while Ellie Buerckner seamlessly integrated into the team as if she had been playing with the girls throughout the entire season.

Awards: K Wilkinson - Free As A Bird; I Connell - Miss Dolly.

C Grade

Tungamah 67 defeated Jerilderie 37

A sunny day greeted the Bears at Jerilderie to take on the Demons. A very strong team performance across the court. Leading by 10 at the first break the team never looked back, taking out the win by 30 goals.

Several new combinations were used as we welcomed Chelsea to C Grade and every player did what the coach asked of them.

Players’ Player was tied between Hannah Moore and Nat Howard, with Hannah taking out a fiercely contested game of rock-paper-scissors for the Free as a Bird Award. Sharelle Vella was awarded the Rich Glen award and Tayla Bate the Yarrawonga Pilates.

C Reserve

Tungamah 42 defeated Jerilderie 25

The girls started off slow but soon picked up the pace and took off running.

The teamwork was amazing right across the court and perfect defensive pressure all over!

The hard work is paying off – keep it up, girls!

Awards: T Whiting – Intersport; J Ralph - Ricky D’s; K Vella - Rich Glen.

Under 17s

Tungamah 38 defeated Jerilderie 28

The girls started out slowly with Jerilderie shooting the first couple of goals. But they quickly switched on and started to play our game.

Again, the goalers continue to work on their connections - improving more and more each week, looking for each other in the ring before looking out is starting to pay off.

The defenders were fantastic in the ring: holding their ground and contesting the ball; getting some great intercepts and turnovers.

The girls continued to extend their lead over the entire game, with everyone taking the court and contributing to the win.

Awards: L Burns – Rich Glen; B Hodgson - $10 Credit Union.

Under 15s

Tungamah 47 defeated Jerilderie 28

Our ladies started the game a little sluggish against the Demons. The quarter-time speech by Coach Tahnee must have been very inspirational, because they came out in the second term and - for the rest of the game - switched on and played their style of netball.

The play flowed up and down the court with lots of second-hand drives and defensive pressure. Elli took some remarkable intercepts and Em was a wall of defensive pressure

Awards: Elli Buerckner - CMCU Players’ Player; Em Buerckner - Tungamah Shop.

Under 13s

Tungamah 22 defeated Jerilderie 3

The team was back together this week, all girls were full of smiles and excited for another game of netball.

This week we focused on taking our time with the ball as it made its way down the court, as well as strong leads. The girls played a great game, a full team effort with positive attitudes and playing our style led to a win. Go Bears!

Awards: A Kelly - Bamford Builders; E Attwood - Yarra Fish and Chips; L Payne - Rich Glen.

Under 11s

The girls had another great game this week against Jerilderie - although we were unable to do a proper training due to the bad weather, the girls did not let that stop them.

The girls took onboard everything they were told during the short breaks and put it into play on the court. Great job, girls!

Awards: Sophie - Tungamah Shop, Charlotte - Rich Glen.