By TOBIE CHAPMAN
A 67-POINT victory at West Coburg has seen Greenvale leap into third position following the last round of the Strathmore Community Bank Premier Division season.
The Jets led all day in a comprehensive victory with their finals spot on the line, winning 19.19-133 to 9.12-66 at Coburg City Oval.
Greenvale’s midfield controlled proceedings to set up the win along with a five goal haul from small forward Addam Maric.
It was a game that the Jets could not take lightly, as a loss would see them drop out of finals with the winner of the Maribyrnong Park v Essendon Doutta Stars clash taking their spot.
They started brightly, kicking the first four goals of the game. Greenvale were stretching the Burgers’ defence with Trent Shinners and Matt Smith starting forward, supported by Jacob Thompson and Addam Maric.
Thompson’s strength was causing trouble for Abdul Saad, consistently beating him in the air and at ground level. By quarter time he’d kicked a goal and set up two more for Maric.
West Coburg fought their way back in time on, Tom McMillan kicking their first and Danko Bzenic kicking a late goal to reduce the margin to two goals.
Rain started to fall late in the term and strengthened during the break, making conditions slippery.
Both sides struggled to acclimatise early in the second even as the rain eased and goals were hard to come by.
Greenvale began to find their feet again as their midfield brigade began to dominate, even in the absence of big man Fabian Deluca.
West Coburg’s only goal came midway through the term as the Jets kicked 5.6. Tempers began to flare as West Coburg felt the game slipping away, with umpires struggling to control some of the aggression.
Jacob Thompson continued to cause havoc, as he added another two goals to his tally.
Nick Lower was shining, finding the ball in every corner of the ground. Josh Smith and Fort Caruso were also prolific, while Chris Spinella was dangerous both in the midfield and the forward line.
The start of the second half saw West Coburg lift their intensity, taking advantage of a Jets side perhaps feeling a little complacent.
They kicked the first three goals of the term and the Jets clearly felt the pressure, making a number of uncharacteristic mistakes as the lead shrunk to 20 points.
Ruairi Cleary was threatening up forward, kicking his first of the day. Tom Baravi, Jack Yelland and Marwan Abdulwahed began putting in improved performances through the midfield.
Greenvale soon showed their class though, stemming the flow and halting the momentum. Addam Maric was set up by a penetrating kick from Jacob Thompson to push the margin back out.
Tensions again began to simmer, and soon after erupted. Omar Saad caught his opponent holding the ball deep in the defensive pocket. After receiving the free kick, he pushed his opponent to the ground, resulting in a reversal of the free kick.
Greenvale took exception to Saad’s actions, a number of players rushing in to remonstrate. An ugly brawl quickly erupted, the majority of the players on the ground involved.
In the midst of the action, Greenvale added another goal to their tally to extend the margin back out to 36 points.
Despite Digby Morrell’s words of encouragement at three-quarter time, the Burgers looked listless in the last quarter.
Greenvale opened the game up, piling on seven goals to three to win comfortably. West Coburg’s accuracy in front of goal did them no favours, as they kicked a poor 3.6 to finish off the day.
It was a strong and convincing performance by the Jets, and after an unconvincing finish to the season it was the boost they needed heading into the first week of finals.
WEST COBURG | 9.12-66
Goal Kickers: D. Bzenic 2, R. Cleary 2, S. Mete, J. Gloury, M. Abdulwahed, O. Saad, T. McMillan
Best Players: R. Cleary, J. Yelland, M. Abdulwahed, T. Baravi, S. Mete, A. Kelly
GREENVALE | 19.19-133
Goal Kickers: A. Maric 5, C. Spinella 3, M. Smith 3, J. Thompson 3, F. Caruso 2, S. Brewer, T. Shinners, D. Micevski
Best Players: N. Lower, A. Maric, J. Smith, C. Spinella, S. Zumbo, F. Caruso
