TATHRA’S endeavour at the ball and play style on Saturday was more what fans have come to expect, veteran Luke Taylor said.
The visiting Sea Eagles went down 105-40, but fought hard for the ball and played their heart out.
“It wasn’t about the result, but the effort for us,” Taylor said.
“The effort was a totally different situation [to last week] – the boys had a ball, went out with freedom and enjoyed it.”
Taylor said the side was young and inexperienced, but showed plenty of talent.
“If we can keep these young kids and keep developing them then we have a bright future as a club.
“We were in the game for about three quarters and our running game was right up.”
Conditions were still a little wet and condensed play, which sometimes became scrappy.
However, Taylor was stunned by the effort from some of the Sea Eagles’ newest recruits.
“I thought Matt McCambridge battled hard, he’s one of our young guns,” Taylor said.
“Tyler Rose in the middle in his first year and then Jack Hukins and Bayden Pilbeam up front.
“They competed and worked tirelessly all day long, that was a real highlight for me.”
Another standout was Ryan Dakis, who was tasked with shutting down Merimbula goal kicker Ian Radford in the second half.
The Merimbula forward normally tops the scoring charts, but Taylor said Dakis’s efforts cut him to just one major in the second period.
“All those guys are going to be really good players if we can get them back next year,” Taylor said.
It is a vastly different landscape for the Sea Eagles from two years ago when they became four-time premiership winners.
The club is rebuilding and Taylor isn’t looking at this year’s finals, but just developing the side and its future potential.
“The fact is we are not that side from a few years ago anymore,” he said.
“These young guys have skill and attributes to play the game, but we’re a long way from worrying about winning more flags.
“But give it a couple of years and tathra will be back where we belong and we hope that keeps bringing these guys back for more.”
Jacob McMaster
Last Modified on 20/07/2015 11:49