EXERCEPTS courtesy of Brad Greenshields- Coffs Coast Advocate
North Coast 2.5 7.7 9.10 12.16 (88)
South Coast 2.1 4.4 6.6 8.6 (54)
GOALS
NC: Zacek 3, Dawes 2, Hooke 2, D Johnson, Schmidt, L Matthews, J O'Connor, Clarke
SC: Ellis 3, Richards 3, Herbert, O'Rourke
BEST
NC: Darby, Dawes, Clarke, Funston, Couzens
SC: Levy, Herbert, O'Rourke, Richards
Umpires: M Turner, Staniforth, Sodeau
North Coast kept their proud Interleague record in tact with a strong win over a competitive South Coast outfit by 34 points at BCU International Stadium.
After a scrappy first quarter where the home team wasted opportunities with some poor ball handling, North Coast took control with five second-quarter goals to two.
"We stopped fumbling and just started using the football a lot better especially in the middle," recounted North Coast captain, Darren Funston.
"We probably should've shut out the game in the first quarter when we had six or seven shots on goal but we just didnt kick straight."
"Once the forwards kicked some goals we were able to build some scoreboard pressure and were able to run away with it."
Funston was one of a quartet of players in the midfield that helped set up the win along with Mark Couzens and the captain's fellow North Coffs teammates Brad Giri and Sam Dawes (umpire's best on ground).
The player's player went to Grafton's Justin Darby who was a pillar of strength in defence.
"His closing speed was phenomenal," Funston said of Darby.
"Early on they really had a crack and he just repelled attack after attack."
South Coast were well served by Dan Herbert (midfield) and Simon Levy (defence), whilst Rodney Richards was the pick of the forwards chipping in with three goals.
In the second half, North Coast ran away with the contest and could've won by more if not for some more inaccurate goal conversion.
As Funston said, however, this was understandable given the lead-up to the clash.
"We haven't played a lot of footy or even been able to train together for the last few weeks," he said.
"If you look at the Sawtell and North Coffs guys (made up nearly three-quarters of the side) they haven't even played for three weeks, so it's hard."
Add to this, the side has been cruelled of preparation time given the consistent rain over the past few months in the area.
Funston also gave credit to the opposition.
"The South Coast guys have played a fair bit already this season so it was always going to be a battle, so it was a good effort to get the win," he said.
The North Coast's recent rep record bides well having only putting out one poor performance against the Black Diamond. Bar this, the area has gone from strength to strength, posting consistent wins against more difficult opposition over the years.
Last Modified on 09/06/2009 21:47