Central Blues Australian Football Club

The Central Blues looked to avenge their round four 48 point defeat to the Toronto Eagles as a proper send-off for six of its club members departing for Australia to represent Canada's Northwind in the Aussie Rules International Cup. Unfortunately dominant individual Eagle performances and missed Blue opportunities found the good guys fall 87-56.

The day would see much needed reinforcements for the calvary with the debuts of Irishman Dave Mannion, 17 year old Albertan John Fairbrother, and Aussie recruit Nigel Rogasch. As each team lined up for the umpires, some unfortunate planning for the Blues' Family Day found some of the named side just walking up to the grounds, who were only saved by a deflated pill slightly delaying the ball up.

A much drier affair at Humber South compared to their last outing, the Eagles came out on the front foot first, immediately converting off the opening centre clearance. Blues' attacks were repelled at the half-forward line and the Eagles kept delivering when it counted, kicking a true 5.0 in the quarter. Closing in on the first siren, the Blues managed to get on the scoreboard when, as he went to ground in a tackle, Damien "Damo" McDonald handballed off to Derek "George" MacDonald for a running goal from 20m out.

For added forward line mobility, the second quarter saw ruckman Jacob Sone swap positions with full forward Rob "Chaps" Chapman. This decision allowed a more dynamic offensive structure just as it had three weeks prior in a victory over the Toronto Rebels. But as a sign of things to come, prospective scoring chances were for naught as the Blues kicked 1.5 with the lone major coming off the boot of Daniel "Willsy" Wills.

Half-time found the Blues effort in the right place, but execution and communication were lacking to cause a six goal deficit. The main scoreboard catalyst after the long break was Jacob's ferocious tackling in the forward 50, amping up his form for the International Cup as he intimidated on each attempted Eagles possession. He kicked his first of three set shot goals on the day, each rewarded for his tackles causing holding-the-ball offenses, and was unlucky to not find himself rewarded several more. Willsy added his second goal using his shifty ruckrover quickness all over the oval and Kien "Keno" La was making midfield interceptions and headturning handballs, allowing the Blues to stay even in the third, but still down 33 points at the final break.

Some tired legs left the final term a series of fast moving passages, with the Blues getting most of the ball. Irish Dave was flashing his speed and repeatedly putting up contests no matter the size of his opponents, a big leap ahead for someone with only a few AFL training sessions under his belt. Rookie Barry "Bazza" Tabacznik impressed by contributing to scoring plays, once with an effective handball disposal that lead to a goal assist and another, a shepherd that freed up Damo to kick his first of two. Damo's second would come from a play-on sharp angle at the right pocket boundary 25m out off his natural left boot, while Jacob added his two other set shot goals. In the backline, Steve "Snorkel" Rutledge was running & carrying and switching plays while also locking down big target Oliver "Ollie" Hayward to zero majors. Kenny Wong was also playing one of his best of the year, swapping between half-back and half-forward roles for some effective disposals.

In spite of all the positives, the Eagles' Mark Van Gelder was turning back the clock with a dominant eight goal performance that the Blues backline couldn't find the answers to. Dan "D2" Lock's physical contested presence still kept his goal tally from reaching outlandish levels via some timely spoils but the frustration of being unable to shut down this forward threat lead to Bruce Parker receiving a red card for striking that will most certainly result in him missing the remainder of the season. No matter who was kicking goals for the Eagles, the Blues got plenty of play on opportunities in the forward 50. In a flashback to the Ottawa game a month prior, woeful kicking found at least four wide open goals missed within 30m. They had only one less scoring shot but the Eagles' superior conversation rate got them over the line 87-56.

The day also acted as a going-away party for six of the Blue boys heading to Australia for the next three weeks to participate in the International Cup. Representing Canada's Northwind team from the Central Blues will be Kien La, Jared Postance, Steve Rutledge, Jacob Sone, Kenny Wong, and Ewan Williams. They'll be joined by other Canadian residents that made the cut from Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, and British Columbia, along with Victor "Ocho" Cinco, a 2010 Blues rookie whom has been playing this year with the Under-19 side in Melbourne, Victoria for the VAFA's Hampton Rovers. We wish the best of luck to Northwind as they look to take on the world and improve on their 6th place finish in 2008.

Blues Best: Daniel Wills, Kien La, Jacob Sone, Kenny Wong, Nigel Rogasch, Dave Whittington
Blues Goals: Jacob Sone (3), Daniel Wills (2), Damien McDonald (2), Derek MacDonald
Match Day Staff: Molly Gamble, Renee Tong, Sherelle Kelly-Witt

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