Outmuscled and outgunned, Roosters look to rebound

A PROMPT bounce back is front of mind for North Ballarat coach Clint Proctor as his side prepares for top-of-the-ladder Sebastopol this Saturday following a disappointing loss to Ballarat.

The Roosters were simply outmuscled and out-pressured in a 59-point loss at Alfredton Recreation Reserve as the Swans clinically asserted their dominance.

While the margin was only 11 points at half-time, the Roosters almost looked to be treading water, with the Swans threatening to break the game open.

They eventually did with a commanding eight-goal-to-one third quarter to lead by 52 points at the final change.

Proctor was left to bemoan the fact the Roosters could never get the game on their terms and were for the most part smashed around the contest.

“When we spoke at half-time, we felt this game doesn’t feel good, but we are close, so we made a few changes,” he said. “I thought we started the third quarter well with some good ball movement and a few good looks inside 50m but then they kicked a few goals to get a bit of momentum and we couldn’t peg it back.

“We really struggled in the midfield and our inability to get the right layers and players around the footy.

“We need to work on that over the next month and tidy that up. That was pretty evident today.

 

“I thought we were beaten inside.”

A costly loss saw the Roosters slip to fourth on the ladder, one win behind Darley following the Devils’ come-from-behind win over Sunbury, but still two games clear of Bacchus Marsh and three of Melton and Sunbury.

That gap could close if the Roosters can’t find a way to rebound against the pace-setting Burra.

Proctor paid full credit to the Swans and their intensity and work-rate.

“Their clearance and handball game and ability to find a mark out of that was elite,” he said.

“Really difficult to manage.

“We had trouble all day at the stoppages.

“We tried a few things, but we need to really look at where it broke down as they were just too good in there.”

Proctor said the additions of former AFL midfielder Brad Crouch and standout Central Highlands ruckman Patrick Graham had undoubtedly strengthened the Swans around the contest.

“They are going to be in it for a long way, Ballarat, and looking at it for what it is, them and Sebas could potentially pull away from everyone,” she said.

“But it doesn’t take much for the pressure to come on.

“There’s a long way to go and a lot that can happen.”

Missing key components of their midfield rotation, Proctor said crunch time was nearing for the Roosters to come up with as settled a unit as possible.

 

“We are going to have to find a balance and potentially stick with it,” he said.

“I have been rolling a lot of different players through there, so maybe we are just going to have to settle on one or two and work on them.

“The good thing with these two weeks (Ballarat and Sebastopol), we are going to get a really good look at where we are at and from there see if we can make a run at it.”

North Ballarat will certainly have their work cut out for them.

In a quirk of the draw, the Roosters were beaten by 59 points by Sebastopol only a month ago in round 7.

They will be without defender Isaac Lovison (hamstring) and Harvey Lewis (concussion), both casualties from Saturday.

Dom Penny, who has fast become the Roosters’ most dependable and important player, again led the way against the Swans.

Fellow youngsters Taj Bowman and Oscar Stone could also hold their heads high, while Seb Collins again battled hard.