Modda’s finals push travels to Shell Road

MODEWARRE’S 2023 season comes to a crossroad this round when it heads to Shell Road Reserve this Saturday, July 29 in what could prove to be the club’s biggest game of the season.

Warriors co-coaches Chris Carlon and Tom Hornsey’s (playing coach) side can stand alone in fourth place on the Bellarine Football League (BFL) ladder with a win over Ocean Grove.

A win would coincide with likely losses by fourth-placed Anglesea and fifth-placed Geelong Amateur, as the respective sides take on reigning premier Barwon Heads and undefeated Torquay in Round 16.

“We’d like to win our remaining three games, we don’t really want to rely on other results if we can help it heading into finals potentially,” Carlon said.

Modewarre’s run of form over the past two months dates back to the side’s 68-point win (58-126) over Newcomb.

Including its Round 8 win over the Power, Modewarre has won six out of its last eight games and now finds itself two points out of the top five.

“We’ve changed our attitude to getting the contested football and being able to do most of our damage on the inside, which is where we’ve been getting most of our results from,” Carlon said.

“We made four changes in our last game against Portarlington and the addition of Tom Bartlett from Geelong Falcons the last couple of weeks has also made a difference.

“I’d say we’re almost at full fitness, a couple soft tissue injuries here and there.”

The Warriors’ forward line was on full display against the Demons in Round 15, led by Connor Joseph’s seven goals, sliding him into eighth on the goal-kicking leaderboard (39 goals).

Hornsey’s two-goal brace pushed his season tally up to 43 goals, currently sixth amongst the BFL’s best.

“Tom and Connor are two great footballers in their own rights, and they complement each other,” Carlon said.

“Tom’s obviously the taller of the two, which means he gets a lot of attention, sometimes a little bit too much from week to week, but he’s a big, strong guy and he can kick goals from pretty much anywhere.

“Connor is just a smart player in the air and on the ground, and when he gets his opportunities, he doesn’t miss.

“You could also include Scott Hughes, whose kind of our forgotten man at times, and Thomas Worpel as well. We’ve got a good balance at the moment.”

Modewarre concludes 2023 by taking on Ocean Grove, Newcomb next weekend, and a blockbuster clash against Anglesea in Round 18.

The Warriors defeated Ocean Grove last time out in Round 9 with a 97-61 win behind Hornsey’s five-goal haul.