Devils deny Cobras in derby

THE Devils held off a late charge from the Cobras to win the Anzac Day weekend instalment of the local derby, at Darley Park on Saturday.

A monster crowd on a sun kissed autumn day ensured the game would be played in high spirits to honour the occasion.

“A tale of two halves” fits the narrative, as the Cobras came back from 40 points down in the third quarter to finish as close as they did on the final siren.

The Devils had many contributors sharing time in the spotlight without ‘getting off the hook’ for too long.

Leigh Spiteri (three goals), Will Johnson (three goals) and Harley Inglis (three goals) were clean around goal with their opportunities, while key forward Brady Wright (one goal, five behinds) monstered the Cobras in the air but couldn’t finish off his aerial dominance.

Midfielders Luther Baker, Matt Denham and Brett Bewley were soldier-like, with their heavy work inside the contest and distribution on the outer to ensure the Devils did enough to hang on.

For the Cobras, and not for the first time in recent derbies, were made to do the chasing after half time.

Collingwood VFL listed player Rye Penny and ruckman Luke Goetz were the standout contributors for the Cobras, who should take plenty of positives out of the game ahead of an interesting Round 4 clash with Sunbury at Maddingley Park.

Hard working midfield pair Tyson Shea and Jake McReery hauled a mountain of inside work at the coalface, while joint captains Jack Parente and Jack Kovacevic consolidated their bright future expectations with their run and carry.

Cody Gates had arguably his best senior game in his short time at the level.

Joel Freeman and Jake Owen presented forward, but were often too far from home to hit the scoreboard when they won the footy.

Isaac Nixon was lively in the second half and had his moments, including a goal of the day candidate in the third quarter.

The feeling was a bit strange in the aftermath. The Devils, while happy with the win, were disappointed by the way the game finished off, conceding five goals to one in the last quarter.

On the other side, the Cobras were up and about after their ‘mini win’ last quarter on the back losing the opening three.

The glass half full approach should hold the Cobras in good stead ahead of their match-up with Sunbury, while the Devils head up the highway for a meeting with unbeaten league improvers Ballarat.

How the coaches rated their performance

Overall – Jordan (Darley): “Came away with a win where we saw patches of our best footy. Plenty to work on as we move forward. Full credit to Bacchus Marsh for a great challenge and running out the game.”

Armfield (B/Marsh): “Can’t give quality sides a head start, but very proud that we fought back to give ourselves a chance late. A lot of belief gained by our young group.”

Defence – Jordan (Darley): “Solid enough on their keys. (Zane) Lehuray pick of the bunch with some good intercepts. Their smalls kicked a few late.”

Armfield (B/Marsh): “Fought hard all day and got back to level by the end of the game setting up our attack.”

Mids – Jordan (Darley): “Good first half of compliance, but got a little tardy in the second with their guys on the move around stoppage.”

Armfield (B/Marsh): “Fought hard all day against a quality opposition. We were flat footed early but found our balance and worked on our inside connection to drive the ball our way.”

Forwards – Jordan (Darley): “Had their moments dealing with extra defensive numbers. (Brady) Wright presented well but and couldn’t convert. (Harley) Inglis and (Leigh) Spiteri were good at ground level.”

Armfield (B/Marsh): “Got a little high early in the game and allowed their ‘plus one’ to influence. We reset at halftime and felt we got the upper hand.”

Final scores – Darley 5.1-31, 9.5-59, 11.8-74, 12.9-81 def B/Marsh 2.1-13, 3.2-20, 5.3-33, 10.9-69

Darley (Whelan’s Best): L.Baker, M.Denham, H.Inglis, L.Spiteri, B.Bewley, Z.Lehuray, Ad.Azzopardi M.Ward, B.Wright, J.Cadman.

Darley (Goals): W.Johnson 3, L.Spiteri 3, H.Inglis 3, B.Wright, M.Brett, R.Matricardi.

B/Marsh (Whelan’s Best): L.Goetz, R.Penny, J.McReery, T.Shea, J.Parente, C.Gates, J.Kovacevic

B/Marsh (Goals): I.Nixon 2, D.Armfield 2, J.Owen 2, J.Parente 2, L.Goetz, J.Freeman.