The Superdogs welcomed Woodville South to Lyrup Oval on July 17 with a cold cloudy day and a wet start to the afternoon in Round 8 of the AFL Masters SA 2022 season. As luck would have it the rain cleared prior to the start of the game and held off until soon after the final siren.
Due to the school holidays the Superdogs were missing a couple of the regular stars. Thanks to a strong recruiting campaign late in the week the Superdogs fielded a strong side with a full bench. It was fantastic to have Woodville South present with good player numbers and supporters. The first ten minutes of the first quarter was an arm wrestle as both sides gave it all to assert their authority. Woodville South slowly gained the ascendancy but pressure from the Superdogs backs, notably Bruce Barnes, Paul Glassey and Joe Butson, was enough to make Woodville South miss many shots on goal. First gamers Jake Albrecht and Ben Rothe provided fantastic options through the centre, linking the Dogs defence into attack. Woodville South scored the first goal and ended up leading at quarter time by 9 points.
The second quarter was tough and hard as the ball became wet and slippery, resulting in many ball ups and congested play. The Superdogs lost Joe Butson to injury when he crashed head first into the turf midway through the quarter. Rob Romeo was holding his own against men much younger than himself, providing an avenue out of defence. The Superdogs defence was being tested but continued to work well together with Darren Kennedy and Anthony Rothe bringing the ball to ground and clearing the area by hand or foot. Both sides suffered minor injuries but were able to kick 3 goals apiece during the quarter, and at the long break Woodville South led by ten points.
In the third quarter the Superdogs really found their mojo and held Woodville South goalless while kicking three of their own. First gamer Anton Cook, playing at half forward, kicked a couple of long range goals, one from a tight angle. Injury again hampered the Superdogs when Sam Bozo could not bust any more packs due to a hamstring strain. At three quarter time the Superdogs led by 7 points.
Coach Tieste asked for a solid final quarter from the Superdogs but it looked as if they had spent all their lunch money as Woodville South rallied. The Superdogs were held scoreless while Woodville South kicked 3 goals for the quarter to run out 12 point winners in a tough fought low scoring game of football.
Play of the day was Paul Glassey winning the ball and breaking a tackle, miskicking the ball, running on and gaining possession of the ball, only to miskick it again in the greasy conditions, total ground gained was about 20 metres, 10/10 for effort and perseverance.
Final scores:
Woodville South 7.8.50 def Riverland Superdogs 6.2.38
Goal scorers:
A Cook 5; H Sanford
Best players:
R Romeo, B Rothe, J Albrecht, A Cook, A Rothe, B Barnes
The Riverland Superdogs next game is an away game against Pooraka at Two Wells Football Club at 1pm on July 31st.
Location
Lyrup Oval
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