U18’s Match Report – Round 17 vs North Adelaide

Round 17 saw us face North Adelaide for the second time in 4 weeks. We were keen to continue our good run of form and had 4 changes to our side from the previous week. Harry Barnett, Kyan Eagleton, Tom Mickan and Max McKenzie came into the side and this was Max’s first game of U18 football. He has been training very well all year and has waited for his opportunity and we know he will play lots of football for us moving forward.

When people talk about this game they may talk about our excellent second half where we had 16 shots on goal to 3, they may talk about our last 20 minutes where we kicked 4 goals to none, and they may talk about our comeback as we were 28 points down in the second quarter.

When you look a bit deeper you will see that we actually played quite well all day, even in the first half. Had it not been for inaccuracy in front of goal, the half-time margin would have been much closer. Credit to North for taking their opportunities and playing well, but we were very much in the game.

I love how coachable this group are – the whole squad, not just the 22 on the park for this match. Certainly in this game the team responded to some changes and messaging mid-game and were excellent in their response, but the whole squad have shown they are willing and ready to take feedback on board and do what they can to improve every time they come to the club.

Kobe Ryan was instrumental with 28 disposals and 7 clearances, Liam Westdijk worked well with Kobe accumulating 23 disposals and 5 clearances, and Jonah Zinndorf competed well all day in defence. Kyan Eagleton returned from college football with a strong game, Tom Scully kicked 3 important goals in tricky conditions, and Harry Lemmey was excellent at both ends of the ground at various stages.

This week we travel to Norwood to face the Redlegs. There are many potential outcomes after this weekend, but we will be solely focused on playing the best game we can in our match and giving ourselves a chance to progress. We can’t wait for the challenge and we need your support!

There are no limits on what this group can achieve. They are fantastic young men who have shown enormous resilience throughout the year. We’ve had tough days, we’ve had good days, but we’re still awake and we’re excited to get out there again this week.

Best: Kobe Ryan, Liam Westdijk, Jonah Zinndorf, Kyan Eagleton, Tom Scully, Harry Lemmey

Goals: Judd Hansen, Tom Scully (3), Adam Bunworth, Jamie Kovacic, Harry Lemmey, Jordan White (1)

Paul Streatfield

Talent Manager & U18 Coach