Jackson Trengove dispatches the footy into the forward line.
Photo by
Owen Sinclair
Cobram came back from behind to mount a stunning seven-point win over Mulwala in round two of the Murray Football League seniors.
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With the visiting Lions tipped as the favourites to win, Scott Reserve filled quickly with punters keen to see where things stood after Mulwala’s 18-point upset over Cobram in round 18 last season.
A goal in the first minute from Mulwala’s Jackson Meade, joined minutes later with the Lions’ second, appeared to confirm such beliefs as Cobram struggled to come up with an answer.
But efforts in front of goal from Darwin import Will Irwin, Hunter Hardwidge and Tyron Baden soon put the Tigers in lock step with Mulwala at 20 points level at the end of the first term.
Back to square one in the second term, the Tigers’ only contribution to the scoreboard came with help from Luca Allen and another two behinds.
Meanwhile, Mulwala appeared dominant in front of goal, opening the margin to 14 points (28-42) at half-time.
When Mulwala pulled away in the third term with a further two goals, Cobram’s only answer was further behinds.
But consistent pressure around the ball and efforts from Mikael Corso saw the Tigers finish the third term with the margin still at 14 points in the Lions’ favour.
But if the first half of the match was Mulwala’s, the final quarter belonged to the Tigers.
A Lions goal in the second minute appeared to seal the deal for the day, until a drop punt from Baden lent the embattled Tigers a flicker of hope.
Just like dominoes falling, the Tigers rallied and belted a further three — including two consecutive goals from Tim Garlick — through the big sticks to take the margin to a five-point lead with 67-62.
Tyron Baden pulls away from the Mulwala pressure.
Photo by
Owen Sinclair
A late term resurgence from Mulwala threatened to snatch the lead, but a goal from Brodie Wren before the final siren put paid to any doubts as the Tigers took the victory with an eight-point margin on 73-65 (11.7-9.11).
Tigers coach Mark Meyland was enthused about the comeback win.
“We’re obviously ecstatic to take the four points away,” he said after the match.
“Going in, we knew that they were one of the touted favourites this season, and it was a good opportunity to find out where we stood among everyone, and luckily enough, a few things went our way, and we snuck home in the end.
“To be honest, in the second half there were a lot of contributors. The first half, we probably just played a little bit within ourselves, made a lot of basic errors that we continually talk about.”
On the subject of his side’s resurgence in the final quarter, Meyland was in no doubt.
“In the second half, it was an 18-on-the-field contribution that made this happen,” he said.
“It was probably a little bit of fitness, a little bit of coming together as a group. Previously, we’ve been known to lose those close games, so it was nice to turn the tables and get one.”
Best-on-ground went to Jackson Trengove, while Baden, Hardwidge, Alec Ritchie, Sam Beasley and Luca Allen were named Cobram’s best players.
With the Mulwala win behind him, Cobram’s Tim Garlick reached a milestone of 100 senior games with the Tigers.
Meanwhile, Meyland could see some inner belief returning to his side.
“I think as soon as you get the belief, you’re on the right track,” he said.
“And now it’s just up to us to keep building on it, week to week.”
Meanwhile, the Tigers’ reserves outfit had a field day out on the park, keeping its Mulwala counterpart without a single goal at full time with a 92-point win.
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