Telstra Store West Lakes Round 16 League Match Report

Eagles 8.11 (59) def by Port Adelaide 18.14 (122)
Goal Scorers: Hayes 2, Petrnko 2, Rowe 2, Foote, Moore
Best Players: Hayes N, Lonergan, Hayes J, Goldsworthy, Rowe, Petrenko

A challenging day versus a very strong Port Adelaide team.

Condition were mixed with sun, rain and wind this meant we had to adapt to the slight condition changes during the quarter which we didn’t do as well as Port. There were some positive moments even though the scoreboard didn’t suggest it and likewise many disappointing moments.

Tom Schmusch was back for his 2^nd game of league football after injuring his shoulder in round 1 during the first quarter of his debut game. Jackson Lee also did not look out of place for his first game this season.

For the second week in a row our first quarter showed positive improvement  which has been a weakness all season. Our appetite to win the contest was great, unfortunately we were unable to capitalise on this when moving the ball forward in to the wind and Port transitioned a few easy goals from our mistakes. This gave the opposition the ideal start to the game as they’d utilised the wind advantage well.

The 2^nd,  3^rd and 4^th quarter the midfield continued to get on top of us with Scott Lycett showing why he’s an AFL premiership ruckman. He finished with 33 hitouts, 7 clearances and 30 disposals. Drew and Trengrove benefited from Lycetts game both finishing with over 30 disposals.

Nick Hayes played a great game and kept fighting until the very end, Jack Hayes stood tall and continued his good season form, Lonergan was our major ball winner on the day with 22 disposals. Petrenko and Rowe finished with 2 goals each.

This loss rules out finals and is very difficult to accept. As a collective we’ve identified some key issues and are very clear on the direction we’re moving in. There’s a level of frustration currently because we’ve experienced some great outcomes this season and have strong belief that we can perform at the level required. This being said consistency is an incredibly important ingredient to reach the ultimate level of success and we’ve not been consistent enough through season 2019.

It was great to see Jimmy Toumpas return via the reserves after a significant stint on the sidelines. Jimmy performed very well and got through the majority of the game with no issues. Unfortunately in the league game Jarred Redden suffered an ankle injury and will miss the final 2 games.

We now move on to our final two matches of the season beginning with Adelaide, our last match at Maughan Thiem Kia Oval for 2019.

Sam Lonergan
Senior Coach