Saints come out on top
CAIRNS Saints have retained third spot on the AFL Cairns ladder after winning a spiteful encounter against the Manunda Hawks by 34 points at Cazalys last night.
The umpires went for their cards twice during the game, first giving Saints’ half-forward Mark Kennedy a yellow in the second quarter before showing Hawks’ forward Jamie Scrymgour a red in the last term for striking.
While the points were shared in the push-and-shove stakes, when it came down to the business of football it was Saints controlling three-quarters of the match to win 17.17 (119) to 13.7 (85).
The reigning premiers started brilliantly, shooting to a 22-point lead at the first change.
Rain began falling in the second quarter but Hawks played better as the weather grew worse.
The likes of Lukas Ehlich and Willie Alick started to gather possessions and Hawks reaped the benefits on the scoreboard, outscoring Saints eight goals to two in the second quarter.
But that was about as good as it got for Hawks, who were thoroughly outclassed when play restarted.
When he returned to the field 10 minutes into the third term, Kennedy made up for his absence by kicking two goals in quick succession to swing momentum permanently back in Saints’ favour.
Hawks’ run was lacking when it counted, allowing Saints to hit targets without pressure in the greasy conditions.
Saints player-coach James Coatsworth, who took control of the club this year, said the victory was the most satisfying of his short stint in charge.
"We started off on fire, we went missing for a quarter and then after halftime I asked the boys for a bit more effort," he said.
"We started to want the footy and started playing for each other and that’s what turned it around for us."
At Crathern Oval, Centrals Trinity Beach kept a firm hold of second spot on the ladder with a battling 13.14 (92) to 10.12 (72) victory against North Cairns.
The Bulldogs trailed by two goals at halftime but were able to overtake the Tigers thanks to six goals from Gareth Oughton and a best-on-ground performance from Ben Chalmers.
Brendan Tennick booted five majors for the Tigers.
In the final match of the round, Cairns City Cobras ensured South Cairns’ winless season continued with a hard-fought 13.11 (89) to 8.9 (57) victory at Fretwell Park.
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