Gut Feelings - brought to you by Regis Aged Care Chelmer

• The Colts came back to earth with a jolt last Saturday, being well beaten by Palm Beach-Currumbin in the Second Semi Final at Currumbin last Saturday. They were unable to re-produce the intensity from the previous weeks final vs Wilston Grange and some inefficiency also cost them.

• They  missed tackles and fumbled more and while they were accurate the week before, the goalkicking yips  saw them trail 7.1 to 1.7 at half time , 5 goals down with the same scoring shots. The Pies worked hard in the third quarter to narrow the gap but could not get reward for effort after having more inside 50s then tailed off in the last quarter.

• The Colts get another chance this Saturday and in good news the match has been transferred from Surfers Paradise to McCarthy Homes Oval at Chelmer this Saturday, to commence at 10 am.  A great common sense decision from AFLQ!

• The pies get the home ground advantage due to defeating Grange  last week. It would be good for a big contingent of Magpies supporters to get down to the ground to support the boys in their quest to have another crack at PBC in the Grand Final. The Pies will need to bring the same intensity and attack on the ball they displayed in defeating the Gorillas in the Qualifying final

• The Magpies Colts have defied the odds to even get to the finals let alone reach a Second Semi-Final then the Preliminary Final. With injuries in the senior ranks a number of Colts players filled the gaps in both Seniors and Reserves early in the year but with their return to the colts plus some players returning from injury and various representative duties their stocks picked up to be at the stage they are still in the finals and challenging for back-to-back flags.

• Coach Dallas Gallagher has an astute football brain and he has been able to marshall his players throughout the year. He is not afraid to make game day moves and can note trends in the game early and make changes to either press home an advantage or manage a part of the Colts game that is not working well.

• Well, the sun, planets, moon and stars all got the wobbles in the last round and the Pies could not get the job done, falling at the last hurdle yet again. In a case of deja vu again (if you doing mind the tautology!!), the Pies had to win over the Demons and then hope Mt Gravatt didn't catch them on percentages.  When Mt Gravatt were 7 goals in front  of Labrador and the Pies 4 goals down all looked forlorn but the Pies closed the gap to under 2 goals and Labrador rallied but in pushing hard the Pies leaked three late goals to Surfers Paradise to blow the final margin to 5 goals, which did not reflect the tightness and closeness of the contest for most of the match. 

• In their last match of the season at Surfers Paradise  the Reserves looked like they couldn't wait until the end of the season and it was a disappointing end to a disappointing year. The Pies only fielded 20 players after a number of match eve withdrawals and finished with 16 on the ground.  The Magpies did struggle against the top side and who could blame them in the circumstances. Well done to all the players who turned up and did battle out to the end of the season but who could blame them when they looked relieved at the final siren. 

• The Reserves will always have a number of player changes at selection but this year the Pies had a huge number of changes at selection every week and had 1 match with 10 changes and three matches with 8 changes and most matches had at least 4-6 changes. This meant they could not get any continuity to develop a fluent game plan. That said several players stood out during the season with Zac Collison having a consistent season, Jordan Bonney came on in leaps and bounds to be rewarded with several Senior games, Sam Hartog relished his time on a wing toward the end of the season and Jesse Hampel has had a consistent season.  

• The Woodies also completed their season 2 weeks ago after a convincing win in their first final vs Morningside they failed to turn up at Maroochydoore for the first 3/4 and an embarassing exit was on the cards, then a last quarter fightback when the Woodies chased down a 7 goal lead to put a famous victory on the table before just falling short to bow out by 2 points.

• There was a large contingent of Magpies current past players and past players and officials at Steve Mitchell's funeral last Tuesday. Included in the gathering were a large number of Steve's premiership team-mates and representatives from AFLQ and Brisbane Lions, testament to the high regard Mitch was held in throughout the AFL community in South East Queensland. 

• In a moving ceremony the many layers of Steve Mitchell were mentioned, from the fun loving and sometimes larrikin youngster, to his love of family and friends and his love of football and the Sherwood Football Club. 

• Eulogies were given by Steve's sister-in-law Michelle, wife of brother Rob, who spoke eloquently of the family and Steve's unconditional commitment to his large and extended family and to the fun loving bloke that he was. 

• School friend and junior football team-mate Keith North spoke of schooldays and trips to the coast and of playing football together, mentioning that Steve was challenging the accepted rules from an early age and thinking outside the box, which he continued to do throughout his life with his thoughts on life and football. 

• Premiership teammate John Cawcutt spoke about Mitch's football career and how we was a player who would go over hot coals for his teammates and was an integral part of three Sherwood premierships. Oh, and a mention of a suspension where coaching Sherwood Under 16s--something about not agreeing with the umpires!! 

• Sons Drew then Luke spoke brilliantly about their Dad and the support he had given them and the sage advice he was ready to impart. They also thanked him for guiding them in their careers, in football and in their personal lives and that he had given them strong building blocks to be good citizens and good people. That both have become strong leaders in the football club speaks volumes for the legacy Steve left his sons.   

• And of course his funeral finished with the strains of “We’re from Tigerland”.

• The club's Presentation Night has been scheduled for Saturday, October 19th. The Bill Peirce Medal Count will be a highlight while the Reserves John Burkett (JB) Medal, Maurie McNamee Medal for Colts and the Nipperess Medal for the Woodsmen will all be watched with interest.

• Bruce Reville and Samson Ryan played for Redland in the NEAFL last round the weekend before last in their upset win over Canberra and then this weekend they  must have their head spinning as both will line up for the Brisbane Lions in the NEAFL Finals. The Lions are undefeated but have been blessed with an almost full list all season but NEAFL rules restrict them to 14 listed players in the finals when taking on non AFL aligned clubs hence the need to top up with the likes of Reville and Ryan. It will no doubt be a great experience for the 2 Rs and good performances at this level will certainly push their names forward and attract attention from the AFL recruiters.

• Riley Greene was also on the Brisbane Lions NEAFL radar before it was discovered Riley is aligned to the Gold Coast Suns due to residency regulations as he lives at North Maclean and was therefore ineligible to play for the Lions. It is unfortunate as Riley has had a great season for the Pies and at 17 years old would not have been out of place at NEAFL level so it is a missed opportunity to show what he is capable of. 

• Best wishes to the Magpies contingent at Aspley as they continue their finals campaign when they play Southport at Fankhauser Reserve at Southport at 1.30 pm on Saturday.  Skipper Jackson Allen and Tom Baulch (a Magpies player but not seen in the black and white very often this year) will line up while Cal Carselkdine, who missed the Hornets win last week over GWS Giants may come back in to the side, but Doug Lawrence will miss due to a late season ACJ dislocation. Lawrence was playing his best football for some time at CHB when injured and Tom Baulch has now established himself in the starting side after starting on the bench in many earlier season matches. 

• The QAFL Grogan Medal Count will be held at the Gabba on Sunday, September  8th. As well as the Grogan Medal, the QAFL Team of the Year will be announced and the Pies Luca Winton must be a good chance to be named. Dan Edwards and Riley Greene will be right in the mix for the Rising Star Award  as both have had outstanding seasons and both have been consistent performers all season. 

• Ipswich Eagles take on Wynnum in the QAFA Division 3 Preliminary Final on Saturday at Wynnum and will feature 3 ex-Magpies in Chris Devlin, Nick Barling and Michael Lyons. Lyons won 2 QAFL Reserves Best and Fairest Bill Clerke Medals in 2004 and 2005 and was Magpies Reserves Best and Fairest winner in 2003.   

• Luke Scott will try to guide Mitiamo to a long awaited flag after they won through to the Loddon Valley Grand Final to be played on Saturday. Mitiamo won the Second Semi Final over Pyramid Hill and had last weekend off and play the same team in the decider. Mitiamo, located 35 km north of Bendigo,  were beaten in last year’s decider (by a side containing club President Andrew Thomson’s cousin who put them to the sword in what were absolutely horrific conditions with sleet and gale force winds blowing, not ideal conditions for FIFO players from QLD!)

• Jonesy, a FIFO player,  has played in most games this year but Jim Rozynski only managed 4 games before suffering another tear of his ACL in terrible news for the Magpie legend. Also in the Mitiamo team is ex PBC ruckman Michael L’Anson and ex-Noosa coach Lucas Matthews.

• The Magpies QAFL Senior side is now looking for a new coach in 2020 with the departure of Brydan Morgan after 3 seasons at the helm which featured 3 consecutive 6th places. Morgan was a dedicated coach who left no stone unturned with his incredible work rate in the role. The immeasurable time, care and unmatched preparation Brydan put into the role went above and beyond expectations and the club thansk and acknowledges Brydan for his 3 years as senior coach.

• Other roles in the football department will be advertised in due course, as will some other exciting club announcements.

• Junior Presentation Day is scheduled for Saturday October 12, while the Bill Pierce Medal will be held the following Saturday on October 19.

• Sadly on the weekend the last remaining youth Magpie team were defeated by Aspley in the U14 Division 1 Northern Conference Grand Final, the boys had a wonderful season and after a bright first half were unable to hold on again a strong Aspley side who were very good on the day.

• The Magpies will be entering a womens team for the 2020 season in the QWFA and have fielded several enquiries about both coaching the side as well as many many enquiries fro current female footballers who started their journey with the Magpies and wish to return to where it began. If you’d like to be involved as a player, coach or volunteer - get in touch president@westernmagpies,com.au

• In other news, the Magpies have been promoting the Toyota Good For footy Raffle in droves, with the club now ranked 2nd in the country for tickets sold - a huge effort from everyone involved! We’re not far of getting to the top, so to purchase some more tickets follow this link

CFMG Capital - Coaching Vacancy

The Sherwood Football Club invites applicants for the role of QAFL Senior Coach for the 2020 Season and beyond, please click on the link above to view the position description and details on how to apply.

For further information: president@westernmagpies.com.au

McCarthy Homes Match Review - Colts well beaten by Lions

The Western Magpies Colts came back to earth with a thud after being well beaten by Palm Beach-Currumbin in the QAFL Second Semi Final at Salk Oval on Saturday.

The Pies poor kicking for goal proved costly as they booted 1.7  to the Lions 7.1 in the first half and that was the tale of the match. The Pies created opportunities but unlike last week, when they kicked 6 straight, were off target and had a huge task at half time to come back from 5 goals down against the minor premiers on their own turf. 

The Pies had as much of the ball as the Lions in the first half but they were missing their A game of the week before. The Pies may have been a bit over-hyped and were guilty  of uncharacteristic fumbles and missed tackles. The Pies missed good chances at goal while PBC were more clinical in their finishing.

The Magpies rallied in the third term and had plenty of ball in their forward half but the Lions pushed back hard to bottle the ball up and nullify scoring chances and were able to do when protecting a strong lead. The Pies were unable  to close the gap and then several late goals  in the final quarter saw the final margin blow out to  68 points, 15.9-99 to 3.12-30.

Best players were defender Lawson Campbell who worked hard too keep the Pies in the match, ruckman Lachlan Davies who competed hard in the trenches, winger Rory Edwards and on-ballers Darcy Prest, Sean Ryan and Cade Scott.

The Colts will have to re-group quickly when they take on Wilston Grange, who won by 2 points in an extra-tim  thriller over Broadbeach on Sunday. They will do so without the injured Rory Edwards, but in positive news the Preliminary Final has been relocated to McCarthy Homes Oval, commencing at 10am. The Pies need to re-produce the intensity they displayed in beating the Gorillas a week ago  if they are to advance to the Grand Final.

Be sure to get down to the club on Saturday morning to cheer the last Magpie side standing in 2019 home to their 3rd consecutive Grand Final!

SPRING AFL9S IS BACK

Sherwood Spring AFL9s is back for 2019!!!!

This year the comp is going to be back bigger and better. Starting October 14 on Monday Nights, AFL9s is the BEST WAY to keep fit over the off-season.

Back at McCarthy Homes Oval (Sherwood Magpies Main Oval) , there will be a mens, mixed and for the first time a junior comp for 12-16 year olds.

The junior competition will be played at 6:15pm, and the mixed and mens comp will be played at 7:00pm, 7:45 and 8:30pm, for the 8 weeks.

Registration is easy. Click the link here to register - http://afl9s.com.au/venues/details/?associd=18586&assocpc=4068

The cost is $800 per team.

The competition is run by Cam Smith (Men’s and Junior) and Max Webber (Mixed) who are former Sherwood Juniors and have been running the comp for 2 years.

For more information please email Cam and Max on sherwoodafl9s@gmail.com.

GET A KICK START IN THE SPORTS INDUSTRY

Are you a Grade 11 or Grade 12 student who wants to work in the sports industry?

Get A Kick Start and become an AFL9s Match Day Officer for our Spring AFL9s Competition.

The Sherwood Magpies AFL9s competition has gone from strength to strength every year and this year it is expected to grow even bigger.

The competition is run by Cam and Max, two passionate Sherwood people who have a love for the club and growing the game.

This year Cam and Max want to offer the opportunity to Grade 11 and 12 students who may wish to follow a similar pathway to them after school, to assist setting up Match Days.

Although it is a volunteer role, this is a great and easy way to put something valuable on your resume. Below are some details of what the role will entail.

AFL9s Match Day Officers

Who?

• Grade 11/12 students looking to gain experience in the sports industry

• Team players who are willing to take initiative

• Passionate about sport

• Strive to do their best and are wanting to improve and grow

What?

Sherwood AFL9s Match Day Officers will assist the Coordinators in setting up AFL9s Match Days, and learn what it takes to match manage games.

They will also get an insight and be trained into what it takes to run a successful competition.

Why?

To gain an insight in what it is like to work in the sports experience, learning from Max and Cam who are experienced AFL9s coordinators.

Put something easy and valuable on your resume.

It is a volunteer role. However, Math Day Officers will be looked after well, to make sure this is a positive/worthwhile experience.

When?

Monday Nights. October 14 - December 2. 5pm - 7:00 pm.

How do you apply?

Email Cam and Max - sherwoodafl9s@gmail.com answering the following questions:

Name:

Grade:

How you found out about this opportunity?

What your career interests are?

Why you would like to be an AFL9s match day officer?

How you think you will benefit from being an AFL9s match day officer?

Applications are due by the 15th of September. If you have any questions please send an email or call Cam on 0459 475 817.

Place Preview - Magpie Colts Up for the Challenge

The Western Magpies Colts will be up for the challenge when they travel to Salk Oval at Currumbin to play Palm Beach-Currumbin in the QAFL Second Semi Final on Saturday morning.

The Pies will go into the match with one change as Lachlan Pearson comes in for Morgan Smith after Tyler Bobin withdrew with illness last week and has not fully recovered and Jack Briskey remains injured. 

Darcy Prest boosted the Pies last week with his last minute inclusion after recovering from illness.

The Magpies were fierce at the contest vs Grange and their pressure and tackling put the bigger bodied Wilston Grange players off their game as a result.

Palm Beach-Curumbin are a team with good ball movement and the Pies will need to bring the same mindset tomorrow if they are to take the direct route to the Grand Final.  

The engine room of Lachlan Davies, Noah Resuggan, Cade Scott, Sean Ryan and Prest were all instrumental in the Magpies victory last week and will need a repeat performance tomorrow. Davies in ruck and then when resting forward has had a huge second half of the season and his improvement during the year is one of the reasons for the Pies’ surge toward a premiership defence.   

Whitlam Bishop has been Mr Consistency at CHB and has a willing ally in Lawson Campbell at FB but the entire back half with those two and Jacob Aurisch, Charlie Thorpe, Jack Spry and Tom Evans have been miserly and work well together.  Up forward Cam Ferguson has taken some big grabs in recent weeks and Jackson Paynter always presents  for the contest at CHF. Sam Mehari was back to his fleet footed best last week and with Jonty MacDougall and Abu Kante will test the PBC defenders with their pace. The strong bodied Cade Scott and Cooper Crowell will create a contest across half forward so the Pies forward line has the bases covered and is more than capable of kicking a winning score.

The Magpies travel to the coast knowing they are much stronger than in the two previous encounters with the Lions, whose form line has been patchy in the latter half of the season and will be quietly confident of winning and progressing to the Grand Final.

 QAFL Second Semi Final: Western Magpies Colts v Palm Beach-Currumbin at Salk Oval, Currumbin on Saturday, August 31st  at 09.15 am  (Note earlier starting time)

B: Jack Spry  Lawson Campbell Tom Evans

HB: Charlie Thorpe Whitlam Bishop  Jacob Aurisch                                           

C:   Rory Edwards Noah Resuggan  Ritti Batilimoyo

HF:   Cade Scott  Jackson  Paynter  Cooper Crowell

F:  Sam Mehari  Cam Ferguson  Jonty MacDougall  

Rucks:  Lachlan Davies

             Darcy Prest

Rover:  Sean Ryan   

Int: Abu Kante, Kelly Siemer, Lachlan Pearson, Brodie Gardner

McCarthy Homes Match Review - Colts prevail in Qualifying Final

The Western Magpies Colts have had a narrow 2 point victory over Wilston Grange in the QAFL Qualifying Final at Surfers Paradise on Saturday. Going is as underdogs against a team that had defeated the Pies twice during the season, the Pies were on song from the first bounce to gain an edge in the first half to lead by 10 points at half time.  

Big Cam Ferguson kicked the first of the 3rd quarter in the opening minutes, before Wilston Grange clicked into gear to kick 6 straight in just a 12 minute period to open up a 21 point lead after a noticeable lift in intensity to match the ferocious Pies who had set the standard in both tackling and attack on the footy. Ferguson hit the scoreboard in time on to reduce the 3/4 time margin to 15 points and it was game on going into the last

The Pies booted an early last quarter goal through Lachie Davies to reduce the margin to single figures and manged to keep the Grange outfit goalless. Jonty McDougall then goaled to make it a 4 point margin with 10 points to play and it became a frantic affair with the young Pies showing outstanding spirit to continue to put their body on the line in the contest and apply ferocious tackling pressure.

The Pies then pushed forward with less than 2 minutes to play before Charlie Thorpe kicked truly to put the Pies in front by 2 points with the siren sounding some 30 seconds later.

The Magpies received a pre-match boost when Queensland Under 17 player Darcy Prest recovered from illness to take his place in the side and he was a fine player in the midfield for the Pies.

The Magpies were well led by key defenders Whitlam Bishop at CHB and Lawson Campbell as they stood up against the Gorillas, especially in the last quarter.

Sam Mehari obviously loves the finals action as last year’s BOG in the Grand Final again won plenty of the football in midfield and across half forward and used his pace to advantage. Lachlan Davies in ruck gave the Pies midfeld a fair share of the ball which centreman Noah Resuggan used to gain plenty of clearances for the Magpies

The Magpies will again travel down the highway this Saturday to play Palm Beach-Currumbin in the Second Semi Final at Currumbin, with the winner progressing to the Grand Final.

Western Magpies 3.0 - 18 | 6.0 - 36 | 8.0 - 48 | 11.2 - 68

defeated

Wilston Grange 1.2 - 8 | 4.2 - 26 | 10.3 - 63 | 10.6 - 66

Best: Bishop, Mehari, Campbell, Davies, Prest, Resuggan

Goals: Ferguson 3, Macdougall 2, Thorpe, Crowell, Paynter, Davies, Prest, Scott

Harvey Norman Oxley - QAFL Colts Qualifying Final Preview

COLTS IN FORM FOR QUALIFYING FINAL

The Western Magpies Colts will fly the flag for the Pies in the finals when they meet Wilston Grange  in the QAFL Qualifying Final at Surfers Paradise on Saturday. The Magpies have been in good recent form but uinfortunately will be missing two very good players in QLD U18s on-baller Darcy Prest, who is ill, and tall forward Jack Briskey with injury.

All other players are up and running and have displayed good form in the past 2 matches, playing their best football for some time in the big win last week over the Surfers Sharks. The Magpies, who finished third, face a tough opponent in the second placed Wilston Grange who beat the Magpies in two tight and hard fought contests this season. Finals football is different and the pressure may be more on the Gorillas than the Pies and the Pies are more than capable of reversing the home and away results on Saturday.  

Leading the way in recent matches has been centreman and premiership captain Noah Resuggan who will know what finals football is all about and he also has premiership teammates in Whitlam Bishop, Cam Ferguson, Jacob Aurisch, Sean Ryan  and Sam Mehari (BOG in 2018 GF) to lead the way for the pies. Bishop at CHB has had a good month and he and Lawson Campbell at fullback have led a tight and miserly back half with Aurisch, Tom Evans and Jack Spry all playing well in recent weeks.

Lachlan Davies in ruck has got better as the season progressed and with the return of Cade Scott and Sean Ryan to the on-ball brigade mid-year the Pies midfield has a strong look about it.

Rory Edwards on a wing has also been consistent all year and is expected to be a key player for the Pies.

Up Forward the strong marking Jackson Paynter and Cam Ferguson have been excellent in the marking duels, with Paynter at CHF a good lead and he does possess a leap while Ferguson uses his big body to advantage. Cooper Crowell is another solid player who knows where the goals are and with Charlie Thorpe across half forward the Pies have a few other options going forward.

Flitting around at the feet of the big forward targets are Sam Mehari, Jonty MacDougall and Abu Kante and Kante  booted 4 goals last week and will be confident of a few more in this match.

Coach Dallas Gallagher has his side playing good positive football at the right time of the year and the Pies might be better suited to the big Surfers ground than Wilston Grange, who have a big team  but may lack the pace of the Pies.

The winner gets a crack at Palm Beach- Currumbin in the Second Semi Final next week while the loser gets a second chance against the winner of the Broadbeach-Morningside clash, also to be played on Saturday.

QAFL Qualifying Final: Western Magpies Colts v Wilston Grange at Surfers Paradise on Saturday, August 24th  at 09.15 am  (Note earlier starting time)

Team unavailable

Coopers Friday Night Footy Review - Woodies go down fighting

The Woodies battled Friday night Bruce Highway traffic as they trekked up to Maroochydore to take on last years Premiers in the 2nd Semi Final.

Both sides were slow out of the blocks early, with the Roos kicking the first goal while the Magpies seemingly matched it late in the quarter when Chris Davis kicked a goal to level the scores, only for a field umpire 20m away to declare it touched off the boot! (strange, considering there was no player in front or even close to to the boot of Chris when he kicked it!)

It was frantic footy, with skill levels down in slightly slippery conditions but Maroochydore took their chances in the 2nd stanza to get out to a 29 point lead with some slick play and 2 incredibly fortuitous 50m penalties from rules that don’t appear in any rule book in the history of the game, but the Pies fought yet remained goalless at half time, down by 29 points and up against it.

The Woodies had few winners at this point, with Judson tireless at the contest but fumbly at stoppages, Evans well held forward and Hockley’s radar was off on the few opportunities presented. Green and Prior were on top in defence and were keeping the Woodies slim hopes alive but the Roos dominated the 3rd quarter and spent 90% of the time camped in their forward 50 as the Woodies continually took bad options coming from defence and skill levels were down.

At 3/4 time, the Woodies trailed by 40 points and had yet to register a goal and looked like they would suffer an embarrassing end to their 2019 campaign that had faltered early, but promised so much late. So it was to be again, as the Woodies had faltered in the first 3 quarters then spring into life in the last.

Changes were swung with Hockley moved into the Ruck where Thomson had battled hard, but had been largely ineffective. Evans was moved from CHF into the midfield to get extra size around the ball, while Judson was changing on the ball with Mihalopolous.

Despite the average age of the midfield moving to mid 30’s, suddenly they were pro-active around the ball and got on top at stoppages. A long kick deep from Lachlan Woods was marked strongly by Thomson and the Woodies were finally on the board with their first goal, but still trailed by 34 points. The Woodies again won the next centre clearance and the ball fell to the wing where Curtis was able to break free and hit Thomson on the chest who then kicked truly from a tight angle and there was a glimmer of hope for the Woodies, but only ever so slight. The Woodies however were up and about and sensed the momentum shift and ran in waves forward, several repeat entries lead to Hockley marking strongly 30 out in front, but the shot sailed wide - however the Woodies were now creating scoring opportunities and the Roos were panicking.

Judson won a contested ball, again pumped it forward where Thomson again marked strongly to kick a 3rd and the margin was now less than 25 points with 10 minutes to play. Hockley and Evans by now were dominating on the ball with Hockley on top in the ruck and the ball was moved forward where Verma was able to kick a screamer from inside a congested stoppage as he was tackled and the comeback was officially on!

Unfortunately our friend from earlier in the game wanted to inject themselves in the play and a free kick was plucked from nowhere at the next centre bounce and the Roos were able to kick a quick goal against the run of play from their only forward entry on the quarter, now making the comeback a tall task as the clock ticked away!

The Woodies again won the next clearance and a long kick in from Evans hit the pack where a flying Verma crumbed the back of the pack at full pace to run into an open goal to kick another one for the Woodies to make the margin just 14 points! The mids again did their job to win the next centre bounce and the Woodies squandered several golden opportunities, including a poster from just 5 m out in the goalsquare when kicking off the ground instead of simply gathering the footy!

Curtis managed to push forward and goal again to reduce the margin and it was officially panic stations for the home side, but it was to no avail as the clock ticked down the Woodies were gallant losers by 8 points after threatening a miracle comeback.

That ended the season for the Woodies, though many were said to suggest they were so tired and sore they would likely have been unable to go another week anyway!

McCarthy Homes Match Review - Deja Vu as Pies falter at last finals hurdle

It was a case of deja vu as the Western Magpies faltered  at the last hurdle for the second year in a row, going down to Surfers Paradise in the final round of QAFL home and away football, as was the case in 2018. 

The Magpies went down by 5 goals but this does not tell the tale of a hard fought contest with the Pies 2 goals down going into time on in the final quarter before the Demons scored 3 late goals to flatter the final scoreline. The Pies went down 13.11-89 to 9.5-59. 

The Magpies played with the sad news of the sudden passing of Stephen Mitchell late last week, a premiership player for Sherwood and the father of Drew and Luke Mitchell.

Coach Brydan Morgan gave an inspirational speech to the playing group before the match and the Pies looked to be up for the match with a lively first quarter. The Magpies took an 11 point lead into quarter time but it could have been better with 2 easy misses and a couple of squandered chances and if taken could have given the Pies a match winning lead. 

Surfers Paradise started to get their running game going in the second quarter and also took control in the middle of the ground to boot 4 goals to the Pies 2 to go in at half time 10 points up.

The third quarter and the majority of the last quarter was an arm wrestle as the Pies refused to surrender. At one stage the Demons were 4 goals up early in the last quarter but the Magpies kicked 2 quick goals to close the gap but in pushing forward were caught on the rebound as Surfers booted late goals to seal the contest. 

It was a disappointing end to the season for the Pies who at their best were able to match every other team in the competition. A slow start with several narrow early season losses when the Pies were below full strength proved costly in the final analysis.

That said Surfers are deservedly second on the ladder as their ball use after quarter time was superior to the Pies and they had good leg speed which they used well, causing the Pies headaches with their outside run. 

Val Pope turned back the clock with a display that reminded everyone how good he is with 4 classy goals and his 2008 and 2012 premiership teammate Gerard Moore rucked tirelessly all match and got his hands on the ball but the Pies were still beaten at the stoppages by a slick Demons on-ball brigade

Dan Edwards provided a spark for the Magpies from a wing and Riley Greene was again tireless across half back. Both these youngsters have had superb debut seasons and both will be right in the mix for the QAFL's Rising Star Award to be announced in a few weeks.

Luca Winton had another strong game at fullback, keeping tight tabs on another high profile full forward and he will again be amongst the favourites for the Magpies Best and Fairest Award, the Bill Peirce Medal. 

Brenton Saunders in defence mopped up brilliantly until injured early in the last quarter  and he has had an impressive second half of the season. Will Fletcher was strong on a wing and also when rolling through the midfield and won plenty of the contested ball and Aaron Highlands played a strong defensive game at centre half back.

The Magpies will now look on at the finals again known they could have been in the mix if even one or two of their 4 and  6 point losses early in the season had been reversed, with 3 less wins and a % 45 worse, the reality is they went backwards in results but again missed the final by 1 win for the 3rd consecutive season. Early season momentum has been hard to come by and a Round 1 home game would be a pleasant change after 6 consecutive seasons starting the year away from home, not to mention free access to our own listed players when fit!

Western Magpies 4.2 - 26 | 5.4 - 34 | 8.4 - 52 | 9.5 - 59

lost to

Surfers Paradise 2.3 - 15 | 6.8 - 44 | 9.11 - 65 | 13.11 - 89

Best: Pope, Edwards, Saunders, Greene, Fletcher, Highlands

Goals: Pope 4, Edwards, Winton, Beams, Lewis, Lumber

CFMG Capital - Reserves Round 19 Match Review

The Western Magpies Reserves ended a largely forgettable season in disappointing fashion when they were easily defeated by top team Surfers Paradise in the final match of the year.

The Pies had 5 late withdrawals from the selected side on Saturday morning and only fielded 20 players and finished with 16 players in the last 15 minutes of the match with Monty Vine, Mitchell O'Dea, Jayden Gallagher and Rory Johnson all injured throughout the game.

This outcome was part and parcel of a disjointed season as injuries piled up, unavailability intervened and NEAFL clubs regularly plucked players at the last minute, leaving the club short across multiple grades.

The Magpies were defeated 18.7-115 to 5.6 36. 

The Demons had more to play for, wanting to take top spot on the ladder and a week off in the first week of the finals and they looked cleaner and slicker than the Pies. 

Rory Johnson was busy on the ball and across half forward until injured and Jayden Gallagher was robust and provided a forward target and finished with 3 goals until he too was injured during the last quarter.

Zac Collison returned to his early season form with intercept marks a highlight and Brady Allen also worked overtime in defence. Sam Hartog had another good game on a wing and Zane Lovell ran himself ragged  on the ball and Peter Kilroy gave 100% as usual from half back.

Surfers 5.1 - 31 | 8.3 - 51 | 13.5 - 83 | 18.7 - 115

defeated

Magpies 2.2 - 14 | 2.4 - 16 | 4.5 - 29 | 5.6 - 36

Best: Johnson, Z.Collison, Gallagher, Allen, Hartog, Lovell

Goals: Gallagher 3, Mazerolle, Workman 1

Anytime Fitness - Colts Match Review

COLTS FLY THE FLAG AND SECURE DOUBLE CHANCE

The Western Magpies Colts flew the flag for the club as they secured third place and the double chance with an emphatic 68 point victory over the Surfers Sharks last Saturday. The Pies won 15.8-98 to 4.6-30.

The win means the Pies will begin their Premiership defence when they play Wilston Grange in the Qualifying Final at Surfers Paradise next Saturday.   

The match shaped as a danger game but the Colts came out firing from the first bounce and had the game in their keeping at quarter time when they led by 31 points. The Pies were workmanlike all match and extended their lead at each change. 

The Magpies are only missing Jack Briskey from their best side and are building nicely going into the finals. 

Sean Ryan continues his fine form on ball and has been in the best players in every game since his return from injury 6 weeks ago while Darcy Prest adds class to the on ball brigade with clean ball handling and good decision making. 

Cade Scott was strong at the contest in midfield and had another good game and Whitlam Bishop led a very sold back six from CHB. Speedster Abu Kante was busy up forward with 4 goals and tall forward Lachlan Davies finished with 3 goals.

The Magpies fell to Wilston Grange twice the season but next Saturday the Pies will field arguably their best team for the year and will be quietly confident of upsetting the Gorillas. 

Magpies 5.2 - 32 | 7.3 - 45 | 11.4 - 70 | 15.8 - 98

defeated

Surfers 0.1 - 1 | 1.3 - 9 | 3.4 - 22 | 4.6 - 30

Best: Ryan, Prest, Scott, Kante, Bishop, Ferguson

Goals: Kante 4, Davies 3, Ryan 2, Smith 2, Prest 2, Paynter 2

Vale Stephen Mitchell - Life Member

The Sherwood Football Club family all have heavy hearts as they grapple with the news of the sudden passing of club stalwart Stephen Mitchell late last week

All at the club and the wider Brisbane AFL community send their condolences and heart felt prayers and thoughts to his sons Drew and Luke and to Karen and the extended Mitchell family. Drew and Luke have been top line players for the Magpies in recent seasons, with Drew a club captain for 2 years and a Bill Peirce Medallist  and Karen is from Sherwood football royalty, with her father Ray Lang and mother Flo Lang both Life Members of the club.  

Steve was larger than life and a fixture at the Magpies for almost 50  years since he started as a snowy haired 10 year old junior before graduating through the ranks to Senior football, where he was a hard and tough half back flanker then a strong and uncompromising fullback. 

He was described by both Kevin Kluver and Des Lashman as a hard, no nonsense footballer and the ultimate team man who possessed a beautiful long 50 metre kick. His kicking was so good he won a QAFL Goalkicking competition. 

He played in 8 junior premierships for Sherwood before having 2 seasons with Western Districts at Under 17 level then returned to the Magpies to play in three SQAFA Senior Premierships--1980 under Lindsay Jacob and in 1981 and 1982. under Warren Selvage.

He also coached a number of junior Sherwood teams in the 1980s and 1990s  and was Reserves coach in the inaugural season of the  Western Magpies in 1999 then coached in  2000, 2001 and 2007, coaching the Reserves to a Premiership in 2007 over Noosa. 

Steve was a junior, youth and Reserves coach for many of the current Magpies Senior squad.

A fixture at the club for many years were the "Three-wise men"--Steve, Des Lashman and Kevin Kluver prognosticating and ruminating on the state of the game and scheming to work out how to make the Magpies better. 

Steve was always thinking about the game and how to make it better and one example was that he came up with an idea that has a lot of merit-- --if a player pulls the ball to his chest and takes the tackle and then fails to dispose of the ball properly then he should be penalised-- he yet may be immortalised when the AFL adopts the "Mitchell Rule"!! 

For several seasons he wrote a column in the club's website called "The Magpie" and gave interesting and amusing anecdotes and a bit of a left field analysis of Western Magpies matches. 

Steve was also behind the scenes with his good mate and Premiership team-mate Craig St John in organising the club's new honour boards a couple of years ago and was also the Football Director in 2013.

Steve’s large frame but also larger than life presence will be sadly missed at the club and his contribution to Sherwood and the Western Magpies has been greater than his list of achievements noted above. It was through the legacy of Steve Mitchell and others before him as well as a number of his contemporaries that the great success and the traditions of the Magpies has been built and preserved. 

Vale Steve Mitchell.

Place Preview - Magpies playing early elimination final again in 2019

The Western Magpies face another virtual elimination final when they travel to the Gold Coast to do battle with the second placed Surfers Paradise in the final home and away QAFL round on Saturday.

The Pies have been playing on the edge for the last  three rounds and have scraped into fifth place but must still win on Saturday then watch the scoreline in the Mt Gravatt-Labrador match to calculate the percentages.

The Magpies and Demons are arguably the form teams of the competition and with the home team playing for a home Qualifying Final and the Pies for a finals appearance  this is a high stakes contest-- just like a finals game in fact!! 

The Magpies have made 3 forced changes at selection with Samson Ryan, Bruce Reville and Caleb Franks called into the Redlands team. In comes Macauley Lonergan, Lachie Dennis and Ben Jaenke-Cain. Lonergan was the Pies best in the Reserves last week and Jaenke-Cain has been consistent for many weeks in the Reserves and has kept his chin up and deserves his recall-- you know what you are going to get from the former Bill Peirce Medallist. 

The Pies forward line, dysfunctional at times in the early part of the season, has found its mojo and with more direct ball coming into the forward half it allows the class of Ryan Harwood, Claye Beams and Brodie Lumber to contest one-out and they will all win more of those than they lose. 

In Gerard Moore the Pies have a class ruckman who will more than provide a contest and the Pies a fair share of the ball and with Riley Easton, Will Fletcher and Gareth Crawford all in good form the Pies willget plenty of contested ball to get the ball moving forward. 

The back six remain unchanged and have been superb in recent weeks, led by skipper David Lewis and fullback Luca Winton, who has had another great season. Riley Greene, this week's QAFL Rising Star nominee, and another youngster in Ethan Sivijs have both been superb all season with their consistency exceptional for two teenagers holding down positions in the back 6.

Aaron Highlands and Jack Goodall have both been consistent players and have played the roles coach Brydan Morgan asks them to and also give Morgan flexibility as both can play forward, back or in the ruck/midfield.

Well, the equation is simple--win and hope the other result goes their way, lose and its curtains for the season. The Magpies will be keen to reverse last year's final round result when they lost to the Demons and missed finals in somewhat of an upset. This will be played with finals like intensity and with the Magpies playing their best football of the year will be quietly confident of victory. 

QAFL Round 19: Western Magpies v Surfers Paradise at Surfers Paradise  on Saturday, August 17th at 2.00 pm

B: Luke Mitchell Luca Winton  Brenton Saunders

HF: Riley Greene, Jack Goodall,  David Lewis

C:  Will Fletcher Ryan Harwood  Dan Edwards 

HF: Claye Beams Liam Dwyer  Val Pope

F:  Kale Reed Brodie Lumber  Aaron Highlands  

Rucks:  Gerard Moore

             Gareth Crawford

Rover:   Riley Easton

I/C:   Ethan Sivijs, Lachie Dennis, Macauley Lonergan, Ben Jaenke-Cain

Kaplan - Reserves Round 19 Match Preview

RESERVES KEEN TO FINISH ON A HIGH

The Western Magpies Reserves will be keen to finish the season on a high when they talk on the first placed Surfers Paradise in QAFL Round 19 action at Surfers Paradise on Saturday. 

The Pies lose three good players to the Seniors in Ben Jaenke-Cain, Macaulaey Lonergan and Lachie Dennis while Harrison Kerr and Hamish Campbell are both out injured. This gives the opportunity for Mitchell O'Dea and Harrison Radcliffe and both were good players early in the season before missing through injury. Matt Mazerolle comes in after a trip overseas and he will add marking power to the forward line while Finn Collison also adds marking power up forward. Brady Allen also missed last week with a niggle and this week he has been selected at full forward while Zac Collison returns to boost the half back line after also missing with a niggle last week. 

Coach Kiran Verma will be hoping his team can lift for the final game in what has largely been a disappointing season for the Reserves. 

However, in their defence they have been chopped and changed all season with 8-10 changes from week to week in some games and a further 6 changes for this match.

Sam Hartog has been excellent on a wing in recent matches and Jayden Gallagher, Rory Johnson and Joel Workman have also enjoyed good form recently. 

With a forward line comprising Allen, Jack Austin, Jesse Hampel and Jordan Bonney the pies have plenty of options--they just need to get the ball down there as quick and as often as possible. 

The Magpies will be up for the challenge and several players on the fringe of Senior selection will be keen to play well to stay in the selection mix should the Seniors play finals. 

QAFL Round 19: Western Magpies Reserves v Surfers Paradise at Surfers Paradise on Saturday, August 17th at 11.30 am 

 B:   Aiden D'Roza  Sean McEvoy Chris Jenkins 

HB:   Zac Collison Harry Marshall  Peter Kilroy

C:   Sam Hartog Jayden Gallagher Zane Lovell

HF:  Finn Collison Jesse Hampel Deng Arok

F:   Jack Austin  Brady Allen Jordan Bonney 

Rucks:  Monty Vine

             Joel Workman 

Rover:   Rory Johnson 

I/C:   Isaac Bongaarts, Matt Mazarolle, Mitchell O'Dea, Harrison Radcliffe

CFMG Capital - Colts Round 19 Preview

COLTS MUST WIN TO SECURE DOUBLE CHANCE

The Western Magpies Colts face a danger game against Surfers Sharks on Saturday morning as the Pies need to win to have any chance of a third place finish.

The Sharks have improved since the last time they met so the Pies will need to be on guard.

The Pies will welcome back Queensland under 17 player Darcy Prest but will still miss the injured Jack Briskey.

The backline has been in good form recently with Whitlam Bishop, Lawson Campbell and Tom Evans all solid contributors while Lachlan Davies in ruck has also lifted his workmate in recent weeks.

Noah Resuggan, Sean Ryan, Darcy Prest, Cade Scott,  Jonty Macdougall and Jacob Aurisch are a strong midfield with a combination of pace and strength.

Jackson Paynter, Cam Ferguson and Cooper Crowell are the forward targets and Sam Mehari provides the speed at ground level.

Ferguson was exceptional last week in his return to the side, while Paynter has had an outstanding season and looks a future QAFL player of promise, likely as soon as next season.

The Pies should win and if Broadbeach are defeated by PBC then the Pies will take third place and the double chance. A loss drops the Pies to fifth but they will still play finals. 

QAFL Round 19: Western Magpies Colts v Surfers Paradise at Surfers Paradise on Saturday, August 17th at 9.30 am

 Unfortunately no side has been named at this point, which is a continual frustration for all involved.

Coopers Friday Night Footy Preview - Woodsmen take on Roos in Semi Final

After their quality win vs Morningside in last weeks semi final, the Woodies have named an unchanged side for the first time in club history as they prepare to take on their 2018 Grand Final opponents, Maroochydore in another knock-out final.

In a remarkable turn of events, at this stage there are no casualties from last weeks team due to work, injury, family commitments, coaching etc so an unnamed side has been named! Not a bad effort for a side that used a total of 79 players through the one side during the home & away rounds!

Having said all that, if you’re named an emergency for the Woodies, you strap the ankles and bring the boots!

Recognising the difficulty in getting up the Bruce Highway on a Friday evening, especially in the week of the ‘Ekka Flu’ - the game has been scheduled for an 8pm start, but the Woodies have been ready for this one for quite some time.

Last week there were a couple of players in Hockley and Prior who rose from their sick beds to play superb games, this week its a clean bill of health and the Woodies will have 22 fit and ready to go in enemy territory.

The engine room of Judson, Woods, DeNys, Curtis and Morrison created a potent ball winning midfield who are hard at the footy and apply plenty of tackling pressure to go with their ball winning ability. There is speed on the wings via Verma, Fuentes and potentially Banim and Davis who may push up there, while the usual miserly defence will again be functioning well without changes to the side.

Green has been in and out all year due to work commitments, but with this being his 3rd game on the trot he will be in prime form and form a quality defensive wall across half back with the likes of Young, Davis, Bilko and La Burniy, while the ever reliable Prior and Hopkins will mop up in the last line of defence.

Up front is where the real danger may lie with potent twin talls in Hockley and Evans creating aerial options and the experienced Mihalopoulous an option both in the air and at ground level. The irishman will be his usual electric self, while resting mids love to get forward for a goal.

Friday marks the 10 year anniversary to the day when the Woodies famously defeated Jimboomba in the 2009 Grand Final after the skipper Sean Toohey celebrated the early arrival of twins on the morning of the match. There are 3 surviving members of that side taking the field in Green, Thomson and Verma and they will be looking to mark the occasion with another quality win away from home.

Go Woodies!

Gut Feelings - Brought to you by Regis Aged Care

• The Seniors are back in the finals hunt but it is going to be a nerve racking Saturday afternoon with several possibilities come 5 pm.  The Magpies, Mt Gravatt and Labrador all sit on 24 points with percentage separating them . The Magpies hold down 5th place on the ladder on 96.84%,  1.1% ahead of Mt Gravatt on 95.74% but quite a long way ahead of Labrador on 82.55%. Simply put, the Pies must win over the second placed Surfers Paradise, as a loss is curtains for another year. If the Magpies win  and then if Mt Gravatt defeat Labrador then it will come down to percentage who takes 5th place. A Pies win and a Labrador win will see the Pies stay in 5th as Labrador’s percentage gap will be too great to bridge. Calculators will be at the ready and the possibility of thumb RSI is well and truly on the cards.  

• Coach Brydan Morgan has all his players fit and firing with the only players missing with injury being Drew Mitchell and Logan Murray. The pieces have fallen in place with the Pies able to play a more direct style of football, especially as the forward line looks dangerous with plenty of options in attack. Brodie Lumber is clunking them and now kicking straight, Ryan Harwood and Claye Beams are both fit and firing and enjoying booting a few goals and dual Bill Peirce Medallist Val Pope was starting to look like his dangerous self. The midfield now matches any opposition with Gerard Moore being a revelation in ruck and Samson Ryan the up and comer. 

• Though sadly the Pies look likely to lose Caleb Franks, Samson Ryan and Bruce Reville to Redland this week, sure we can cop Caleb Franks as a Redlands listed player - but the other 2 boys are on the Magpies Primary list and have been pulled from pillar to post this year playing for 6 different teams. Are they really looking after the development of young players with this sort of treatment?

• The Surfers Paradise match is a case of déjà vu as last year the winner of the last round match would make the five. Unfortunately for the Pies they were running on empty after playing a succession of virtual elimination finals in the second half of the season which took its toll and they went down. At the moment the Pies and Demons are the form teams of the competition and the home team will be playing for second place on the ladder and a home final so this match is a finals match one week early. However, unlike last year, the Pies are up and firing and all players look fit and despite the odd niggle are coming good at the right time of the season.

• Riley Easton turned back the clock to a different era with a mullet a la Bailey Smith from the Western Bulldogs and Riles as usual was in amongst it despite the new look.

• Mt Gravatt star Mick Hamill fractured the fibula in his leg in the second quarter on Saturday and it may spell the end of Mick's career.

• Mick is as close to family for the Magpies as there can be for an opposition player as he was a junior star for Sherwood and played with his cousin Pat Garner before joining his brother Will at the Vultures. He has been a true warrior for Mt Gravatt and despite his thin frame he is as tough as they come and is highly regarded in the QAFL. All at the Magpies wish Mick all the best in his recovery.  

• Gut Feelings playing days go back a bit and it was only at the end of his career that there was some inspirational music in the rooms before the match.  "Eye of the Tiger" comes to mind but on Saturday in the Pies' rooms before the match there was funky/hip hop music--not sure which-- that had the visiting Grey Magpies raise their eyebrows!

• Whatever it was it did the trick as the Pies came out firing from the first bounce to take early control of the match.

• Mitch Merritt had an omen of some sorts on Saturday when he had a magpie do his number and the droppings landed on Mitch. Now I am not sure how much of an omen it actually was--maybe if the droppings had hit a Mt Gravatt supporter it may have been an omen but whichever way you look at it the footballing Pies were all over their opponents on the field!! And Mitch took it all in his stride also running water for the senior team.

• With Barts on his Europe trip and now preparing to watch the Aussies at Lords, up stepped supporters Peter Carter and Lindsay Hampson to work the BBQ with Heathy helping out as usual.

• Peter is also a club sponsor with his law firm Carter Capner Lawyers and Lindsay was a past player at the club. They were very chuffed with their sales record, claiming to have outdone Barts and enjoyed themselves so much indicated they may get on the BBQ tools next season. 

• The Grey Magpies highlighted the career of Jim Evans on Saturday as he presented the awards for Saturday's matches. Jim won premierships as a junior and in Seniors for Sherwood and is still in good nick as he wore his Under 17 Sherwood premiership guernsey when he made the presentations to Dan Edwards in Seniors, Sam Hartog in Reserves and Whitlam Bishop in the Colts. 

• The BG Award went to skipper David Lewis who was inspirational across half back and as always displayed "Courage and Commitment".

• a reminder to check out "Magpie Chatter" No 5,  the Grey Magpies newsletter which has been posted on the Sherwood and Western Magpies Old Boys Facebook page. 

• The Woodsmen had a solid victory in Friday night's Elimination Final at McCarthy Homes Oval on Friday night over Morningside. A look at the best players list of Andrew Thomson, Jason Evans, Matt Hockley, Chris Judson , Tim Green and Kiran Verma would indicate an average age of well over 35 so not a bad effort from the mature players in the side!! You can’t buy experience!! Matt Hockley once again had the goal kicking boots on with 6 goals. 

• The Woodies travel up to Maroochydore on Friday night for an 8pm start to their First Semi Final.

•  Friday night saw a big crowd in attendance for the Woodies match which was preceded by the under 8s, Under 9s, Under 10s and the under 11 girls and boys matches. and it was also a "Pies For Pies" night and it was great to see so many families enjoying the footy on a Friday night.  

•  Club President Andrew Thomson just made it for the game after the wild weather in NSW caused the cancellation of a large number of flights and Thommo had to drive from Newcastle to Sydney to get on a re-scheduled flight before a dash from the airport got him to Chelmer just in time to coach the u11s to a solid win over arch rivals Yeronga before strapping on the boots (and plenty of tape) to take on Morningside. He says he got plenty of advice from the sidelines from his young charges, with his own words ringing in his ears regularly!

•  The Reserves pushed the more fancied Mt Gravatt and had their chances to win but fell 6 points short. This was a 95 point turnaround as the Pies were defeated by 101 points in Round 1. The highlight was the late inclusion into the side of Sean McEvoy for his 200th Senior club game for the Magpies. Smack played  a handy game in defence  and he features in another story celebrating his milestone elsewhere in this forum. In typical fashion Smack also ran the water for the Seniors in another demonstration of the clubman that he is. 

• The Magpies Colts had their work cut out for them in the first half against Mt Gravatt but powered away after half time. The Colts have a big game against Surfers Sharks on Saturday morning. The Pies are in 4th position on equal points but with a large gap in percentage behind the 3rd placed Broadbeach. The Magpies must win and then hope Broadbeach go down to the 2nd placed PBC.  Surfers pose a threat to the Pies as they have been playing good football in the second half of the season.

• Good to see Alex Dickfos enjoying the footy on Saturday and catching up with his mates at the Magpies, including ex-captain Lachlan Woods, who had  handy game in the Woodies victory on Friday night. Dicko played in the Wandsworth Demons premiership in London AFL last year but came home before this year's finals. He indicated he will be back at Chelmer next year in an early boost for the Pies’ 2020 prospects. 

• Congratulations to 17 year old Riley Greene who was this week’s QAFL Rising Star nomination. Riley has had an outstanding season to date and is a key member of the Pies backline. He is fearless in his attack on the ball and contest, puts his body on the line every match and for a 17 year old his footy smarts are well developed. He shows maturity on and off the field and is just a genuinely good bloke. He can hold a conversation with young and old alike and respects everyone in the footy club and understands the rich history of the club.He has not played a bad game this season and this week’s award is for consistency across the 13 matches he has played to date. In Gut Feelings opinion he has to be right in the mix along with Dan Edwards to take the overall QAFL Rising Star Award  such has been his consistency.

• “RG” will be a key part of the Magpies impressive defensive six as they take on Surfers Paradise on Saturday and should the Pies make the finals he will be a player to watch as this year he has stepped up on the big occasions when asked.

• RG joins Dan Edwards and Jack Austin as Magpie Rising Star nominees for 2019, and Ethan Sivijs can’t be far from a nomination after an incredibly consistent season down back for the Pies. One of these boys could follow in the footsteps of Riley Easton who was the 2018 Rising Star winner, remarkably so given it was his 4th year of Senior footy!

• Only a few rounds to go in junior footy and youth footy finals have now commenced, the U12s were unlucky to be knocked out and the absence of 3 x state players off in Perth certainly doesn’t help, but congrats again to the 3 J’s, Jacob Edwards, Jack Harrison and Jack Slater who were part of a QLD side who ran 4th, defeated SA and got closer than anyone to the Victorian side. The carnival was mostly played in tough conditions, but the boys did QLD proud under the guidance of club legend Noodles McEvoy who is the U12 state coach.

McCarthy Homes Match Review - Magpies firing on all cylinders to move into 5th

The Western Magpies inflicted a 10 goal defeat on old rivals Mt Gravatt and in doing so replaced the vultures in fifth place on the QAFL ladder going into the final round.

Playing at home at McCarthy Homes Oval at Chelmer in front of a healthy crowd,  the Magpies played some of their best football for the season and were on song from the first bounce as they went on to a 19.7-121 to 9.7-61 victory which lifted the Pies' percentage above Mt Gravatt.  Much to the pleasure of regular viewers, the Pies accuracy in front of goal was finally rewarding some of their work up the ground!

Brodie Lumber was on fire early in the match (no pun intended) with his regular strong marks leading to three first quarter goals which got the Pies away to a four goal lead at quarter time. The match was played in blustery conditions which the Magpies had first use but they handled the conditions quite well throughout the match.  

Claye Beams was used across half forward and he finished with 6 goals, at one stage in the second and third quarters booting 5 goals in a row for the Pies. His partner in crime in Ryan Harwood kicked 4 goals and Val Pope snared 2 goals as well to give the Pies a functioning and potent forwardline with Lumber and Dwyer offering the tall options, Beams, Harwood and Pope some finishing class and ability at both ground level and in the air, while Reed gets busy at ground level.

Gerard Moore and Samson Ryan  in ruck blunted the very strong Vultures ruck  duo and this enabled the Pies midfield to win the ball and drive the Pies forward. Harwood. Riley Easton, Caleb Franks and 350 game player Gareth Crawford all got the Pies going in the midfield battles. 

On the wings Dan Edwards and Bruce Reville provided plenty of spark to drive the Pies goalward, with their speed burning the opposition on several occasions.

The defence was superb, with skipper David Lewis marshalling his troops brilliantly from half back taking plenty of intercept marks in the 2nd quarter when the Vultures challenged with the wind at their back,  Luca Winton shut down the dangerous full forward,  Aaron Highlands was strong at CHB and Riley Greene,Ethan Sivijs, Luke Mitchell and Brenton Saunders mopped up and they were a very solid back six. 

Greene and Sivijs must both be long overdue for a QAFL Rising Star nomination, though as defenders perhaps don’t get the recognition of young forwards and mids throughout the competition despite both regularly playing outstanding games on experienced opponents.

The Pies season is still alive but they must defeat the other form side of the competition in the second placed Surfers Paradise who inflicted Palm Beach-Currumbin's first defeat of the year and also with an emphatic 10 goal victory. Surfers Paradise will be tough as they will be playing for a home Qualifying Final so this match is another finals like game with a huge amount riding on the outcome. 

The Pies will also be keeping a close eye on the Mt Gravatt-Labrador match because percentage could decide who makes the five even if the Pies are victorious. With 0.10% separating the Magpies and Mt Gravatt the calculators will be given a workout. A loss for the Magpies means curtains for the year and the winner of the Vultures-Tigers match will make the five, while a win provides to guarantees but should hopefully be enough to secure a well deserved finals spot after an interrupted season.

Western Magpies 5.2 - 32 | 9.4 - 58 | 14.6 - 90 | 19.7 - 121

defeated

Mt Gravatt Vultures 1.2 - 8 | 5.3 - 33 | 6.5 - 41 | 9.7 - 61

Best: Beams, Lumber, Lewis, Winton, Harwood, Edwards

Goals: Beams 6, Lumber, Harwood 4, Pope, Reed 2, Dwyer 1

Coopers Friday Night Footy Review - Elimination Final vs Morningside

The Woodsmen took on Morningside in the QFA Elimination Final on Friday night in front of a big home crowd on ‘Pie Night’ at the club. The theme continued as it certainly was the Pies night as they ran out 5 goal winners after a tough first half, before the experienced Woodies players took over to put the game to bed.

Getting off his sick bed for the match, regular CHF Matt Hockley was moved closer to goal to reduce his workload after a flu-ridden week and he produced the goods with a 6 goal haul, thanks to some quality finishing and regular supply from a dominant midfield.

The Woodies were strong early winning the first clearance and pushing forward, and while they spent a majority of the first quarter camped in their attacking 50 were only able to kick 2.3 for the quarter after some wayward kicking and some poor options going forward.

The 2nd quarter was more finely balanced with Morningside putting some good passages together, but a feature of the game was the ease with which the Woodies were able to rebound out of the defence and not spend petrol tickets with long period of defensive footy in their own half, while in contrast regularly locked the ball forward for repeat offensive opportunities.

Irish Sammy Banim was his usual lively self and set up an important second quarter goal for Captain/Coach Chris Mihalopoulous with a scinitilating peace of brilliance on the flank finishing with a deft left foot pass straight into Mika’s bread basket. Meanwhile the expected dominance through the midfield was coming to fruition with the Woodies batting particularly deep through the middle with the prolific Curtis and Judson, and the bullocking Woods and DeNys. Meanwhile, Morrison provided a touch of class despite being a little rusty coming back from an ankle injury.

This midfield depth allows the Woodies to play the likes of Chris Davis across half-back where his work rate, tackling and vocal direction are key, while Brent Hocking and Chris Mihaloplous are able to spend all their time forward without blowing up with midfield stints.

Also down back, Tim Green was controlling the air and while the Woodies were slightly undersized for height - the likes of Hopkins, Bilko, Prior and La Burniy dominated at ground level and Young was able to take plenty of intercept marks.

Kiran Verma played arguably his best game of the year showing some vintage speed, while Jake Fuentes was an important link man on the opposite wing.

With a 1 goal lead at half time, the Woodies were able to largely control the game in the 2nd half kicking 6 goals straight to take a 7 goal lead into time on before some junk time goals from the Panthers brought the final margin back to 5 goals.

Jason Evans was particularly strong in the 2nd half with some bustling play and the Panthers were noticeably beginning to 2nd guess themselves in contests as the experienced Magpies were strong and uncompromising over the footy. Judson was incredibly prolific and took huge advantage of Thomson’s ruck dominance around the ground as the midfield functioned beautifully. The addition of boundary throw-ins instead of ball ups for the finals certainly assists the older style ruckmen who prefer a wrestle to a jumping contest!

The reward for the victory is a Friday night game against Maroochydore in Maroochydore, and some of the Woodies are rumoured to have left already to beat the traffic!

Woodies 2.3 - 15 | 4.3 - 27 | 7.6 - 48 | 10.9 - 69

defeated

Morningside 1.1 - 7 | 3.3 - 21 | 3.6 - 24 | 5.7 - 37

Best: Thomson, Evans, Hockley, Judson, Green, Verma (average age 35!)

Goals: Hockley 6, Evans, Hocking, Mihalopoulos, Judson 1