Match Reports - Round 18 - August 7th v St Norbets

LEAGUE

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 3.6.24 def. By St. Norbets 12.11.83 @ Queens Park

Ellenbrook were soundly touched up by St Norbets in the last game of the season. In a do or die affair to make it into the finals, St Norbets fielded a very strong side and Ellenbrook was not up to the challenge. We had very good players take the field but had very little structure with our first choice ruckman, first change ruckman, Centre half back and a starting mid fielder playing league. Also another starting mid fielder, our best utility in Ty and our Centre half forward were out injured. Snow got picked off early in the match and while everyone out there battle it right out to the end, we were out classed by a quality St Norbets unit.
Thankyou to everyone who took the field in the reserves this year, you were all awesome, and I am proud of each and every one of you and what we achieved. Thankyou to A.J. Whitey and every one from the club who helped me out and supported me throughout the year. I had an absolute ball and could not have done it without you. Hope we are all back next year to go around again….. Go the Eels!

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Jared Turvey, Bill Wagland, Tommy Jaroka, Shane Glanville, Brad Gericke

GOALS: Mark “Balla” Ballard (2) Shane Glanville (1)

AWARDS: Jared Turvey, Bill Wagland, Tommy Jaroka, Shane Glanville, Brad Gericke, Ioannis Dimopolous

WHITEY’S WALLOP: Jen for putting up with me throughout the season.

Match Reports - Round 17 - July 31st v Armadale

LEAGUE

The Ellenbrook Eels made it back to back wins on the weekend during their last home game for the year against the Armadale Demons. The Eels fought off a late charge to hold out the Demons winning 11.6.72 to 8.13.61. The win made it sweet revenge for the Eels after the two teams fought out a thrilling draw back in Round 3 where the scores finished 84 points a piece.

Armadale started the first quarter on fire, dominating through the midfield and outclassing the Eels in most positions around the ground. At quarter time the Demons held a 2 goal lead kicking 4.3 to the Eels 2.1.

After some changes during the break, the Eels managed to shut down 3 key Demon running players which freed up several Ellenbrook players. The Eels started to dominate around stoppages and clearances, completely stopping Armadale’s ability to move the ball. At half time Ellenbrook wrestled the lead to be up 7.4 to 5.7.

Ellenbrook were asked to give a little extra during the second half and the players were made aware of the importance to maintain the intensity during the first 15 minutes after the main break. This proved to be a deciding factor in the end result as the Eels managed to hold off any challenge from the Demons. If not for a late goal from Armadale, Ellenbrook would have held a bigger lead going into the final change.

Final quarter fade outs have been a downfall for the Eels during 2010 and it was again stressed that the players needed to just enjoy what was ahead and not to panic under pressure. Armadale came out firing, kicking the first 2 goals of the final term but the Eels ‘never say die’ approach and hardness at the man and the ball got them over the line. The win was a huge reward for the playing group who have had a challenging year and the way the side never lost belief, proved to be the knockout blow for the Demons. In the end, the mighty Eels held out to win by 11 points.

Michael Jauncey played his best game of the year from the half back line and was awarded the B.O.G for his hardness and gut running through the Eels defensive zone. Steve Strauch completely dominated in the Ruck, which allowed the Eels first use of the ball. He was well supported by Matt Rutherford and young Josh Tuckwell, who were outstanding through the middle. Skipper Paul Saylor also proved a handful for the Demons as he racked up many possessions and really lifted the Eels when it counted the most.

The pleasing thing for the Eels was the performance of this week’s Rising Star nominee Pat Casey who stepped up for his first game of league football. Patty was absolutely outstanding during the dying stages of the game taking several contested marks and displayed a great deal of confidence when the put under pressure.

All up the win was by far a huge step in the right direction for the Eels and the platform for bigger things to come next year is well and truly in place.

This weekend will see the Eels travel to Queens Park to take on St Norberts for the last game of the home and away season. If they maintain the intensity they’ve displayed over the past 2 weeks then they’ll certainly be well on the way to finishing 2010 with 3 straight wins.

Hobbsy
2010 league Coach

ADACES FORTUNA JUVAT
fortune favours the brave

50 club games: Michael Jauncey

Best Players: Michael Jauncey, Steve Strauch, Paul Saylor, Matt Rutherford and Pat Casey.

Goal Kickers: Robby Schnaars 3, Aaron Power & Aaron Diss 2 each. Michael Jauncey, Warwick Hutcho, Matty Jones & Josh Satie all kicked 1 goal each.

Hutcho man:

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 12.9 - 81def. Armadale 1.2 - 8

Ellenbrook took the honours this week in a very hard action filled game. The Eels played quality footy all day. Ellenbrook zoned well, setting up the first goal from a good mark by Adz G. on the kick in. It was the first of many highlights as Ellenbrook took control of the game. 10 minutes into the last quarter, Armadale kicked two quick goals which caused Ellenbrook to man up better. This exposed that Armadale had a nineteenth player on the field and Ellenbrook called for a headcount with the scores at Ellenbrook 11.8.74 to Armadale 6.5.41.After Armadale tried several attempts to convince the umpires that they only had 18 on the field with no success, their score was wiped and the game continued on. Armadale concentrated more on going the knuckle after that point with several elbows and fists being thrown but Ellenbrook did not take a backward step, taking on and beating Armadale in every way!

It was great to have a good win against Armadale who beat us in round 4. I am proud of the way the guys rallied together in a tough situation and really looked after one another. Looking forward to the last round against St Norbets next week in the final home and away round in a must win game for us.

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Johno Dick, Shane Glanville, Ty Campbell, Steve McGuire, Brad Gericke , Mark “Balla” Ballard, Chris “Simmsy” Sims, Deano Crosswell

GOALS: Mark “Balla” Ballard (5) Allen “Snowy” Robertson (1) Johno Dick (1) Brad “Macca” McKenna (1) Shane Glanville(1) Adam Gericke (1) Carl “Bozi” Bishop (1) Jared Turvey (1)

AWARDS: Johno Dick, Shane Glanville, Deano Crosswell, Chris “Simmsy” Sims

Whitey’s Wallop: Simon “Simmo” Withers was outstanding in the first half with plenty of smothers and general hardness at the ball. His courage going back with the flight of the ball earned him a knee in the back and Muzz elected to rest him after half time due to the bruising.

Match Reports - Round 16 - July 24th v Nollamara

LEAGUE

Robby Schnaars boots 6 goals to help the Ellenbrook Eels to their biggest win of the 2010 season on Saturday, as the Eels ran rampant over Nollamara to claim a 73 point victory.

The Eels lead all day and it was clearly the best team performance for the year. It was evident that all 22 players were focussed on nothing less than a win, where the Eels set up a 20 point quarter time lead. Aaron Diss was outstanding on the wing as his courage to win the disputed ball set the tone for his team mates, while Cal Schnaars dominated up forward.

The second quarter saw the Eels suck the life out of Nollamara’s scoring opportunities as the Cougars could only manage 1 goal 7 for the quarter while the Eels managed to kick another 3 goals. Robby Schnaars proved unstoppable during this quarter as he kicked all 3 goals for the Eels to give them a handy lead at the main break. Half time Ellenbrook lead 6.7 to 1.9.

During the half time break the Eels were challenged to dominate the second half and they did just that. The Eels managed to kick 6 goals during the 3rd quarter, which really set up the win. Ryan Phillamore completely dominated clearances which gave the Eels plenty of scoring opportunities. They stretched their lead to 58 points.

The Eels finished off the last quarter kicking 4 goals to 1 as Nollamara had no answer to the Eels run. Josh Tuckwell was outstanding during the final term as he continually won the ball around the stoppages and was well supported by the team skipper Paul Saylor. In the End the Eels had too much class to run out winners 16.10.106 to 3.15.33.

Whilst 2010 has been a hard year for the Eels on the field as they lost quite a few quality players from the year before, they have managed to blood quite a few young players into league football this year. Saturday’s result against Nollamara was a great reward for the playing group and there’s no reason why the Eels can’t win their final 2 games against Armadale and St Norberts.

Best players for the Eels were, Aaron Diss who racked up a host of possessions on the wing, Robby Schnaars was unstoppable up forward kicking 6 goals, while Brother Cal chipped in with 2 majors. Young Luke Hurley was outstanding at Centre Half Back taking several marks in our defensive half, while Steve Strauch had his best game for the year dominating in the Ruck.

All up, the most pleasing thing about the win was the way all 22 players contributed to the end result and all 22 put together 4 consistent quarters of team footy, something we’ve been unable to achieve this year before Saturday’s win.

AUDACES FORTUNA JUVAT
fortune favours the brave

Hobbsy
2010 League Coach

Goal kickers: Robby Schnaars 6, Aaron Power, Ryan Phillamore, Cal Schnaars & Anthony Zan 2 goals each, Josh Satie & Mat Best kicked 1 goal each.

Best Players: Luke Hurley, Aaron Diss, Robby Schnaars, Steve Strauch & Josh Tuckwell.

50th game today: Aaron “Pav” Innes

Hutcho Man:

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 21.10 - 136 def. Nollamara 4.3 - 27

The Nollamara game had potential to be a danger game for Ellenbrook with Nollamara usually fielding a stronger team at their home ground and they were also expecting a large vocal crowd to help celebrate the 30th anniversary of their “A’ Grade flag. The Eels took control early though and never let the crowd become a factor. The run off half back from Simmsy and Ty was outstanding along with the hard running through the mid field by Snow, Billy and Whitey. Leckie was a huge target at half forward and Balla was fantastic out of the square finishing the game with 9 goals. It became a very one sided affair with Ellenbrook really turning it on with some fantastic passages of football. It was an awesome win for the Eels and a very important percentage booster heading into the last few weeks of the season.
With two weeks left , it is good to be back on track and we are looking forward to a huge game against Armadale next week who beat us earlier in the year.

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Ty Campbell , Mark “Balla” Ballard, Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Billy Wagland, Brady Leckie, Simon “Simmo” Withers

GOALS: Mark “Balla” Ballard (9) Allen “Snowy” Robertson (3) Wayne “Hiley” Maiden (3) Brady Leckie (3) Brad “Macca” McKenna (2) Chris “Simmsy” Sims (1)

AWARDS: Ty Campbell, Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Billy Wagland, Simon “Simmo” Withers

Whitey’s Wallop: Hard to pick one person out in such a team effort but veteran Wayne “Hiley” Maiden was instrumental in winning the contests and protecting his team mates. Well done Hiley.

Match Reports - Round 15 - July 17th v Swan Valley

LEAGUE

This would have to be our worst game of the year as we were completely outclassed all over the park against a very skilful and fit Swan Valley. Certainly not the way we’d planned for the Battle of the Burley but what can I say????

Right from the opening bounce it was clear that Swan Valley would be a challenge and whist the score was a complete blowout our lads never gave in. I feel that the little we say about the game the better, but let’s just say we’ll lock that one in the memory bank for our next clash against the Valley where we’ll regain the Burley!!!!

On a rather sad note the club farewelled a club legend on the weekend as Devo played his last game of footy to hang up the boots. Devo has been an instrumental part of the club over the years as he played in over 280 amateur games in Perth and over 50 for the Eels. He’ll certainly be missed on the field and will be remembered for kicking many miraculous goals. On behalf of the team and the club I’d like to thank Devo for the great memories he has given us over the years and I certainly wouldn’t be with the Eels if it wasn’t for Devo’s input. Thanks mate; I know the lads will reward you with a few wins before season end.

On another note to our supporters and to those who knock us for the lack of success we’ve tasted this year, I’ll take a little time to remind you of a few things. Firstly we had more than half the team playing in our league side on Saturday with only 10 games or less of experience playing league footy which is remarkably high. Secondly the club has lost quite a few quality players from last years Grand Final side including 3 Founders Medal winners so we’ve blooded and exposed quite a few new faces into league footy this year. Thirdly the club has gone through many changes off the field as well with new coaching staff and club management.

Now I’m not trying to make excuses for our results or lack of success this year, I am bringing to your attention that there have been several changes within the team. Those players who have stepped up into league footy this year will be so much better for it in 2011. So all I can say to our valued supporters out there is to stick with us as I do believe we will turn the corner very quickly. There are some exciting plans in place for next year and our recruiting has already begun.

I’m here for the long term and I’m certainly not giving up on what we desire to achieve. It start’s this weekend against Nollamara, where I’ll be expecting noting less than a win.

Heads up Eels it’s not all doom and gloom as I can see success in the not to distant future, you’ve all just gotta stick together that’s all and believe in what you’ve got to give as a team.

AUDACES FORTUNA JUVAT
Fortune favours the brave

Hobbsy
League Coach

Best Players:Matty Jones, Dizzy, Luke and Tucky.

Goals:Devo & Power kicked 1 each.

The Hutcho Man: In his farewell game, who else but David “Devo” van Raalte.

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 9.3.57 lost to Swan Valley 8.11.59

Swan Valley got off to a good start against Ellenbrook kicking the first three goals of the game and really took control with some good hard running. Ellenbrook settled though, began to man up well, shut down the run and got on top of the Valley by half time. The Eels who were severely under manned continued to play good footy in the third and pulled away to a 3 goal lead at half time. Snow lead the way in the mid field with Ty and Whitey doing well in mid field roles they are unaccustomed to and Balla presenting well up forward. Swan Valley was not done with though and played an outstanding last quarter showing better fitness and a little more depth to get up at the end of the day by 2 points.

It was a bad loss for the Eels heading towards the business end of the season and we really need to regroup and get back in the winners circle against Nollamara next week.

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Jason Powell, Ty Campbell, Mark “Balla” Ballard, Callum “Whitey” White, Simon “Simmo” Withers

GOALS: Mark “Balla” Ballard(4) Allen “Snowy” Robertson (2) Steve McGuire (1) Ty Campbell (1) Wayne “Hiley” Maiden (1)

AWARDS: Jason Powell, Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Simon “Simmo” Withers

Whitey’s Wallop: When the numbers are are low, the runner pulls on his boots and takes to the field. Well done Brian “B.T.” Taylor.

Match Reports - Round 14 - July 10th v East Fremantle

LEAGUE

Ellenbrook 11.10 - 76 drew with East Fremantle 11.10 - 76.

The Eels welcomed East Fremantle to Coolamon Oval “The Home of the Eels” in the Round 14 clash. Both teams were striving for a much needed win and the Eels were looking for some pride after a well below par performance the week earlier against Safety Bay.

After such a promising start the Eels yet again fell away at the last hurdle to fight out another thrilling draw, our second for the year. Final score being 11.10.76 apiece. For the Eels this was a disappointing result after they’d lead all day and outclassed the Eagles for the first three quarters.

Our first half was pretty much faultless with the lads dominating the clearances and around the ground with our short play on options. If not for some wayward kicking during the first quarter the Eels would have found themselves a lot further in front at the main break. They still managed to hold a 29 point margin at the half time siren.

For some reason the boys seemed to lack self confidence and self belief when the Eagles challenged us during the final term which cost the team a much needed 4 Premiership points. We need to learn from our lack of self belief when challenged as its cost us several victories this year and we would have been placed a lot further up the ladder if we’d won those games. It is what it is though and a draw’s still better than a loss.

Matty Jones was again outstanding on our half-backline and was awarded the best on ground award for his toughness. Big Rhino had a day out up forward booting 6 goals, taking his overall tally to 38 for the season. Other players to play well for the Eels were Billy who just keeps improving every week and Jauncey who had his best game for the season.

On a positive note for the Eels we managed to promote 2 U-17’s into the League side, which was a massive achievement for the club. Both Jordan and Cass were outstanding and acquitted themselves quite well in the side. The Round 14 Rising Star award was split between the 2 players as both lads did the club proud and made an easy transition into senior footy.

In closing I’d like to personally thank Dave (The U-17’s) coach for allowing both Jordan and Cass to step up into the league team. I certainly look forward to these players running around with the Eels for many years to come. Well done lads and on behalf of the Eels I’d like to congratulate you with the way you settled in.

The Eels will be fielding a Colts team in 2011 so it’ll be a priority over the remaining games that the league team works as closely as possible with our U-17’s so that we can best prepare these young players to play league footy.

AUDACES FORTUNA JUVAT
Fortune favours the brave

Hobbsy
League Coach

Best Players: Matty Jones, Dizzy, Rhino, Jordan & Cass.

Goals: Rhino 6, Devo, Dizzy, Robby, Macca and Sayl’s all kicked 1 each.

The Hutcho Man: Always in and under, this weeks winner is no surprise - Aaron “Dissy” Diss.

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 11.12 - 78 def. East Fremantle 5.7 - 37 @ Coolamon

Rd. 14 vs. East Freo was a very important game for Ellenbrook. East Freo was sitting fourth and Ellenbrook was very keen to not only back up our good win from the week before but beat East Freo for a second time this season and put ourselves well into the mix for finals. Ellenbrook played some good football all day and slowly pulled away throughout the day to end up convincing winners by 41 points. Luke Hurley absolutely dominated at centre half back leading the way with a lot of big hits, big marks and consistently getting the hard ball. With both Balla and Leckie missing from Ellenbrook’s usual forward line set up, Anthony Zan and Patty Casey stood up to kick 7 between them and provide some good focal points up forward.

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Luke Hurley, Shane Glanville, Anthony Zan, Patty Casey, Troy Abbott, Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Callum “Whitey” White, Brad Gericke, Tamas “Tommy” Jaroka,

GOALS: Anthony Zan (4) Patty Casey (3) Steve McGuire (1) Troy Abbott (1) Jason Powell (1) Wayne “Hiley” Maiden (1)

AWARDS: Luke Hurley, Shane Glanville, Anthony Zan, Patty Casey

WHITEY’S WALLOP: Luke Hurley for big hits and hardball gets

Match Reports - Round 13 - July 3rd v Safety Bay

LEAGUE

First things first, congratulations to Paul Saylor for playing his 350th amateur game of league footy on Saturday against Safety Bay. Cal Schnaars also become the second Eel to reach 150 games for the club after his brother achieved this milestone 2 weeks earlier so on behalf of the club congratulations to you both. Paul and Cal have been a huge part of the make up of our football club and to achieve this just shows how loyal both players are towards the mighty Eels.

Now to the football side of things, I was disappointed with the way the boys played 3 quarters of selfish footy on Saturday. I felt like I was coaching 22 individuals at times as players just went through the motions rather than look after team-mates and apply constant pressure. I’ve banked this year on priding ourselves on a selfless brand of footy so need I remind you all about our team ethos? Anyway enough said there the playing group know where we went wrong and we’ll turn it around this weekend.

I feel we wasted our first 3 quarters as our decision making and skill level was rather poor, considering this was an area we worked on over the week at training. We only managed to kick 4 goals in the first 3 quarters, to be trailing the Stingers by 42 points going into the final change.

The Eels flicked on the switch in the last and nearly caused an upset win, but unfortunately the damage was done and we lost by 3 goals. Final Score being 9.6.60 to 11.15.81 in the Stingers favour, but to the Eels credit they never gave up during the last as they piled on 5 goals to 1.

Matty Jones was again outstanding on the half backline and was clearly best on ground, while Cal Schnaars played his best game for the season as did big Straunchy in the Ruck. Young Billy Wayland also continued his improvement in the league side and was awarded this weeks Rising Star nominee.

It’s not all doom and gloom for the Eels as I still believe there is a lot we can achieve over the next 5 games. We’ve just got to concentrate on working together as a team and on looking after one another at training, which will feed into our game. I’m certainly excited about the next 5 weeks and I know the boys will string a few wins together before the season finishes.

AUDACES FORTUNA JUVAT
Fortune favours the brave

Hobbsy
League Coach 2010

Best Players: Matty Jones, Dizzy, Cal, & Straughnchy.

Goals: Aaron Power & Devo 2 goals each, Ryan, Salys, Cal, Maka & Stew all kicked 1 goal each.

Hutch Man: 350 games and still going strong, you can’t fault the way captain Paul Saylor plays his footy.

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 20.12 - 132 def. Safety Bay 4.3 - 27@ Coolamon

Ellenbrook vs. Safety Bay was certainly a game of two very different halves. The first half did not produce much quality football and the scores remained close until half time with Ellenbrook holding a three goal lead at the main break. After halftime Ellenbrook lead by amazing football from Robby Curyer, Snow and Bozi played the best hard hitting football we have produced all year. Safety Bay were the walking wounded as they were crunched at every turn in a devastating half of footy from Ellenbrook. Rob Curyer, Ty Campbell and Luke Hurley laid some huge hits but they were just three of many. Ellenbrook ran riot over a Safety Bay team that now seamed to scared to go near the ball and the mighty Eels ran out 105 point winners to celebreate Whitey’s 200th amateur game.

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Robby Curyer, Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Carl “Bozi” Bishop, Callum “Whitey” White, Chris “Simmsy” Sims

GOALS: Mark “Balla” Ballard (6) Steve McGuire (3) Robby Curyer (3) Anthony Zan (2) Allen “Snowy” Robertson (2) Callum “Whitey” White (1) Carl “Bozi” Bishop (1) Shane “Shano” Glanville (1) Ty Campbell (1)

AWARDS: Robby Curyer, Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Carl “Bozi” Bishop

Whitey’s Wallop: Chris “Julia Gillard” Sims for him terrorizing Safety Bay with his red hair…. lol

Match Reports - Round 12 - June 26th V Canning

LEAGUE

The Eels travelled out to take on the undefeated Canning Tigers in Round 12 and after knocking off Carlisle the week before the mighty Eels were confident they could win. This wasn’t the case though as Canning proved far too strong on the day for the young Eels as we were outclassed all over the ground.

I must say we could have done much better than we did, as we showed in patches we could be competitive. Watching Canning move the ball around and the way they dominated clearances just showed how well drilled they are as a team and how much they play for each other. It was an example of the level the Eels need to get to if we’re to become a quality side.

Aaron Power tried hard all day and pretty much found himself playing through the midfield for the entire 4 quarters. He was well supported by Matty Jones off our half backline. Matty showed a great deal of courage during the second half against much bigger opponents. Aaron Diss was again courageous our on the wing and our skipper Sayl’s didn’t stop believing in his team all day either. Never the less we just got beaten by a better side.

The Final score didn’t reflect of the Eels actual effort as we were more than competitive around the ground, but a loss is a loss. We’ve got a lot of work to do but where certainly on the right track.

Canning ended up winning 14.21.105 to 3.2.20, a pretty disappointing result for the boys after staging a huge upset over Carlisle the week before.

AUDACES FORTUNA JUVAT
Fortune favours the brave

Hobbsy
League Coach 2010

Best Players: Matty Jones, Aaron Power, Robby Schnaars and Aaron Diss.

Goals: Power 2 & Ryan 1.

Hutcho Man: Aaron “Dissy” Diss is never one to shirk a contest and today was no exception.

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 8.7 - 55 def. By Canning 7.10 - 52 @ Wyong

Ellenbrook and Canning fought out a good game of footy at Wyong this week. The boys really picked up from the previous week and played some quality footy and were very unlucky not to come away with the win. In difficult conditions with the cricket pitch areas being nothing but mud, Whitey, Leckie, Bozi and Snow toiled all day leading the way for Ellenbrook who had the advantage for most of the game. Canning stayed in touch throughout however, then kicked a goal in the dying minute to put them three points in the lead which they held onto and claimed the four points!

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Carl “Bozi” Bishop, Brady Leckie, Callum “Whitey” White, Tamas “Tommy” Jaroka

GOALS: Mark “Balla” Ballard (4) Brady Leckie (1) Anthony Zan (1) Allen “Snowy” Robertson (1)

AWARDS: Brady Leckie, Callum “Whitey” White, Carl “Bozi” Bishop, Tamas “Tommy” Jaroka, Allen “Snowy” Robertson

Whitey’s Wallop: He’s been stuck in his brothers shadow this year but with both playing in the same side, Rhys Innes chose today to shine. he constantly attacked the ball hard and only a wayward kick stopped him finishing off his good work with a goal.

Match Reports - Round 11 - June 19th v Carlisle

LEAGUE

Robby Schnaars not only celebrated a win on Saturday as the Eels snapped a 5-game losing streak against Carlisle, but he also became the first player for Ellenbrook to reach 150 games in an Eels jumper in what will be a memorable day for the veteran.

Robby has been an instrumental part of the Eels since coming down for his first game in 2002, the inaugural season for Ellenbrook. He has won several club awards including back to back “Founder’s Medal” in 2006 & 2007 and the club “Leading Goal Kicker” in 2009. The win on the weekend meant a lot to a player who’s committed so much to the club.

Carlisle started the game on fire, skipping out to a 3 goal lead by quarter time as the Eels struggled to hit a target when going forward. Even though Carlisle led on the scoreboard the Eels had dominated general play. The second quarter saw the Eels step up a level and gained the upper-hand with Ryan Phillamore showing the way by kicking 3 goals for the term. At half time the Eels were still trailing, 6-2-38 to 7-4-46.

At the break, I spoke about the importance of maintaining intensity in the second half and continuing to remain composed when they had the ball. The Eels did just that and really turned in on during the third quarter against the non preferred scoring end to hold a 1 point lead going into the final change. Matty Jones was sensational during the third quarter on the half-backline and created great run through the defensive lines. He was well supported by Rob Curyer and Dylan Cunningham, who also continuously broke the lines.

Going into the final quarter with the belief that they could win, the Eels were asked to put in an unbelievable and memorable quarter of footy. “Let’s win it for Robby, let’s win it for each other” were the final words before the players moved back out onto the ground. The Eels produced their best quarter of footy this year and even when they were challenged late in the quarter, they still stood up when they needed to the most. Big Robby Schnaars was absolutely inspirational as he lifted the side across the line to give the Eels an emotional but well earned victory running out winners, 16.10.106 to Carlisle’s 12.9.81.

The difference for the Eels was their ability to produce a 4 quarter effort and the way they played for each other all day. There’s three parts to a footy game - when you’ve got the footy, when they’ve got the footy, and when the balls in dispute. They managed to do all three exceptionally well, which allowed us to gain the desired result.

When the final siren sounded there were a few tears among the playing group as the boys carried Robby from the ground and it’s small memories like these that stick with you forever. From a coaching point of view I couldn’t have asked any more from the group. I’m very proud, as they did everything I asked them to do.

It was hard to pick best players as all 22 contributed but special mention must go to Ryan Phillamore kicking 7 goals and Aaron Power who kicked 4. Jesse Manning was outstanding all day through the middle and the skipper Paul Saylor was inspirational. All up, everyone played part in a well deserved win.

AUDACES FORTUNA JUVAT
Fortune Favours the Brave

Hobbsy
League Coach

Goal Kickers: Ryan Phillamore 7, Aaron Power 4, Matty Craig, Jesse Manning, Matt Rutherford, Brad McKenna, & Robby Schnaars all kicked 1 each.

Best Players: (Team Effort).

Whitey’s Wallop / Hutcho Man: This week the awards were given to the milestone players - Schnaarsy for his 150 club games and Brad Gericke for his 250 Amatuer games. John Dick also joined the boys for a quick drink up on stage to clebrate his 50th game for the Eels.

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 13.11 - 89 def. By Carlisle 7.5 - 47 @ Coolamon

Ellenbrook was beaten well by Carlisle this week. In an important clash, the Eels let themselves down, not sticking to their own game plan and not committing to each and every contest. It was close on the score board till half time but it was really a case of neither side taking their chances and kicking away. Carlisle however got the advantage after half time and pulled away and the Eels failed to respond and let a very winnable game slip.
After a talk amongst one another a spray from myself and a whole lot of soul searching, I am sure the mighty Eels will regroup and play some quality footy against Canning next week.

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Carl “Bozi” Bishop, Callum “Whitey” White, Tamas “Tommy” Jaroka

GOALS: Mark “Balla” Ballard (3) Nathan “Yabbi” Beck (1) Callum “Whitey” White (1) Chris ‘Simmsy” Sims (1) Johno Dick (1)

AWARDS: Luke Hurley, Callum “Whitey” White, Carl “Bozi” Bishop, Tamas “Tommy” Jaroka, Allen “Snowy” Robertson

Match Reports - Round 10 - June 12th v Coolbellup

LEAGUE

I have to admit, it’s getting rather tough writing these match reports after we’ve now copped 5 straight losses and perhaps its time we all took a little responsibility for the position we are in. Maybe its just time we all just harden up a little and get that win we so much desire. No more excuses, its time we started playing the “SELFLESS” brand of footy instead of the “SELFISH” brand we have been playing.

You can take the above statement how ever you wish but I noticed on the weekend we broke down in so many areas because we just weren’t playing for each other and doing the team thing. When I first came down to this great footy club, I made the statement that we’d play a unique team game of footy based on “SELFLESSNESS” and having players who pride themselves on sacrificial acts on the footy field, putting there team-mates game before there own. This hasn’t happened as of yet and I believe we’re in the situation we are in because we just aren’t playing the brand of footy we should be.

I really thought we’d get a win against Coolbellup after the Ressies pumped them by 15 goals, and after a great start kicking 6 goals in the first quarter I honestly thought it was going to be our day. The reason we had such a great start was due to the playing group sticking to our team-plan and playing for each other. It’s just a pity, for some reason or another, the boys just couldn’t maintain the intensity, which cost us any chance of a win, losing 11.5 to 16.16.

Our Reserve Grade are playing a sensational brand of footy at the moment, hence why they are winning. All you have to do is watch the way they go about there footy which is a credit to the playing group and Muzz for the way he’s coaching the boys. Maybe the League side needs to take a leaf out of the Ressies book as far as playing a “SELFLESS” brand of footy goes and you’ll be surprised at how quickly our season will turn around.

On a positive note though, was the way Hutcho played as he not only chipped in kicking 4 goals, but took several contested marks and applied ferocious forward pressure when ever he needed too. He’s getting better and better each week in the League side and he certainly proving to be an important part of our forward line set up. He was well supported by Robby Schnaars who took 12 odd marks around centre half forward and Dunks was unstoppable through our defensive zone. Dunks has really stood up over the past few weeks and is certainly contributing in a leadership role in our back half.

This week marks a milestone for a player who’s given his all to the footy club. Robby Schnaars plays his 150th game in the Eels jumper and he’s the first ever player to achieve this milestone at the club, so on behalf of the club I’d like to wish him all the best for Saturday and hope the players help him achieve a memorable moment you’ll never forget. I feel, as a team, we all owe it to Robby to step up and get a win against Carlisle and break our losing streak. Go Eels!!!!

Hobbsy
League Coach

AUDACES FORTUNA JUVAT
Fortune favours the brave

Best Players: Robby. Hutcho, Jesse, Dunks & Power.

The Hutcho Man: Matty Craig

RESERVES

Coolbellup 3.15.33 def. By Ellenbrook 17.13.115

Ellenbrook had 22 contributors in their decisive 82 point win over Coolbellup this week. From go to Woh Ellenbrook consistently won nearly all postions on the ground to kick their highest score for the year. The entire back line led by Brad Gericke was very tight when they needed to be and ran off to great effect when able to, setting up a lot of forward drive and ended up holding Coolbellup to 3 goals. The midfield of Snow, Bozi, Sayls, Shano , Ioannis, Tommy with Adzzy and Vaughano changing in the Ruck dominated all day driving the ball forward consistently. Snow even bobbed up with 3 majors of his own and Sayls and Whitey 1 each from the mid field in outstanding performances. Balla capitalized on all the forward drive finishing the game with 10 goals with only a little bit of inaccuracy letting him down after taking 20 shots on goal. I am extremely happy with how the boys went about it this week and hope they can take that same intensity into next week.

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Mark “Balla” Ballard, Allen “Snowy” Robertson, Carl “Bozi” Bishop, Callum “Whitey” White, Tamas “Tommy” Jaroka

GOALS: Mark “Balla” Ballard (10) Allen “Snowy” Robertson (3) Paul “Sayls” Saylor (1) Adam “Addzy” McGrath (1) Callum “Whitey” White (1) Patty “1 Goal” Casey (1)

AWARDS: Award money put on bar for entire team, due to all 22 contributing to a fantastic win.

WHITEY’S WALLOP: John “ Johno” Dick - strong all day in the back line and never giving an inch.

Match Reports - Round 9 - June 5th v Dianella Morley

LEAGUE

The Eels welcomed Dianella-Morley on Saturday to Coolamon Oval “The home of the Eels” and even though we had a few injuries to key players I was quite confident we could cause an upset on our home turf. This wasn’t to be the case though as a lapse during the 3rd quarter cost us of any chance of a win, but never the less the boys showed great spirit against a side who has only suffered one loss for the year.

As hard as it was to suffer another loss I though a real positive we could take from the game was the way those 3 players who were promoted from the Reserve’s conducted themselves on the footy field as all three showed a great deal of promise. Nate Carr was superb, playing on the ball and won several clearances while Big Straunchy dominated in the Ruck. Young Matty Smith did exactly what I’d asked him to do and found himself right in the think of things around general play. We perhaps need to take a leaf out of these three players books as all three were hungry and all three put their hands up when the club needed them to.

The first half of the game was quite even and if not for 2 late goals by the Raiders just before half time the Eels may have held a slight lead but never the less I thought our first half was quite good in stages as we really challenged our opposition. We trailed however at the half time break 8.3.51 to 5.2 32.

Now I don’t know what it is but for some reason we just seem to come out flat after half time and Dianella completely took full advantage of this during the third quarter piling on 4 unanswered goals to set up a handy lead at the final change. Players just need to learn that they’ve gotta remain switched on until the final siren goes and not the half time one.

To the boys credit though we managed to outplay the Raiders during the final quarter but unfortunately for us this just wasn’t enough as we went down 8.6.54 to 14.13.97. All up consistency is killing us, so we just need to put 4 quarters together, it’s as simple as that.

Azz Power kicked 5 goals up forward and was awarded the B.O.G for his display while Big Straunchy was unstoppable in the Ruck. Dunks worked hard through our defensive half to take out the Power Play voucher while Vice Capt Jess dominated our clearances with Nate Carr. All up disappointing with another loss but plenty of improvement on the previous weekends loss to Southern River.

We make the trip down to Coolbellup this weekend to play the Cats and to be honest I expect nothing less than a 4 quarter effort or we could find ourselves having a rather challenging week at training. High expectations I know but when we know we can play so much better than we have been playing and I think the 4 quarter effort is the least we can ask for. We’ve just gotta believe in ourselves Eels and we’ll get our desired result.

AUDACES FORTUNA JUVAT
fortune favours the brave

Best Players: Azz Power, Nate Carr, Straunchy, Dunks Smithy and Jess Manning.

Goals: Azz Power 5. Boner, Hutcho, & Matty Craig all kicked 1 goal each.

Whitey’s Wallop: Young Matty Smith stepped up for his firs league game and didn’t take a backwards step all day. He constantly put his head over the ball amd showed how much he wanted to play league footy.

RESERVES

Ellenbrook 8.6.54 def. By Dianella Morley 10.8.68

Ellenbrook made a conscious decision to play a very intimidating hard brand of footy and try to rattle league leaders Dianella Morley. It worked to great effect for two and a half quarters with Ellenbrook getting the jump on D.M. on the scoreboard and in general play. Ellenbrook did not drive the advantage home and let Dianella work their way back into the game during the third quarter and start to dictate terms. Dianella kicked a couple of goals clear during the last and that proved to much for Ellenbrook to overcome with D.M. running out victors in a very high quality game of footy by 14 points.

Murray Watson (Eels D Reserves Coach)

BEST: Luke Hurley, Toby Scrimgeour, Luke “Feats” Featonby, Dylan Teicher, Steven McGuire

GOALS: Nathan “Yabbi” Beck (3) Luke “Feats” Featonby (2) Adam “Tonna” Antunavich (1) Shane Glanville (1) Carl “Bozi” Bishop (1)

AWARDS: Luke Hurley, Toby Scrimgeour, Luke “Feats” Featonby, Dylan Teicher, Steven Mc Guire.

The Hutcho Man: Captain Shane Glanville was again superb in leading by example and putting his body on the line to protect team mates.