South Bunbury defeated Collie Eagles narrowly on Saturday afternoon at a bitterly cold Collie Recreation Ground, in round nineteen of the Dale Alcock Homes South West, South West Football League season.
Both sides had several key players out of their line-ups through injury and unavailability, in what was touted as a danger game for the Tigers in their quest to finish in the top three.
South Bunbury kicked with the aid of a very handy breeze, which also carried a very high wind chill factor, which saw even the hardiest of locals in pants and jackets.
Blaine Johnson and Tyson Lane secured the Tigers a fourteen point lead at quarter time, with the Eagles kicking two goals into the breeze.
The second term saw the Tigers extend their advantage to twenty seven points at half time, and it looked like South Bunbury had been able to stave off the Eagles challenge.
That would not be the case, with the Eagles hitting back hard in the third term, led by Odinn Kirk who would finish the match with three goals, as the Eagles late in the quarter got within seven points of the visitors.
In a tight final term, the Eagles tried valiantly to kick a goal to stay in touch, but it would be South Bunbury who kicked the only goal of the final term, to win a hard fought match by sixteen points.
Johnson and Lane would kick four goals each for South Bunbury and Captain Kevin Chitty again led from the front to be one of the best on the ground. Odinn Kirk, Zac Pilatti and veteran Adam Bignell played well for the Eagles.
Collie will travel to Eaton in the penultimate round of the season to take on the Boomers, while South Bunbury will host Harvey Bulls.
Kevin Chitty played another good game for the Tigers
SCOREBOARD
South Bunbury 4.3.27 8.5.53 9.7.61 10.11.71
Collie Eagles 2.1.13 4.2.26 8.4.52 8.7.55
Goals: South Bunbury – Blaine Johnson 4, Tyson Lane 4, Lachlan Princi 1, Kade Szyszka 1. Collie Eagles – Odinn Kirk 3, Christian Mears 2, Adam Bignell 1, Adam Justice 1, Austin Kent 1.
Best: South Bunbury – William Pedley, Owen Scott, Jack Wright, Rocco Versace, Kevin Chitty, Jack Gallagher. Collie Eagles – Odinn Kirk, Zac Pilatti, Adam Bignell, Wylie Morton, Christian Mears, Austin Kent
Ground: Collie Recreation Ground
Umpires: Spencer Drummond, Khye Skoda
Crowd: 345
Images courtesy of Wayne Hislop