Sport
18 June, 2023
Eagles return to host Burras
WARRACK Eagles will play its first game of the Wimmera Football League season at Brim tomorrow when they welcome Minyip-Murtoa. After the league sat out the King’s Birthday long weekend, action returns for round nine of competition with some key...
WARRACK Eagles will play its first game of the Wimmera Football League season at Brim tomorrow when they welcome Minyip-Murtoa.
After the league sat out the King’s Birthday long weekend, action returns for round nine of competition with some key games set for teams to consolidate positions on the ladder.
Undefeated ladder leader Ararat will welcome Dimboola to Alexandra Oval in the match of the round with the Roos making a return to the field after a two-week lay-off.
With a bye before the long weekend, the Roos will be looking to return to the winners list and inflict the Rats first loss of the season but will gave a tough task with the ladder leader having produced some strong play in the opening eight rounds that has them two games clear of the rest of the field.
Chasing the Rats in second place, Southern Mallee Giants will look to remain on the winners list when they play Horsham at City Oval, while Horsham Saints will be looking to move into the top three when they take on Nhill at Davis Park.
Warrack Eagles’ battle with Minyip-Murtoa will round out the first half of the season and looking to claim its first points after some promising signs over the past couple of rounds.
A close battle with Stawell in round seven was followed by a big start against Southern Mallee Giants last start and coach Danny Bell will be looking for a sustained four quarter performance on the pristine surface of the Brim Recreation Reserve.
The Eagles will go into the battle with a couple of inclusions and a couple of forced changes with Ryan McKenzie and Daniel Penny set to return to the line-up, while ruckman Jacob Sobey and onballer Jake O’Donnell will miss through unavailability.
Key defender Jake Cheney will also miss the clash with a hamstring injury, while brother Kyle is on baby alert with wife Siobhan expecting child number three in the coming days.
Bell said the loss of Sobey and O’Donnell has been in the pipeline all season and is looking forward to the return of McKenzie and Penny to the line-up as the Eagles look to hit the ground running and set up a strong start.
“It’s something that we will be important for us to get away to a good start and hope the boys can settle into the contest,” Bell said.
“We want to take the game on and move the ball through the lines as when we are forced into a stop-start game, opposition sides just close us down and our scoring ability is shut down.
“Over the past few weeks we’ve been working on ways to find extra scoring avenues within our forward 50. It’s coming along, we just need some things to go our way and the boys to trust the process and open up the game.
“When we’re forced to slow the game down, that’s when the turnovers happen and we want to focus on our movement and set up scoring chances to pressure opposition backlines,” he said.
With the return of McKenzie, the Eagles will have extra options in attack with Joe McKinnon providing a strong marking target up front, while at ground level Bailey Watts will play another key role.
Watts has provided the extra scoring power that Bell has been looking for with seven goals in his last three matches and with brother Dylan and Declan Powell will look to combine to provide extra avenues to goal.
Minyip-Murtoa slipped out of the top five in round seven after a run of losses and after returning to the winners list in round eight will be keen to make it successive wins and make its way back into the top five.
A Burras win will see them return to fifth place with Stawell sitting out a bye this weekend.
Coach Tim Mackenzie will be hoping for some inclusions with players returning from injury and look for continued form from Corey Morgan, Tyler Pidgeon, Brylie Cameron, while the aerial work of Lachie Delahunty, Tanner Smith and Jae McGrath will be asking plenty of questions to the Eagles midfield and defence.