It’s the hardest match in amateur football to win, the Premier B Preliminary Final and Old Carey saw of the challenge of St Kevin’s to win by 30 points at Sportscover Arena. Old Carey were held goalless in the second and St Kevin’s came at them in the third to level the scores before Carey steadied with late goals to take a 32 point lead into the final term.
Two goals each to Freemantle, Reid and Roach plus the standard output from Old Carey’s engine room of Bongetti, Roach, Rice, Howat and Smithwick had the Panthers respond to the SKOB challenge in the game then run away with it. Richardson and Parker also played great roles across half forward.
The win for Old Carey will see them play University Blues in the Premier B Grand Final next Sunday. Both Blues and Carey will now return to back to Premier Section a year after they were both relegated.
For St Kevin’s it was another finals loss, a ninth on end at senior level since they last won the Premier B flag in 2004. Kicking into the breeze in the first quarter they managed just the two minor scores, When they had use of a strong 3-5 goal northerly in the second they were unable to convert their chances. The misses ranged from difficult chances to a miss from the goal square where Gabelich, after receiving a 25m penalty to take him to the goal line failed to kick it over the man on the mark who got a hand to it. The result for all St Kevin’s dominance was a quarter that netted them just 2.9.
Whilst SKOB were the first side to kick a goal to the Glen Huntly Road end of the ground with the first two of the third, they then watch as Old Carey kicked seven of the next eight goals.
Tom Cunningham and Steve Salopek kept running all day for St Kevin’s but in the end the top end class of Old Carey stood out.
Old Carey 5.5, 5.6, 10.9, 12.15 (87)
St Kevins 0.2, 2.11, 4.13, 7.15 (57)
GOALS, Old Carey : S. Freemantle 2, J. Reid 2, T. Roach 2, M. Laidlaw 1, G. Parker 1, B. Smithwick 1, N. Richardson 1, C. Howat 1, C. Jones 1
St Kevins : Z. Ginies 2, C. Gleeson 2, T. Cunningham 1, N. Wood 1, P. Edgar 1
BEST, Old Carey : R. Bongetti, T. Roach, C. Howat, J. Rice, N. Richardson, J. Joslin
St Kevins : T. Cunningham, S. Salopek, C. Ring, J. Weber, Z. Ginies, J. Salopek
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