Australian Football

Match Report

The last game for the Saturday would take place under the lights of Maughan Thiem Kia Oval in Woodville, where the Eagles hosted the Double Blues. The Eagles have won their last five encounters with the Blues, including their Round 8 meeting at Unley. After a sluggish start in front of goal when they scored 2.5 to 1.1, the Eagles then proceeded to kick 12 goals to five for the rest of the game to run out 49 point victors. The Eagles' quest for an Elimination Final berth took a further hit last week, suffering a 40-point loss to Adelaide at Oval Avenue. That would allow the Blues to add an extra couple of points to their ladder tally through their win against Port at home. For the Eagles, this match and next week against the Panthers are must wins. A loss for the Blues would allow the Eagles to close the gap and with the Roosters ahead of them, they couldn't afford a slip up now. I'll give one thing about this match away now... it was a struggle to end all struggles and goals were at an absolute premium. The Blues had more chances in the opening term but sprayed several shots wide to go into the first change with a two-point lead, the scoreboard reading 1.4 to 1.2. The Eagles' second quarter was overall the best quarter from either side for the whole day, they scored 3.2 to the Blues' single major. At the half-time break, the home side were two-goal leaders. The handball count would suggest that the Eagles overused said manouvre, with over 50 handballs more than the Blues. They also dominated the hitouts by a figure of 40, but couldn't fully make the most of them. The Blues did have more forward entries, but wasted several prime chances. No more evident than in the third quarter, wher they scored 1.5 against the Eagles' single goal. The gap was down to seven points in favour of the home team at the final change. The Eagles were now due for some accuracy issues, but with Sturt still putting vital shots wide the current champs could keep the dream alive for one more week. Both sides kicked 1.3 each to leave the three quarter-time deficit unchanged, the Eagles coming out seven-point winners and perhaps one win from a surprise finals berth. Dylan Clarke was named the Eagles' best afield, with 28 disposals and 13 tackles, while the Blues named Casey Voss as their standout with 27 disposals and 11 marks.