Australian Football

Match Report

The rest of the weekend's football action would take place on Saturday, the first takes us to the west side of town and into the Hisense Stadium in Richmond where the Bloods hosted the Panthers. These were another pair of teams that traded victories over one another last season, the Bloods winning their Round 3 game at Milner Road by 22 points, then the Panthers returned serve at Noarlunga by 22 points in a low-scoring match in Round 15. Both teams were dealt losses in their respective games last week, with South going down to the Bulldogs at home, but over in Port Lincoln, not only did the Bloods go down fighting but afterwards at some point in the early hours of the next day, Bloods player Sam May's misadventures would end in a hospital bed with career-threatening if not life-threatening injuries. With this no doubt burning in the backs of their minds and that of their supporters, nothing short of victory would be accepted. The first half was quite a battle, the two sides only separated by a point at quarter-time in South's favour, the board reading 3.4 to 3.3. Then a lowly second term saw the Bloods usurp that lead by the half-time siren, kicking 1.3 to two behinds to lead by a goal at the break. When play resumed however, the Bloods would unleash their wrath. They kicked four goals before the Panthers got their only major of the third term, the Bloods altogether booted 6.2 to 1.1 to take their lead out to 37 points. It didn't stop there though, the visitors' remaining on the bottom of the ladder as Westies added more pain, bagging 7.2 to 2.2 to run out 67-point winners. Kobe Ryan was best for West, with 33 disposals, 10 clearances and nine tackles. The Panthers would name Callum McCarty as their standout with 37 disposals, 11 clearances and nine tackles.