Australian Football

Match Report

On Saturday afternoon at the Maughan Thiem Hyundai Oval in Woodville, the Eagles faced the Roosters. There's a lot of history between these teams as of late, they have faced each other more times in the past four years than some would over five or six! There have been 13 games between 2010 and 2013, some serious blow-trading going on with the Eagles winning seven to six. But the most recent stoush was the cut-throat First Semi-Final last season, the Roosters winning by 17 points in the last finals series at AAMI Stadium. At Oval Avenue, the Roosters last won there in Round 10 of 2011, a high-scoring match ending with North taking a 14-point win.

The Roosters were really competitive early on, a goal-fest first term greeting the fans as North kicked 6.3 to the Eagles' 4.2. Unfortunately the Roosters competitive spirit seemed to stop dead right there, the Eagles flying off the chain as they asserted their dominance with an 8.7 to 1.2 second term, taking a 34-point lead into the half-time break. The Roosters' third term was just a faint glimmer of hope, the Eagles taking their foot off the pedal as the visitors scored 4.2 to 1.7 to draw the gap back to 27 points. But the Eagles got back on the gas for the final term, they rammed the point home by landing home 10.3 to a lousy and horridly inaccurate 1.8. The Eagles would take a 76-point victory in the end, perhaps pointing out to everyone else that the competition may not be a one-horse race just yet.

Angus Poole was voted best for the Eagles, while the Roosters voted for Rhys O'Keefe as their best afield.