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Premiership season 2012 - Round 13 Review

Total Crowd 9,797 (Avg 2,449)

The heavens finally opened up for everyone this past weekend as wet weather football finally found its way into the season. Some were able to use the conditions to their advantage, while some found it tough going and struggled to put some pressure on the scoreboard. In the process, some loud warnings were sounded to the pacesetters of the competition, the most notable was the one made to those sitting at the top of the ladder from their closest rivals. We have now passed the half-way point of the SANFL 2012 Premiership season and the final five is still far from set in stone as teams from the lower half of the ladder are still making some noise. Keep watching!

Welcome to the Round 13 edition of the SANFL Wrap-Up

First up in this past weekend's footy action, we head down to the seaside to the Gliderol Stadium in Glenelg as the Tigers faced the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs have done some serious damage to the Bays in the past five seasons. Aside from claiming their seventh premiership at their expense -- unless you count a 81-all draw at Glenelg in 2009 as a bump in the road -- the Doggies have done nothing but damage to the Tigers in every outing since Round 18 in 2008. Their last encounter was back in Round 8 where the Dogs inflicted a 75-point hammering at Elizabeth. The Dogs looked a bit shaky in front of goal early on, the Tigers taking an eight-point lead at quarter-time after kicking 2.3 to a horribly inaccurate 1.5 with that single Centrals goal coming at the siren. But the Doggies went nuts in the second quarter, smashing through 9.3 to the Tigers' 3.1. At the half-time break, the Dogs held a 34-point advantage. Although the Dogs pressure on the Tigers was still high when play resumed, the Tigers were able to close the gap to 22 points by three quarter-time. The Bays had managed to string a couple together in the final minutes of the third term, kicking 3.2 to two goals. But the Dogs weren't going to let this one slip, and they needed to convince some of their fans that their blood-lust hadn't disappeared. They closed the door on the Tigers in an inaccuracy-ridden final term, Centrals added 4.5 to the Tigers' 1.6 to take a 43-point win and their eighth win on the trot against the black & gold. Ryan Williams was voted best for the Bulldogs, while Jason Davenport was Glenelg's best on ground.

Coming back to city-side, we next head over to the City Mazda Stadium in Richmond where the Bloods faced the Redlegs in the ABC Match of the Round. The Redlegs were stung last weekend when the Roosters ended their undefeated run by a single point, their coach coming under some scrutiny with his comments about North's "lucky" win. The Bloods were coming off a bye following their defeat at Elizabeth, as well as facing a sixth consecutive Redleg defeat in succession after their 47-point Round 8 loss at The Parade. Unfortunately, the near 2500-crowd that assembled were about to see a dull spectacle in regards to scores. The conditions would dictate the flow of the game, the Bloods were able to keep the 'Legs scoreless in the first quarter whilst kicking an inaccurate 1.6 for themselves to take a 12-point lead at quarter-time. Norwood finally found their way to goal in the second term, but could only manage 1.3 while the Bloods took a further 2.2 to stretch the gap to 17 points by the long break. The lowly contest continued in the third quarter as the two teams still struggled to put majors on the board. The Bloods were able to put an extra seven points' gap on the board, adding 1.2 to Norwood's one behind. At the final change, the Bloods were ahead by four goals and seemingly on their way to causing the Redlegs yet another upset loss. But what it took the Bloods three quarters to build, the visitors only needed one quarter to tear down. After kicking 3.3 to two behinds, it all came down to a set shot on goal for the Redlegs as the final siren sounded. With that, David Rodan turned what could have been a five-point loss into a one-point win for the 'Legs. Nathan Batsanis was named best for Norwood, while West named Ryan Ferguson as their standout.

Next up we head a few minutes up north to the Prospect Oval, where the Roosters prepared to face the Double Blues. No doubt a bitter taste was left in the mouths of the Blues faithful after last weekend. Whilst still probably talking about their defeat of the Bulldogs during their bye, their following match against the Panthers at Unley brought them a 39-point loss... what a turnaround. A wounded North Adelaide looked like some easy prey, even at Menzies Crescent. The Double Blues opened proceedings by scoring 5.4 to North's 2.1, at quarter-time the visitors were up by 21 points. The Roosters would hit back in the following term, bringing them back to a two-point deficit after keeping the Blues to 1.2 whilst scoring 4.3 for themselves. But they seemed to use up their competitiveness at around that point... the Blues would then go on the attack and they did it with brutality. When play resumed, only inaccuracy on goal prevented the Blues inflicting a more humiliating punishment as they kicked 6.6 to a lousy two behinds. At three quarter-time, Sturt were holding a seven-goal lead. But they weren't finished there as the Blues continued their assault, adding a further 6.1 to North's 2.4. The Blues ran away to a 63-point win, bringing them to within striking distance of the top five. Sturt would name Aidan Riley as their best on ground, while the Roosters named Daniel Stewart as their best. The Roosters now face two weeks on the sidelines, sitting out Rounds 14 & 15.

In the last match of Round 13, we head down to Alberton Oval for an aerial dust-up between the two feathered tribes of the Magpies and the Eagles. The Eagles had it all over the Magpies for the better part of the last four years, with wins between 14 and 32 points over seven matches stretching from Round 4 in 2009 to the final round of last season. But after the euphoria of the 2011 premiership came the beginning of the hangover, the opening round of 2012 saw the Magpies take a 55-point win at Adelaide Airport Oval in Thebarton. The Eagles finally looked competitive after their 45-point triumph last week, while Port weren't as lucky at the Ponderosa. The 'Pies were horribly inaccurate at goal in the early stages, both teams had 30 points on the board at quarter-time but from Port's nine scores came six behinds while the Eagles bagged five perfect scores. The Magpies were far less resistant in the second term as the Eagles kicked off to a half-time 19-point lead after they managed just two behinds to the visitors' 3.3. The momentum would continue to carry the Eagles when play resumed, they would go on to add a further 4.2 to Port's lowly 1.1 to double their half-time advantage to 38 points. The Eagles had finally strung a couple of wins together, climbing to eighth place and dumping Port to last as the visitors left Alberton with a 33-point win after kicking 2.2 to 3.1 in the final term. Chris Knights was named best for the Eagles, while the Magpies named Shayne Biasci as their best afield.

The wrap is not completely finished though, the Panthers had the bye for league competition, but they were heading off to the MCG to face the might of Port Melbourne in the fourth quarter-final of the 2012 Foxtel Cup. South was the last SA team still contesting the national tournament, after Port and West had fallen in the previous matches while the Borough had made light work of the NT Thunder in Darwin's heat. The reigning VFL premiers seemed to have found a worthy opponent in the Panthers despite their comparatively lower ranking on the SANFL ladder. Only two points separated the teams at quarter-time, Port on 1.4 to South's 1.2. The Panthers would draw level at half-time after kicking 3.3 to the Borough's 3.1, both teams on 45 points each. Unfortunately for the Panthers, their forays into their forward line would usually find opposition hands, often as a result of rushing into attack without a target in mind and therefore allowing Port to repel attacks uncontested. The Boroughs kicked a further 4.2 to 2.2 in the third quarter, going into the final stanza with a 11-point lead. The Panthers couldn't make up the difference in the final term, Port Melbourne kicked a further four goals to South's 2.1 and booked a spot in the preliminary finals stage with their 22-point win. The Panthers would named Joel Cross as their best afield.

FOXTEL CUP - 4th Quarter-Final

Port Melbourne 12.6 (78) d South Adelaide 8.8 (56), M.C.G

INJURIES Glenelg - Hitchcock (hamstring)

REPORTS Central - J. Gowans (umpire contact) Port - Meiklejohn (striking)

R-13, Ladder

Team GP PTS %
NORW 11 20 64.46
CENT 11 16 55.25
WEST 11 12 52.12
GLEN 12 12 47.82
NORTH 12 10 47.44
STURT 10 8 48.09
SOUTH 11 8 46.72
W-WT 11 8 43.83
PORT 11 6 47.79

Footnotes

* Behinds calculated from the 1965 season on.
+ Score at the end of extra time.