Bears deliver Goulburn Valley League grand final mauling in under-18s decider
Shepparton’s under-18s came for the kill, and kill they did.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
The Bears entered Sunday’s Goulburn Valley League grand final against Mooroopna as favourites at their home deck of Deakin Reserve, but its sole loss for the season came against the Cats in similar drizzly conditions.
But instead of a Mooroopna boilover, it was a Bears bloodbath similar to the pair’s first encounter this year that saw Shepparton defeat the blue and white hoops by triple figures.
However, a pulverising spear tackle made by Kade James set the tone early for the Cats, and it appeared the match was set for a blow-for-blow high-pressure contest.
But once the Bears opened its account through Kaleb Gilmour, there was no looking back.
The quality of Shepparton’s thirds was as if a senior side had taken the field, with centimetre perfect passes finding teammates pinpoint on the chest, despite intermittent rain throughout the opening term.
The Bears looked a class above, but Mooroopna’s Noah Williams kicked a stunner against the flow of play, breaking lines from the middle of the wing to take two bounces, step over a lunging Bears opponent and drill a chiselling major.
Yet it seemed Mooroopna could only convert from moments of individual brilliance, as Shepparton’s structure held strong time and time again.
As Bears skipper Sam O’Brien recovered from a dropped mark to kick truly, Mooroopna’s defence was already sent into a scramble, and there were ominous signs for the three quarters ahead.
Chance moments continually fell against the Cats as the game dragged on.
Normally slick and composed, Cats’ James slipped over in front of a loose ball inside defensive 50 which Shepparton’s Spencer Dickins collected and snapped through with a paddock of space around him.
A stiff free kick call caught the Cats napping inside their defensive arc, with O’Brien marking uncontested and making it look all to easy for the Bears in the early stages of the second term.
At last there was some life for Mooroopna before half time, with a genuine hang of a contested mark from Jacob Edmunds, who kicked the major after the siren to provide a glimpse of hope into the Cats, but the score read 7.4 (46) to 2.1 (13), Shepparton’s way.
Rain started teeming down in the third to make the contest a scrap and a ripping play from William Emanuelli – grabbing the football out of the ruck, selling candy before sidestepping and hooking a goal – looked to be a momentum swinger, but ill-discipline gave away a 50 metre penalty, which Angus Williams converted from goal line, sucking out any energy left in the Cats’ game.
The energy remained sky-high for the Bears though following a crunching Keelan Phillips tackle on Mooroopna gun Oscar Emanuelli, highlighting how little breathing space the Cats had in possession on the day.
The tackle was a turning moment for the Bears – an enormous buzz filtered through the playing group as every little positive moment was celebrated.
By the fourth-quarter, leading by 49, party time had begun.
Co-captain Noah Muir burst from the first centre clearance, the kick inside 50 going over the top of a one-on-one in the goal square and bouncing through for the opening major.
The Bears rallied eight goals in the final term to no score for Mooroopna, with Muir notching another goal late and celebrating with NBA superstar Stephen Curry’s ‘night night’ celebration.
It was lights out for the Cats.
As O’Brien kicked his six goal his case for best-on-ground was assured, and the lead tipped into triple figures.
Shepparton coach Trent Herbert, who had called for his leaders to stand tall during the week, beamed a smile when asked about O’Brien’s display, who claimed both the Vic Country medal and the Freddo McMahon medal.
“He’s been elite all year.
“It’ll be hard to pick a best six to be honest, there’s so many boys who played well today, and all the leaders did especially.”
As the final siren sounded, the clinical Bears were emphatically triumphant, 19.14 (128) to 4.2 (26).
“We came in knowing they were the only team that’s knocked us off all year and we had a point to prove, and we knew we were the better team all year,” Herbert said.
“We pride ourselves on our pressure and we know if we bring that pressure, the rest will look after itself, so I knew the boys would stand up in any conditions.”
There were joint winners for the Garry Lyon Medal for the best player in finals, awarded to Shepparton’s Liam Teague and Mooroopna’s Jayden Thorn.