August 7th, 2010
Broadview Hawks 2.0 2.1 3.1 5.2 (32)
Quebec Saints 2.3 6.6 10.9 13.11 (89)
Goals - Saints: M.Wilson 4, J-R. Theis 3, T.Nixon 2, C.Stark 2, G.Bretiere 1, R.Shaughnessy 1.
The Saints started their Grand Final rematch against the Broadview Hawks with an unfamiliar team structure but after the first bounce the result was very much the same. Pouessel in ruck, Bretiere, Barker and Stark all led the charge from the middle as the Saints once again controlled the ball from the centre. It wasn’t long before Tim Nixon had the Saints first goal, and after a few wasted opportunities the Saints found Wilson up forward and extended the lead to 14 points. Just as it seemed the game was about to burst open the Hawks found their feet and began their fight back. Some poor defensive football from the Saints gave the Hawks the room to move the ball forward and as the quarter was drawing to a close Broadview managed to squeeze through two goals and reduce the gap to 3 points at quarter time.
Addressing the lack of focus on defence at quarter time, the Saints came out in the second with renewed drive. Nixon continued his stellar performance as the Saints quickly regained their rhythm. Goals to Mat Wilson, Greg Bretiere and two to ruckman/forward Jimmy Theis gave the Saints the edge. The Hawks reeling after a clash on half forward which resulted in a Cam Stark free kick. Some heated words turned the free kick into 50 and eventually after failing to cease and desist the Hawks player was required to leave the field with a report of umpire abuse in to his credit. Another outburst by a Hawk player shortly after had the brown and gold down two men. The Saints taking a commanding 29 point lead into half time.
The third quarter saw more changes to the Saints line-up as the squad was rotated and players were tested in new positions. Stark’s move up forward was vindicated early. The small forward role suited #4 as he destroyed his opponents, kicking two goals and having a hand in another. Ed Duff was once again a rock down back while Ronan Shaughnessy was beginning to find the ball everywhere he went. Nixon’s second goal of the day and JRT’s third gave the Saints a mammoth 50 point lead heading into the last term.
NicoPouessel had played a solid game as the #1 ruckman. It had helped release JRT into the forward line and gave Matt Wood a much need rest in the attacking half. The Hawks were out of the game but kept swinging, finding some late form to slot their 4th and 5th goals of the afternoon. Mat Wilson wasn’t far behind them though, two goals to the forward who had been in dominant fashion on the lead gave #29 4 for the day and sealed the win which saw the Saints crush the ’09 runners-up by 57 points.
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