Please wait. Contacting image service... loading

Article text

[?]
By w DROP KICK."
fixtures.
EJLTDBDA.Y, SOtb 6BPTEUBEE.
THE LEAGUE.
Finn! Hatch — Kssendou v.Ootlmgwood, a: M.C.G.
LAST MATCH BUT ONE.
It li.ig been decided. E&cji<1ou have
vou ihvir rial in to dispute the premiei-
ship of the sea sou witb C-QlHugwood.
And no fewtrtlidu 24.110 people found
their way into the Melbourne Cricket
Ground on Saturday to we tlie struck
for the position between the ICsseiulou
and Fitzroy teams. They went ex
pecting a desperate battle. ami tiiey
caw one. It was not a brilliant exhi
bition of football— many better matches
liave been seen during the spawn— but
it took the forui of a hard. pluming
jiatne from the bounce to the tinal o:®U.
Fitzroy did not display that clean,
quick, finished football with which
they quite outclassed Collmgwootl «>n
the juvvious Saturday. Essen.lon
umde it a close tijrhttag ismu. and
won it well.
The weather was all that could he
wished for. and a fair capful of wind
blew from the south. Fitzroy suppor
ters were cheered at the outset by the
Knowledge that Becchaui. their bright
star of the ventre, had got the best of
the injury he met with in the M'Ginis
benefit match, ami rhnt lie was jn the
team. The difficulty with ihe coiuniir-
was as to who should he left inn.
They decided on M'lhmald. Ks>, ml-ni
played "Wright. ami wen- wirbuiii the
frc-rvives of Barry. who is on «.i'uuacs
with a broken leg.
H was the good fortune <»r Kss.-ndou
to open tin® game with iho win.! at
their hacks. The thousands of i!ir»:its
round the ring wetv loosened :> /raen
bounced the ball. rtriiliili |,.;i:u. j ;,,'ro
the air, and " listed " it t,( i).,.
where i'.arileti <»»li;ircd ami dr.iv,. .j t,,
liie Fitzroy left centre. Ivennedv
smartly sour it forward, and ,-hh... up
to goal. 'J'hnrgood nnul a div f.:.- ii
but there was a roar of divjp..,;m.
mcnt when he fell over iiiin-eif ami
lo>t his opportunity. But ir was 'k"
opening of the ICssoiidonian aciuujj;.
as The ball weut hciiitid. Tile Kssrnd,,!
men Uepr round the goal, which v. -k
well guardial by the srurdv MoriarM-
Best, and MVarthy. jbn ' j.:,'ruii:
snapped single iicvcrtJi,.ic». Tln»n
Moriariy, Bert .harpc, anri riari,c - it
ihe ball t<» the centre, where Mai fin
jumped ia and p.mscd to Thin-good,
who scored a behind with a mighrv
kick. He marked off Moriariy s kick
in. and fri.Ni f,,r ;i oa; pXii the ilNr-
n;i> JI.WIIIINI U!»J1.
MVanhy nfayed the half to rh,. c,.j, t
and IitHM-ham sprinted uIY with it. Mar
tin returiesl. and Best, with a five ke-k.
played «.ii p. Brosnan. Then WjlUiu-
8.UI marked, am shot the 1»nl! on.
M'Npeorin hail an oj.portnnity. but did
not eizo Ir. jind in-fore he i-onid reeovcr
himself M'Konzie had whiske.i tin-
leather to the right. Hutchens
drove it to she ccnire. It was passed
up and down f..,r a sp<-ll. anil Amler-en
forward'.'! fer Fssemlo!?. Timrgood
who was being well wajeliod bv .b-n-
kitis. was given a free kid;, whb whi, >-
he gained a goal.
So fur Esseudoii had showed cous; '
erahly better football than their oppo
nents. They cut out the running on
the bounce. ;imi Wright had a siior.
with which he brought down a behind,
ftarllett. SUnrpo. and Barker best! their
way to the centre, where some stran
gling work followed. Then Smith and
Barker whippiil it forward, ttmsnnn
breaking the ice for the maroons by
seoriiKr M .i... t..
-'Hi «n- Aim in mil.
ebens got hold, and half-forwarded. Jen
kins wiis- too attentive to rimrgood
and gwhh.-d iiirjj ins-fead of riie f,nn.
With the free kick which solaced
Thurgood Fssendoii's second goal fol
lowed. Fitzroy made a better sbn-.
jug jjfter this, and wcu awav with v
rattle. M-ypnerin failing t" g,.| p, il.c
hail, wbi.-li had been driven uj) by b.to>-
u.'.n. XVilkinsoii did what was warned
and a cp.-. m-Jv cxenited kick was the
means of securing the first goal of fi-a
side. Tl-e maroons pressed forv. arc
agr.iu. and smith snapped a single. Or
the kick hi Fssendon carril tlm ball
to tlie other end like lightning. Bobin-'
son playing away down to AVri-M
who added a behind. This made
scores at quarter time— Kssendon. 2
goals r, behinds ; Fitzrov. 1 goal l»c-
hinds.
The first fu show out on the cijange
of ends \vr<' Trotter and M'Speerin.
who had gone on the ball. Gavin
and Kinnear bnat thcin back, and grad
ually Ksxetehm worked llieir »assa,Te
down tlie right wing. nutchens for
warded. and Martin scored the lucki-
est of goal with n ludicrous kick.
Fitzroy liven.nl up. and Milne forward-
to Hrt'smui. The latter put the
oral cloxe in goal. Milne popmnj it
luroiigh. Trotter forwarded again i
and Hastings relieved. Vollugi played
over Shea on tlie wing, ami forwarded
Bert Sharp centred, and Brosnan piav-
d it up. a momentary repulse was
followed by a charge by the Tiny, and
Trotter scored a behind. Brosnan rnit
On a couple in quick succession Fitz
roy were doing powerful ads to make
up The loHvny. and Barker bagged a
goal with a smart snap. Hntelwiis
replied wirh a sixer for the opposition
ists. who eg me with a great rush that
carried all before it. Brosnan scored a
single. Titer kept in the Fssendon
ground 1iM the I tell rang. At half-time
T«em!on were in ihe lead, their score
being 4 goals behinds, against Fitz
roy s 3 goals T behinds.
Fitzroy served ir up hot for Ksendnu
on the game being resumed, but a per
fect defence was raised. M'Kepzi,..
Anderson. Mann, and Gnvan pull ing in
prodigious service. TtuuuT had n"n v
for a goal, bui viricni: success. Hast-
Otgs nasisj'TCMj i lie naii r,» the eeutrc.
and Hulcueiis napped J ainad hi less
time tlwn > take me 10 tell ii. Hi«-
Iceos was ield and. with a free kick.
Scored a g".il. He repeated the dose a
few miuMti - Inr- v. I-hwudoii slmwed
to the greater advanrage iu rliis quar
ter. though no; to tiiat extent as may
he expected from the scores. The
Fitzrov men time after time charged
forward, only to he beaten off to tnc
ceutre by tlie magnificently strong
backs of Tin vd and black. Thur-
good and M'Keuzle registered a Itclihid
npI-.-ee for the latier. aud toward the
e|o.?e of the qnarler Fitzro.v again
shook thing up. and TrotTer. from a .
free kick, made the only paint gained 1
during the term by Fitzroy. The qutlr-
b; closed v/'tlt rhe scores as follows:
— Essenden. \ goals 7 b.-himis ; Fitz-
3 goals .S behinds.
On the jump into the lime and fiuHi
round the Fsseudon men were the first
away. They swung up to the Fitzroy
half-forward line. Martin playing the
ball to WrlgUr, who whizz«d it along.
Thurgood grabbed it. and let fly for
the six points.' He missed them, and
bad to be content with the utiuor. The
red and black colors kept near goal,
which was ably guarded by MVatTliy. :
ftforiarty. and Best. The play was not
very clever jus? here. II was more,
in the nature of hard. bulIockJng work.
The players crowded in. aud the result
w.is that. when McCarthy whipped the
ball out of flic centre. Clarke got a
break, and. with Barker, liad It up to
the Eseendon goal in no time. Bros-
«t%H essayed a goal, but without suc
cess. However, Trotter was on hand.;
and, as good lode would have It, was
at a convenient distance. He got the
«rop on 'the goal yvtth a" smart snap-
Fhot, and set all the "Sags waving. The
Fitzroy men were going desperately
hard now ; Essendou were content to
tight them off until within a couple of
minutes of time, when they made a
ffally. and beat the atiaeking side back
iuto a position of defence. Fitzroy
had made a line finish to n hard and
heavy game. The final scores were :
— Essendou. d goals i) behinds (45
points) ; Fitzroy, 4 goals 10 behinds
(34 points).
If Collingwood have recovered their
form, the Esseiidoniaus will have to
play a much bettor game than Satur
day's «n order to beat the Magpies.
Their be&t men were Griffiths. Robin-
won. M'KvuzIc. Kennedy. Vollugi.
Martin. Aiuiersou. Gavan. Hastings.
Tburgooil, Kinucur, and Hutcheus :
while excellent service was rendered to
the Fitzroy flag hy Barker. -Tcnkii!.
M'CaTtby. Morhivty. Best. Bert shavpc,
Beecham. -lim Sharp, Trorttr. ISrosuau.
Clarke. Smith, and Milne.
Crapp umpiretl.
$