Seniors Round 11 2021
Round 11 vs Yarra Valley Grammarians
After a month long lay off due to COVID restrictions, a long weekend and a forfeit in Round 10, the Unicorns returned to football with a game against the Bushrangers at Doncaster Reserve.
It was an unusual early afternoon for the two sides, with the Unicorns reserves being awarded a forfeit for the second week in a row so there was no football exhibition to excite the seniors plays pre-game.
The Unicorns started with a patchy first quarter. The month off meant there was a little bit of polish missing in the skills by both hand and foot. Despite this, and the condition of the ground being very heavy in most parts, the Unicorns were able to open up a handy 21 point lead in the first quarter as a result of goals to Wijayakumara, Littore and two to Smith in his first game of the season.
1/4 Time: MHSOBFC 4-5-29, Yarra Valley 1-2-8
The Unicorns composed themselves to play much better football in the second quarter. The midfield were able to establish a more consistent impact across clearances and forwards were able to routinely hit the scoreboard, albeit with some inaccuracy. Hanly started to impose himself on the game across half forward, and it became clear that the Bushrangers had no match for the physical specimen that he is. Dowling hit the score board for the first time, as did Hanly, and another two in the quarter for Smith.
1/2 Time: MHSOBFC 9-11-65, Yarra Valley 1-5-11
The third quarter of this one was a pretty dour affair. 1 goal, 4 behinds for the Unicorns and 4 behinds for Yarra Valley. This quarter definitely won’t go down anywhere as one to miss, so this reporter will leave it at that.
3/4 Time: MHSOBFC 10-15-75, Yarra Valley 1-9-15
The final quarter saw a spirited Bushrangers fight out the game with effort that the Unicorns may not have expected. It was clear a few weeks off had left some Unicorns a little short of legs when it came to match fitness, also contributed to by the heavy track.
An unfortunate non-contact incident resulting in A. Littore with a minor knee tweak, which we hope is a minor set back and will see him back in the lead up to finals. Littore had been one of the best on ground prior to the incident. Healy played his best game as a Unicorn, and Growse was excellent across half back. Both teams were wasteful in front of goals, which made for some clear focus areas come Tuesday/Thursday night.
Final Score: MHSOBFC 13-19-97, Yarra Valley 5-15-45
Goal Kickers: K. Smith 4, L. Hanly 2, A. Wijayakumara 2, A. Littore, B. Cook, W. Hellier, C. Tetaz, L. Dowling
Best Players: A. Littore, C. Healy, J. Growse, Z. Smooker, T. Campelj, K. Smith