Round 12 - St Mary's vs Fitzroy

Fitzroy's must-win game against St Mary's at Ford Park was one of their better ones for the year. Played with a strong wind favouring the southern end, the boys made the most of their opportunities up forward and kicked accurately, both into the wind and against it. Laird, Tom Ward, Lucas and Max all scored goals. Fitzroy's defence was solid all day, limiting St Mary's scoring opportunities. Everyone played well, including a local dog, sadly chased off the field at the start of play by an unsympathetic Boundary Umpire. Tom Ward announced himself as a big game player. Fast and effective throughout the game, he managed to kick one of the more skillful goals seen this season. His best game ever. Yianni was a revelation out of the centre, while Lachie was outstanding until coming off the ground injured in the third quarter. Joe Martin quietly went about gathering possessions throughout the day. Fearless at the ball and skillful with his disposal, he demonstrated once again why he's become such an important member of the team. Stanley, Finn, Laird, Sam Ward and Kyle were all in good form. In one outstanding passage of play, Isaac doggedly pursued the the ball forward for 50 metres or more before gathering cleanly and kicking into the forward line. With a gail force wind assisting St Mary's in the last quarter, the entire Fitzroy side flooding the back line and managed to ensure that the ball remained in the 'dead' back pocket. With that, the boys held on for a well deserved win.  It was one of the most consistent and intelligent games the boys have played this year, assisted by some astute tactical guidance from the coaching panel. Fill in team manager, Jan Dekker, did a great job (not as good as Sean, but still pretty good). Tom Ward was awarded the opposition team medal for best Fitzroy player for his breakout game.