Trinity AFL

CAS Round 2 | Friday, 6 and Saturday, 7 May 2022

The Trinity AFL teams were spread far and wide for the second round of the CAS season. A unique opportunity to play a night game under lights at home presented itself to the Opens AFL, while Saturday saw fixtures against both Cranbrook and Redlands with mixed results.

Team of the Week: Round 2

This week’s backline saw several shutdown roles assigned, with those selected applying themselves to the task for a full four quarters. Selecting forwards was difficult this week, due to the deluge of goals scored across multiple games, but the selected players will be well supported by a hard-running midfield, who are eager to distribute the ball with precision.

Round 2 Leading Goalkicker Ladder – All Ages

Apologies for any missing goal kickers from Saturday; please let Mr. Jackson know and he will add them to the tally for next week.

1ST XVIII Match Report – Round 2, 2022

The first of three Friday night fixtures for 2022 was played against Cranbrook, in what proved to be a competitive and entertaining game against a well-structured and hard-running side. The young men of Trinity started the game well, winning multiple clearances and kicking the first goal of the game, thanks to some excellent follow up work from Caiden Clearly (12St) who created multiple contests and forced the ball to spill towards Sam Waddington (12Mu), who played on and kicked truly to open the account for Trinity. Both players proved pivotal all day, regularly winning the ball in the middle of the ground and working back into defence to help clear our lines and drive us forward. Caiden went on to kick an excellent running goal to go with being the dominant possession winner on the ground and set a new standard for defensive running from a midfielder.

Cranbrook  quickly struck back and soon took the lead, but what transpired was an arm-wrestle, as both sides competed for territory and any ascendency. Theo Salvartsis (11WH) proved menacing to the Cranbrook midfield, applying numerous tackles and taking the contest up to the opposition as he drew multiple free-kicks for his efforts to move the ball forward. When not harassing his opponents he also took multiple marks in defence at key moments to show genuine courage under the high ball and composure when in possession of the football. This pressure started to tell on the opposition, as Isaac Wyatt (11WJ), in his first game of football for the sport, duked two opponents as he weaved his way through defenders to kick a classy goal from the far-side wing. This capped off an excellent opening quarter for Trinity, with Lachlan Wolfe (12St) drawing a free-kick in our forward fifty, and kicking truly after the quarter time siren to draw Trinity level with their opposition in the first quarter.

Unfortunately, the early shock to Cranbrook proved temporary, as they started to get into gear in the second quarter and kicked multiple goals against the run of play. Trinity was unable to capitalise from their strong ball winning ability in the midfield, with Caiden regularly linking up with Lucas Blythe (11La) using slick inside handballs to release the other into open space. Key passages of play were regularly started by these two players, who regularly showed composure and a willingness to direct teammates and control play behind the contest, allowing Trinity to spread quickly.

Our backline was well held together all night by Benjamin Cook (12St), who was regularly rewarded for putting his head over the football and drew multiple free kicks for his troubles. This allowed Ben to use his pinpoint kicking skills to transition us out of defence and find the open Trinity player. He was well supported in defence by Maxwell Anderson (10Hi), who sat under numerous opposition forward entries and either took key intercept marks or drew free kicks for his courage. Both players lead the way in their willingness to take early contact and inspired their teammates to make repeat efforts at the contest.

Cranbrook continued to surge late into the game, but the repeat efforts from Trinity players to smother and show desperation to win back the football was something to be admired, setting a strong foundation for the style of football the team wants to play with in 2022. Harrison Ryan (11TA) kicked the final goal of the evening for Trinity, with a long-range effort in the final quarter.

While not as nerve-wracking a finish as the previous weekend, Trinity demonstrated excellent spirit to take up the challenge to a well drilled and structured opponent. With several players new to the sport this season, they will only be better for the experience and have set the tone for the style and competitiveness that Trinity want to demonstrate each week. Trinity will again take to the field on Friday night in a match up against Waverley under lights at the same venue. The experience of the past week will prove invaluable in how to play a large ground and effectively use space to capitalise on our speed as we seek to move the ball forward.

Score: Trinity 5.4.34 def by Cranbrook 10.4.64

Goals: S. Waddington, L. Wolfe, I. Wyatt, C. Cleary, H. Ryan

Bests: C. Cleary, B. Cook, L. Blythe, T. Salvartsis, M. Anderson, I. Wyatt

Special thanks to Cooper Hollis (12Sc) who was able to capture these excellent action photos in tough night game shooting conditions.

Sam Jackson | MIC AFL

9/10 As

The 9/10 As delivered a commanding performance against Redlands last weekend to run out 169-14 winners. Angus Royal (9Ar) produced an excellent all-round performance, in particular his clean handling in the slippery conditions, to be the “king” of the midfield. He was ably supported by Josh O’Connell (9Ar), who, in typical style, broke both tackles and ankles through his hard running. Ollie Orr (10Ho) battled hard to win the contested ball whilst Max Anderson (10Hi), thrown forward, dominated with four goals, and could have had more if not for his unselfish desire to hand off to his teammates. On the wing, Callum Padman (9Hi) produced some silky disposal moving the ball, regularly hitting his teammates’ lace out. To cap the game off, Dhruv Bharadwaj (10St) scored the goal of the day, breaking through four defenders before finishing from close range. A fantastic effort from the boys leading to a well-deserved result.

Anton Demark | 9/10s Coach

7/8 As

The 7/8 As were dominant for large patches of play on the weekend, but were unable to capitalise on multiple repeat entries into their forward line and this inaccuracy proved costly. Mason McGroder (8WH) was again dominant in defence, while Kody Murphy (8Ta) rucked strongly for the duration of the game to go with his contest work around the ground, regularly linking up with Lachlan Allen (8WJ) who sent us forward. Unfortunately, goal kicking proved an issue, with players regularly playing on when within scoring range. A key lesson to be learned from the young men who played is to go back and take your opportunity at goal when it presents itself and this experience gives the squad something to focus on at training. At the other end of the ground, Jonathan Webb (7Hi) was regularly harassing the Cranbrook defenders and showing desperation to stop anything that came near him. Unfortunately, this was another close loss for a team that is still learning to play with each other. Trinity will look to bounce back next week against Waverley in what should be an exciting Round 3 contest at home.

7/8 Bs

Trinity made the journey north to face Cranbrook in the final game of the weekend. Trinity started well thanks to the ruck work of Rohan Dean (7Hi) who provided a presence all day and gave the Trinity midfielders with first use of the football. Ryan Kim (7Ar) capitalised on this excellent service to gain multiple clearances and capped off a great game with a goal in the final quarter. While there were multiple goal kickers for Trinity, Emerson Urbano (7We) proved particularly consistent, kicking a goal in every quarter to finish with four for the day, an excellent reward for all the forward line pressure he was generating. Kayler McDonald (7Ta) joined in on the act, kicking four of his own when resting forward and was supportive of his teammates in trying to get them on the scoresheet. Benjamin De Lany (7Hi) was rewarded for his multiple efforts to win the football and finished off with a goal in the final quarter. The far-side wing was dominated by Lachlan Conlan (7La) and Aiden Willis (7WJ), who worked in tandem to repel multiple Cranbrook attacks and direct the ball back into the Trinity attacking half of the ground. Overall, this team should be pleased with their effort and willingness to make repeat efforts to win the contested football; it was an excellent all around performance from all players, who worked for each other all day and were willing to share the football to teammates in better positions. Special thanks to Vince Urbano and the parents of the 7/8 B players, who took warmups before the game when coaching staff were stuck in traffic.

Sam Jackson | MIC AFL