Parrots fly high after quarter time

LEONGATHA had to adapt to the absence of steady ruck presence Ben Willis but was bolstered by the return of forward Jack Ginnane who showed his determination to be part of a Parrots’ flag in 2023 with an 11-goal haul.

While Leongatha was in control for much of the day, Ginnane was influential from early, with that proving crucial given Warragul’s competitiveness in the first term.
Ginnane waited just six minutes for his first major, with teammates then gathering around him to celebrate the moment.

With Warragul leading by 10 points deep in time on, Ginnane capitalised on a deserved free kick after being interfered with while attempting to mark a well-directed Aaron Heppell pass.

That enabled Leongatha players to head to the huddle with confidence and a deficit of less than a straight kick.

Bustling spearhead Ginnane then got on the end of an impressive chain of passes from the Parrots, marking and goaling in the first minute of the second quarter to put Leongatha ahead and Warragul never had much of a look in after that.

Leongatha had to adapt not only to the absence of Willis, who attended a wedding, but were also without talented young ruckman and forward Wil Dawson.

That resulted in young Parrot Levi Hickey shouldering ruck duties in a David versus Goliath matchup in which he was pitted against the far more substantial physical presence of Warragul’s Sam Whibley.

After the Parrots opened proceedings with the game’s first couple of goals, Warragul began to look the more focused of the sides, getting to the ball first and finding loose men around the ground.

However, Aaron Hillberg appeared to halt Warragul’s building momentum, marking and sending a lovely kick between the big sticks.

But Warragul forward Jed Lamb was looking confident, offering a strong presence on the lead and marking, and his fellow forwards began to make an impact on the scoreboard before Ginnane hit back for the Parrots with a goal after the siren.

Leongatha was a little fortunate Warragul didn’t take full advantage of the first quarter goal scoring opportunities it created.

However, stern words from coach Trent McMicking at the quarter time huddle were heeded by the Parrots and they ensured Warragul wasn’t allowed any freedom for the remainder of proceedings.

“I thought we were sloppy, our skill level wasn’t up to standard, they were winning the ball better than us and our work rate wasn’t there when the ball was brought to ground,” McMicking said, reflecting on the first term after the match.

When the game resumed, the Parrots assumed control in the midfield, providing first class delivery to Ginnane, with Tom Marriott starting to have an impact and being used in bursts off the bench.

Such was Leongatha’s second quarter dominance, it notched up 6.3(39) to no score, taking a half time stranglehold on the match with a 35-point lead.

The Parrots booted 11 goals to two in a second half blitz.

While Warragul’s third term was a big improvement on its second, Leongatha’s lead grew to 46 points at the last change and would have been greater had the Parrots’ goal kicking efforts been more on target.

The Parrots mustered a further eight majors in the last term, not allowing their avian hosts to score.

While Ginnane was the star of the day, Mitchell Bentvelzen’s efforts in defence were important in helping prevent Warragul from gaining momentum, containing the dangerous Lamb and getting the better of him on a number of occasions.

Ginnane’s 11 goals equalled the Leongatha club record for an individual goal scorer against Warragul, with his effort matching those of Adrian Campbell (1999) and Nick Nagel (2011).

“Credit to him; he’s barely missed a training session,” McMicking said, highlighting Ginnane’s team- first approach during his enforced absence.  

“His marking was as good as I’ve seen on the lead and it was his day and we were all rapt for him,” Mc Micking said.

Leongatha’s dominant display after quarter time sets up an enthralling grand final rematch in round 4, with Sale heading to the Parrots’ nest after a confidence-boosting first win of the season over Maffra.