Tigers continue to defy the odds

By Rover

FOLLOWING another ‘turn-up for the books’ on Saturday afternoon, it was party time all night long at Tigerland — when Mirboo North, celebrated its 130-year anniversary after a 10-point victory over finals-bound Morwell East.

The previous two weeks had seen Mirboo North clean-up against the odds, when it prevailed over Yinnar and Boolarra in close finishes.

To mark the day’s historical significance, Mirboo North’s players wore a replica heritage purple and gold strip that the club took into battle for part of the 1970s and 1980s.

Mirboo North had seven teenagers in its side, one of whom was Lachie Dight, who was playing his first senior game for the mighty Tigers — after earning promotion with consistently good form in the reserves.

Nearly 100 past players — that included 1956 senior premiership winger Bert Bright and 1956 reserves flag defender Maurie Briscoe— joined the bumper crowd that saw the visitors kick the first goal after three minutes of intense hustle and bustle between the arcs.

Also keenly watching the action were Mick Mills and Neil Breeden from Mirboo North’s 1966 senior premiership team — which knocked over Wonthaggi a week before St Kilda’s famous one-point win against Collingwood gave the Saints their only AFL flag to date.

At quarter-time, Mirboo North held a 17-point advantage over the Hawks after making it patently obvious and blatantly apparent it had come to play a blindingly quick, pressurized brand of uncompromising, team-orientated football.

Anywhere anyone looked, Mirboo North’s fast running, clean ball handling and relentless work rate were destroying the fabric of Morwell East’s faltering game plan.

Liam Nash, Joel Lambourn, Hudson Kerr, Damien Turner, Harry Mahoney, Ben Campbell and Joe Brooks were on top of their Morwell East opponents and but for costly misses in front of goal, Mirboo North would have had the match wrapped up well before half-time.

During the third quarter, the experience and knowhow of seasoned Morwell East campaigners, Brendan Evans, Frank Marks, Eric Semmler, Lucas Towns and Joel Soutar came to the fore — as the

Tigers’ mistakes mounted and free kicks started going the Hawks’ way.

When Soutar received a 50-metre penalty and slammed through Morwell East’s seventh goal, shortly before the Hawks added another major, Mirboo North was suddenly eight points in arrears.

All of coach Josh Taylor’s carefully-laid plans seemed to be going astray, but a defiant snap by Nash from close range, reduced Mirboo North’s deficit to two points at the last change.

Deep into time-on and with forced stoppages aplenty, Mirboo North desperately clung to a four-point lead from consecutive behinds, as it locked the Sherrin into its attacking 50. 

Then somehow, the ball came out, but Morwell East’s final flurry was stopped in its tracks when Turner’s block behind the centre circle, won him a free kick and a 50-metre penalty to boot.

From 40 metres directly in front of the big white sticks, the Mirboo North skipper’s left-foot drop punt spun and swung its way left-to-right over the goal umpire’s head and the Tigers were home.

This Saturday, Mirboo North travels to Fish Creek for the first time in its history for its last game of the 2022 season.