Wonthaggi Power celebrates 20th birthday in style

THE Wonthaggi Power grandstand had the perfect view when Ryan Sparkes hit a boundary side tap from Cooper McInnes at full pace and slotted through one of the sweetest goals from the angle you’d ever hope to see.

The shot started left, from the grandstand side boundary, and curved right with a well-measured banana kick and sailed right through the middle, into a stiff sou’wester.

Recognising a moment of brilliance, 10 or a dozen players got around him while the Power faithful, some of them who had returned to the fold for the club’s 20th birthday celebrations, were initially dumbstruck before breaking into rapt applause.

That’s why you go to the footy!

The sublime strike started a run of three goals in a row by Sparkes, 10 minutes into the third quarter, that put the result in the match beyond doubt after what had been an arm wrestle with the visiting Bairnsdale Reglegs team to that point in the game.

You were always going to back him moments later in a one-on-one up forward when McInnes again forced the ball forward for Sparke’s next one and a reversed free kick and 50-metre penalty, straight out of the centre, brought up his third goal in three minutes.

When Blake Cornelis got involved soon after, passing to McInnes, on to Sparkes again, he had a chance for four in-a-row but it wasn’t to be.

The runs of goals broke Bairnsdale’s resolve, however, turning an eight-point Power lead at half time into a 44-point win at the end, Sparkes finishing with five on the day.

But as good as he was, initially on the ball, and then after going forward, he couldn’t have done it without the fine games by Kaj Patterson at the stoppages and young Jasper Shone in the ruck against a mobile Jack White, with a number of others also taking up the slack on the ball including Josh Bates and Kyle Yann, and the likes of Noah Anderson, Harry Dawson, Isaac Chugg, Jakeb Thomas, Ethan Dickison, Kyle Reid, Jai Williams and the coach himself, Jarryd Blair, all strong contributors on the day.

As much as Wonthaggi Power won the third quarter on the scoreboard, kicking 4.4 to 0.4 to set up the result, it wasn’t that clear in general play with 15 Power clearances to 13, 14 ground-ball gets to 13 and Bairnsdale actually winning the inside 50 count, 12-9, on the back of 10-minutes’ domination at the start of the term.

Blair said the way the team stood up to the pressure in that initial period after halftime was the most pleasing aspect of the game for him.

“They had the ball buried on their forward line, but we stuck our tackles, held it up and went from contest to contest because we had to until we finally got into the clear,” he said at three-quarter time.

It was a very pleasing win, according to Blair after the game, especially so with the number of forced changes the club has had to make to its Senior side most weeks this season.

Into the side this week came Beau Ransom for his first senior game, playing an accountable role in defence, chasing up strongly as required and competing well for the loose ball.

Blake Cornelis and Kyle Yann also came in, being singled out for praise by the coach in the rooms afterwards.

Out went Tom Murray, Fergus O’Connor and Connor Macmillan.

The team looks like losing Brodie Mabilia again with a hamstring injury while Jack Blair is closer to making a return to training.

Blair congratulated the club on its 20th birthday, praising the players, officials, volunteers and supporters of the club who had gone before for “an enormous amount of work” but also saying Wonthaggi Power was in as good a position as any time in its 20-year history right now.

He noted they’d won three out of four football matches on the day with the Senior team setting the standard with their resolve, commitment and leadership enabling them to perform despite constant changes to personnel.