Led by a four-goal haul from small forward Daniel Pearce, Footscray have consolidated a spot in the top six of the VFL ladder with a hard fought victory over Geelong at Simonds Stadium.
With neither Jack Redpath or Tom Campbell making the trip down the highway on Sunday, having lined-up with the AFL team the previous day, it was the Bulldogs smalls who made the difference on the scoreboard against the Cats.
Will Hayes continued his recent run of good form, contributing three goals alongside 18 touches and eight tackles.
Both sides struggled early on the cold and slippery deck, turnovers were a feature, before the Bulldogs slammed on six unanswered goals in the second term to turn a two-point quarter time deficit into a 34-point lead at the main break.
Geelong’s six goal third term reversed much of the damage caused by the Dogs’ big second quarter but late goals to Pearce and Sharp provided a 14-point buffer going into the last quarter but that was as close as they would get.
Footscray kicked three of the last four and the final margin was 26 points.
Coach Ashley Hansen said that his side missed an opportunity to go on and have a big win, but he was encouraged with the team’s ability to hold off a determined Geelong outfit.
“We were in a dominant position where we could have gone on and had a really convincing win but give credit to Geelong, they responded,” said Hansen.
“It probably took us 15 minutes to identify that and correct it and we replied late with those two goals in the third, which gave us composure and control going into the last break.
“We ended up comfortable winners but we certainly had to overcome some challenges.”
As is becoming the norm with this Footscray season, the contribution of the VFL listed players to the victory was significant, and Hansen was keen to highlight their importance to the team’s long-term goals.
“I thought we had a really strong contribution from the likes of Sharpy, Fogarty, Merryck Buchannan, Will Hayes and Anthony Barry. And Russ (Jordan Russell) and Pris (Brent Prismall), you always know what you’re going to get from those two.
“The depth of our squad is going to dictate how far we go this year and at the moment they are getting opportunities and they’ve been taking them.
“We are two teams, one club and the VFL squad boys are a really important part of what we’re trying to achieve this year.”
FOOTSCRAY BULLDOGS 2.1 8.4 11.4 15.5 (95)
GEELONG CATS 2.3 2.6 8.8 10.9 (69)
GOALS: Pearce 4, Hayes 3, Sharp 2, Jong, Webb, A. Cordy, Hrovat, Hamilton, Fort.
BEST: Hayes, Biggs, Pearce, Russell, Forgarty, Jong
