Lochie, Jeremy and Tom continued to combine well in the middle, and Liam was running hard at centre half forward. Then it was Roley’s turn to benefit from a wayward kick-out. Jeremy marked strongly, and then put a monster of a kick straight through the sticks! Adam, Bryce and David combined well to repel a final attack by the Jets, and the siren sounded to end the quarter.

For the second quarter David was swung into the centre, and the Lochie/Tom/David trio were securing the clearances. Liam laid a ferociously strong tackle to earn a free, but it was tight and tough. Adam brought the Roley supporters alive when he brought down a much bigger Jets opponent on the far wing. After what seemed an eternity in the Jets goalmouth, a behind was finally put through, allowing Roley the clearing kick.

The Jets were certainly playing a very physical brand of footy. Webby and Bryce both made good saves in defense, but after another long period of the ball being locked in the Jets’ half forward zone, a predictable goal resulted.

Tom was clearly “not happy Jan” with what he was seeing dished out to his team-mates, so he responded in the most entertaining way possible ie. ripping Jets players out of the pack by their jumpers, one handed! Daniel appeared to cop one of a number of slings, but no free resulted. Bryce was simply on fire in the backline, and saved Roley’s skin numerous times. Then we mounted a rare forward attack, resulting from a superb chase and bring-down by a pumped up Jeremy! Lochie gave a great spoil, and Tom’s mood was summed up by a great bump he applied on his player. Not sure whether it was Tom’s bump or his dirty look which sent the Jet’s player tumbling to the ground. Either way, it was fantastic to see some real spirit coming from the Roley playing group.

Mick’s half-time address saw a big pat on the back to Bryce, Jordan, Brodie and Josh, our hardworking backline. The question asked of the team was: “are we being intimidated?”

Third quarter opened with Josh passing to Daniel and then on to Matt, who scored from directly in front. Liam and Sam were running like mad at centre half forward, but the Jets worked it down the ground for a quick reply. Tom fell foul of what seemed to be a spurious holding-the ball call, and another Jets goal resulted. Bryce was going like a Trojan and keeping us in the game, and some of Liam’s chasing and tackling was just inspiring! Continuing the physicality, Brodie appeared to cop a forearm around the neck in the back pocket. Fantastic to see big Matt run from his position and give Brodie a pat on the back and a rub on the head, what a great show of support from a team mate.

The heat was building by three quarter time, and the coach asked for a tight player huddle – the only thing missing was the barrier tape that says “POLICE LINE – DO NOT CROSS”. Mick asked for a show of unity, and asked the players to discuss how they would respond in the final term.

Roley’s commitment to finishing the game strongly was evident early. Matt “The Big Unit!” Ostler brought the Roley crowd to life with a bump which saw the Jets’ player fly off Matt’s hip like a broken hula-hoop!! He kept going on all fours, scrapping for the ball and bringing down yet another Jets player. Great to see the fire inside him being harnessed so well, all to help his team.

Then Lochie and Matt combined to pass the ball to Adam in the pocket, who took a brave mark and squeezed through a goal on quite an acute angle – what a lifter!!

Roley again pushed forward after the restart, and just to put an end to any myths about Roley being intimidated, Matty once again used the hippy-hippy-shake as he raced for the ball. Let’s just say Matty stayed upright, and the Roley supporters went ballistic!!!

Final siren sounded, and despite falling short on the scoreline, there was a very strong team vibe noticeable. Bryce deservedly received the match award.

As Mick said, “maybe we were intimidated by some physical stuff early on, but we responded and played by the rules, thats what it’s about!”