THE Boston Tigers turned their battlers status to brilliant when they kicked seven goals to Mallee Park's one goal in their best first quarter over the last 10 years, but the Peckers came back later in the game to win the contest.
The pulse of the Tiger supporters was racing, as was their team, who were first to the ball and if not for several back half clearances by the Peckers Ainsley Betts who would again prove to be one of the Peckers impact players before the final siren the Tigers may have kicked ten goals.
The Tiger supporters were into the game in the first minute when the Peckers went forward and Paul Theodosiou took a goal saving mark on one of the few Peckers' entries into their scoring zone, and with good clearance Michael Tabe finished off for the first of the Tigers seven for the quarter.
Tiger ruckmen Wyatt Tiller was breaking even with the Larsen Clements, and early touches by Scott Blacker and Adam Hywood and quick ball up forward saw Dean Hart kick the first of his three for the quarter
The Tigers' early three straight goals stunned the Peckers but a Jackamarra clearance saw the brilliant Malcolm Miller make the most of limited opportunities up forward for the Peckers' only goal for the first quarter.
The Tigers' response was immediate with Tabe kicking his second goal, Steve Farquarson and Dan King kicking one each, and the impressive Hart, with his third goal, saw the Tigers finish off their dominating quarter to kick four unanswered goals and have a commanding lead of 34 points as the siren sounded to end a quarter that belonged to the Tigers.
The football terminology of brilliant one quarter ugly the next came into play and it was a case of the "missing brilliance", replaced by the battling Tigers for the next two quarters when the Peckers, while not taking complete control, fed off the growing mistake rate of the Tigers, which saw the Peckers take full value to kick nine goals while the Tigers could manage only eight points. It left the Tiger supporters in dismay at the missed opportunities and bewildered at some of the Pecker brilliance.
This was evident when Pecker Barry Johncock, back after a run in the B grade, marking outside the 50 and kicked his first goal. Johncock became the scene stealer in the second quarter when 30 metres out on the boundary he got foot to ball in mid air, and like an out of control balloon bounced, turned and rolled through, and it was a case of what they do at AFL level can also be done at Port Lincoln.
The Johncock show was not over and for an encore he rescued the ball from going over the boundary line while others gave up and a slick handball to the running John Miller skirting the boundary had the two flags waving for his second goal.
Add the the play of miracle Mal Miller, the clearances of Jackamarra, the Tigers' mistakes, plus goals to David Dudley, Russell Carbine, Larsen Clements and another two goals by the flying David Dudley in the third term, and the Peckers had turned a 34 point deficit into 15 point lead.
The Tigers worked hard and were committed in the second and third quarters but the leg speed of the Peckers, who pounced on every Tiger mistake and several costly turnovers up forward, saw the Peckers turn on their run and carry game enough to make hay while the sun shone, while the Tigers' first quarter brilliance was still missing.
The Tigers kicked three last quarter goals to the Peckers' two and reduced the lead to seven points when Shannon Minhard kicked goal number eight, which had taken 62 minutes since their seventh goal in the first quarter.
The end game was one of hard running and played with courage by all players and it was a case of goal for goal until the final siren.
The Peckers' Jeremy Jackamarra was best on ground and kicked a well deserved goal. John Miller kicked his third goal, and is another Pecker under 21 player that will be one to watch.
For the Tigers, Michael Tabe kicked his third goal for the day and Sunny Singh joined the goal kicking list.
For two quarters, the first and the last, the Tigers were on top, but for some reason the second and third quarters were in reality the case of the Missing Tiger that simply did not use the ball to advantage when in possession and the Peckers thrive on mistakes and turnovers.
It would be unkind to the Peckers to say that the Tigers lost what maybe they should have won, but it was very close to a final summation of what this game was all about.
Email a friend