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VFL 2017 Round 05 - Coburg v Sandringham
Sandringham was overrun in the final quarter at Preston City Oval on Saturday.
Sandringham has fallen to the in-form Northern Blues at Preston City Oval on Saturday afternoon, with the final scoreline reading 17.11 (117) to 10.15 (75).
The Zebras started with a bang, impressing with a seven-goal first quarter and a handy 20-point lead at the first change before the Blues took control.
The home side put on five majors to the Zebras’ one in the second term to take a three-point lead at the main break, including the first three goals of the quarter.
VFL coach Lindsay Gilbee had every right to be frustrated watching his side have six shots on goal and miss them all in a third term where the Blues added another two goals to their score line.
It was only a nine-point ball game at the last change with Gilbee holding hope of some last quarter heroics to steal an away win much like against Coburg a week ago.
The Josh Fraser-coached Blues put the foot down in front of their home crowd in the final term, producing a six-goal quarter that the Zebras could only match with two majors of their own to go down by 42-points.
Injury watch
Sandringham lost Jack Lonie just before quarter time with a suspected ankle injury but he was able to shake that off and finish the game with his 21 disposals as one of the better performed Zebras.
St Kilda utility Nathan Wright also went down with concussion in the first half and didn’t return after the main break but confirmation from VFL coach Lindsay Gilbee suggests he’ll be right to play next weeke
Sandringham Coach Lindsay Gilbee is disappointed the Zebras couldn’t build on their strong start in Saturday’s loss to the Northern Blues at Preston City Oval.
The Zebras opened their account with a seven-goal first term against the Blues but their inability to take advantage in the next three quarters was all part of what frustrated the coach.
“A loss was coming our way with the inconsistencies in our game at the moment and against a really good side in the Northern Blues, we got shown up,” Gilbee told saints.com.au.
“Quite simply we’ve just got to be consistent for longer because our good footy is excellent but our poor footy is really poor. We need to address those lapses in games.
“Our team defence was ordinary and we allowed them to get their hands on the ball too easily, which meant we spent a majority of the game chasing a result we certainly wouldn’t have deserved if we got it.”
Despite the loss, Gilbee made mention of the young group on Sandringham’s list and the fact the Northern Blues are a very strong side that had 20 players with AFL experience.
“It was a great experience for our players to test themselves against a quality outfit and even though it was a significant loss, there’s a lot for us to build on and learn in games like this,” Gilbee said
