What a game of footy! Sunny, clear skies, twenty-two degrees and to top that off we had 22 players coming out to Parc Champêtre, Montreal this afternoon. It was the first full 9-a-side game this season. It was great to see our players, spectators and volunteers enjoying the sunshine and footy.
With 9-a-side per team and another two interchange players per team Round 10 was sure to be a fast free flowing game. The first goal was kicked by the Bombers within about 15 seconds of the centre-bounce and it was quite clear how the rest of the game might turn out. The Bombers with first time players Ben Beagley and Matthew Payne (Team Canada) used their skills well in the centre and moved the ball with the assistance of Paul Fairbrother. Fairbrother who once again played a dominant position in both ruck and a key forward ended up kicking 5 goals throughout the game and is well on the way to be the leading goal kicker this season.
The rest of the game was close and there were some hard fought battles between both sides. Some key differences in the overall game play of each team was how the Bombers managed to work well in numbers. Every time they had possession there was 2-3 players running side by side, shepherding and making use of quick handballs. Throughout the centre of the field and in the backline working in numbers was the key difference in how the Bombers managed to get so many on the scoreboard. By half time the scores had the Bombers maintaining control of the game; Bombers: 8 goals 6 behinds-54 to the Saints: 3 goals 3 behinds-21.
In the third quarter the Bombers continued their consistent use of fast ball skills and breaking through tackles to put four on the board. Ronan Shaughnessy and Vincent Mousseau had an excellent quarter in the back-line. When the ball made it down there they managed to gain possession quickly and push the ball forward again. The Saints were left scoreless in the third.
The final quarter saw the Saints Nathan Jacobs and Kyle Graham start to make better use of open space on the wings and bring the ball forward. N. Jacobs managed to get two on the scoreboard for the Saints. The Bombers however were quick to respond and put five on the board by the end of the last quarter in what was a convincing win.
Final score: Bombers 17.8-110 to Saints 5.3-33
Goal scorers:
Bombers – P. Fairbrother 5, M. Payne 5, L. Trumble 2, R. Shaughnessy, L. Belzie, B.Beagley, R. Oxley, S. Turnbull.
Saints – N. Jacobs 2, C. Casado, B. Birt, K. Graham
Best on ground:
Bombers: B. Beagley, P. Fairbrother
Saints: K. Graham, R. Shaughnessy
Leading goal kickers for 2011 update!
Paul Fairbrother is well on his way to be the 2011 Quebec Saints leading goal scorer. Paul has played in all of the nine games this season and thus doing so has managed to rack up 20 goals with an average of 2.2 goals per game. Chris Micheletti who is a close second with 18 goals has participated in four games is pretty close behind but Paul should be a shoe in to take out the award this 2011 season.
P. Fairbrother, 20 goals (9 games played this season), Average per game: 2.2
C. Micheletti, 18 goals (4 games) Average per game: 4.5
N. Koch, 12 goals (3 games) Average per game: 4
