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    Jaydon Stiles.

2019 HDFNL finals | Natimuk Rams zero in on finals football

By Colin MacGillivray

For a club as starved of footballing success as Natimuk United – and one of its antecedents, Natimuk – has been, it is easy to understand why it might get ahead of itself when things start going right.

With the Rams on the cusp of their third straight finals berth after a 20-year dry spell extending back to 1997, coach Sam Anson admits complacency has been one of the team’s biggest enemies in 2019. Keen to atone for back-to-back elimination final defeats in 2017 and 2018, the Rams started this season superbly, winning their first five games to stand shoulder to shoulder with reigning premier Harrow-Balmoral at the top of the ladder.

But the team lost three of its next four games and, by the end of round 10, dreams of a top-three finish suddenly seemed remote.



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“We got a bit cocky, I think,” Anson said. “We were in unknown territory a bit because our side hasn’t been in that position for forever – for a very long time.”

To the Rams’ credit they refocused and reeled off wins in six of their next seven games, keeping themselves squarely among the top handful of sides in the league.

Anson said a refocused attitude and the perseverance of his charges despite a spate of injuries had helped put the Rams back in a position to challenge for their first finals win in more than two decades.

“I think we stopped getting complacent. The boys are hungry after last year when we bombed out in the first final, and I think that sticks in the back of everyone’s head,” he said.

Anson said the next challenge was getting an injured list back to full strength for a finals tilt.

“I think the biggest lesson we learned from last year is to not go into a final with injured players,” he said.

“Unfortunately, we’ve had a minimum of five changes per game, so we’ve kept up the same reputation as last year.

“As long as we can get a consistent team in finals, that’s the main thing.

Among the key contributors the Rams are hoping to regain for their finals campaign are talented young players Dylan Bates and Zach Smith, while Jack Ford, who has been restricted to just four games through injury, is also a chance to return.

The inclusions should add even more potency to a team already stocked with fleet-footed players such as Alex Ridsdale and Jesse Wilkinson.

Onballer Callum Cameron, while restricted to nine games through injury, has been a fixture in the team’s best players when healthy and forms a strong tandem with Anson.

Up forward Natimuk United’s hopes of kicking a winning score rest largely on the shoulders of high-flying duo Jaydon Stiles and Nathan Koenig – much as they did last year.

While both have largely maintained their excellent output from 2018 – kicking 67 and 39 goals respectively – the Rams have missed the contributions of last season’s number-three goal-kicker Kyal Murray, who has been restricted to just five games. The void left by Murray has been filled by the likes of Anson, Mitch Riddell and Max English, each averaging about a goal a game.

Down back the team is marshalled by Jono Lovel and Jordan Smith, while the versatile Riddell can provide rebound from half back or play on the ball.

While the lengthy injury list has frustrated Anson, he said his team could achieve the finals victory it desperately craves by tuning out the noise and sticking to what has made it a success this season.

“I think we’ve just got to play our brand of football and worry about us, not what everyone else is doing,” he said.

“Hopefully the rest will take care of itself.”

 

Players to watch:

Jaydon Stiles

While his scoring output is down slightly compared to last season, the mercurial key forward proved himself among the league’s goal-kicking elite, beating out Jeparit-Rainbow’s Peter Weir for the league goal-kicking title with a total of 67. After a blistering start to the season that saw him kick 27 goals in his first four games, Stiles’ influence was curtailed slightly, but he closed the year strongly with hauls of six and seven goals, and is yet to be held goalless. He booted three majors in a close elimination final loss to Jeparit-Rainbow last year and will need to kick at least that many again for the Rams to progress in finals.

 

Nathan Koenig 

Completing the forward line double act for Natimuk United is Koenig, who has tallied 39 majors from his 15 games this year. Koenig played a key role in the Horsham District interleague side that beat Loddon Valley by 34 points, kicking two goals and presenting well across half forward. Like Stiles, Koenig has been relatively quiet in recent weeks, but remains a dangerous threat for any opposition defender.

 

Alex Ridsdale

While the hard-running Ridsdale has not hit the scoreboard as regularly this season as he did in 2018, he still forms a vital component of the Natimuk United midfield. Ridsdale is a former under-17 league best and fairest winner and has parlayed that success into a solid senior career with the Rams. He will need to fire for Natimuk United to go deep into the post-season.

The entire August 21, 2019 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!