Frankston Dolphins took on the Northern Blues last Saturday at Preston City Oval but could not come away with the four points, losing to the Blues by 56 points. Davis Harrigan looks at Frankston’s performance in VFL round 10.
Khan Haretuku was outstanding in front of goal, marking everything that came his way and finishing with six goals in just his third senior game of the season.
The young Dolphins launched some blistering bursts of speed and exciting play, however found it hard in the first quarter to punch through the Blues defence.
Matching up against the likes of AFL listed ruckmen Robbie Warnock and Shaun Hampson, Dolphin Russell Gabriel found it challenging, but was able to find his feet and end up with 19 possessions. Gabriel moved like a gazelle all day, with some fine tackling.
Former Sandringham premiership player David Gallagher, with his flowing locks, threw himself into all the contests and provided a target up near the forward line. Gathering 12 marks for the day, “Gags” took his opponents on and came out the winner.
After a lacklustre first quarter, in which the Dolphins kicked just a solitary goal, the gears began to move and Haretuku opened up the second quarter with back to back goals.
Co-captain Leigh Kitchin also wanted in on the action, amassing 27 disposals for the game, not letting the Blues get away without a fight.
A swing in momentum early in the second quarter saw another co-captain in Mitchell Bosward ruffle the feathers of a few Blues players. Ultimately though, the Blues would have the last laugh.
Haretuku was the show stealer; the 199cm 23 year old kicking beautifully in front of goal. On a day where conditions were overcast, Dolphins coach Simon Goosey stressed in the rooms after the game that the under utilising of the ball was a key factor in not getting the desired results on the scoreboard.
The attention of every player was trained on Goosey, as he congratulated the Dolphins on their efforts against a better team, but took aim at not finding the drive early on.
Lacking a core of experienced players was also part of Goosey’s post-match thoughts, and a reason why the Dolphins could not run out the game.
“At the end of the day, we are a very young side, but you need some experience to really lead the boys. We’ve got “Gags” who was probably our best…we need some older heads simply to direct our young kids.
“If we analyse the Blues, nearly all their players on the field today have played AFL football…we just have to get better. We had lots of turnovers.”
Defence is going to be the next item on the drawing board, and Goosey is very positive about his young charges.
“We showed that against Collingwood and Port Melbourne, we are capable of taking it to the more powerful sides. Working extremely hard on our defensive efforts and ball use is key.”
The likes of Haretuku, Gallagher and Kitchin are not only strong around the ball, but also level headed on the field. Facing Sandringham at home this week, the Dolphins will be looking to put in a four quarter effort on Sunday.
Photo: Davis Harrigan
Last Modified on 20/06/2013 17:43