North Coast will look to continue their strong Interleague record as they take on the Tamworth AFL (TAFL) at Bellevue Oval, Armidale this Saturday afternoon.
Coach, Peter Chadwick will take charge of a vastly different squad with a distinct spread of youth. It is fair to say the side has been depleted with the loss of a number of walk-up starters from the original squad, with last year’s Best and Fairest, Mark Couzens the latest to pull out.
The youngsters will have to stand up against an improving league that will benefit from the home ground advantage. The Coast side will have to adapt quickly to the cold conditions in Armidale.
There is talent on every line for the North Coast. The backline provides a good mix of defensive and rebounding ability with the experience of Daniel Pritchard and Jim Angel sure to be beneficial. There is, however, an injury cloud with Levi Sands nursing a knee complaint.
Kris Rundell and Jed Ellis-Cluff offer speed on the wing, while the half-forward line looks particularly impressive with Aaron Clarke and Jesse Schmidt heading into the game with form under their belt. Ben Hooke is the leading goal-kicker in the League and will be hard to stop at full forward.
The hard work will need to be done in the centre. Ben Miller earns his debut cap in the ruck and needs to be at his best. Lions’ duo Monte Schmidt and Luke Benson normally play negating roles and a lot will rest on their shoulders to win the hard ball against former North Coast product, Hamish Pearce.
Another player the starting favourites will have to stop is TAFL Power captain, Gavin Knee. Knee won the Graham Nuttall Trophy as best on ground in the 2009 Grand Final and has been a leading local footballer for a number of years.
Action kicks off at 2.15pm, with full sides listed below (subject to change):
NORTH COAST
B: Jim Angel, Justin Darby, Craig Dicker
HB: Daniel Pritchard, Levi Sands, Zac Nankervill
C: Kris Rundell, Monte Schmidt, Jed Ellis-Cluff
HF: Matt Lill, Aaron Clarke, Jesse Schmidt
F: Damien Cameron, Ben Hooke, Brad Giri
R: Ben Miller, Luke Benson, Jarrod Meade
I/C: Darby Pearce, Justin Mohr, Sam Turner, Liam Carroll
Coach: Peter Chadwick
TAMWORTH
B: Ballagh, Daye, Frost
HB: George, Shawcross, Robinson
C: M. Douglas, C. Douglas, Bourke
HF: Whitby, Hughes, Firth
F: Viney, Hoy, Cruikshank
R: Knee, Naismith, H. Pearce
I/C: Jackomos, Eddie, Borthwick, Donohue
Coach: Tony Bishop
Umpires: Luke Turner, Sean Staniforth, Lindsay Brash
Last Modified on 08/06/2010 18:30