04 Aug - Cats draw with Coota Blues
So close, yet so far for valiant Cats
The Australian Hotel Cooma Cats played an exciting draw with the Cootamundra Blues at Snowy Oval on Saturday to share the points and to be left stranded just outside the top four in another great game for the Cooma said.
The final score read: Cooma 10-10-70 drawing with Cootamundra 10-10-70.
The game was within Cooma's grasp up until the dying seconds when Cootamundra managed to force a behind in tough play deep[ in their forward pocket and tiew up the score just before the final siren.
Cooma Cats club president Dave Paterson praised both sides for a terrific display of exciting football in a game which meant so much to both sides in the lead up to the finals.
"On paper, both the Cats and Cootmundra were still still a chance to grab the final spot in the top four, but the draw now makes it virtually impossible for both sides to stay in the race," Dave said.
Knowing the importance of a win in terms of playing finals footy, both sides played hard and fast football in what can be best described as demanding conditions.
Cootamundra came out fast in the opening minutes of the game, kicking three straight goals against a strong wind and stamping their authority on the game.
But the Cats regrouped and kicked 4-8 to take a 14 point lead into the first break. The Cats failure to convert many of its chances in this first quarter would be the difference between both sides and ultimately cost the Cooma side the game.
In the second quarter it was Cootamundra's turn to enjoy the strong wind advantage, but the Cooma side battled hard to prevent the Blues from kicking away and managed to take a 3 point lead at the major break with the score reading Cooma 7-8-50 to Cootamundra 7-5-47.
If the Cats were going to win the game, they had to come out in the third quarter and take advantage of the wind and build an unassailable lead to withstand the expected enslaught by Cootamundra in the final quarter.
The third quarter was a titanic battle as the Cats tried to kick away, but the Blues fought valiantly to stop them.
When the siren sounded at the end of the third quarter, the Cats only managed to hold a nine point lead with the score reading Cooma 9-10-64 to Cootamundra 8-7-55. Nine points was never going to be enough.
However, the Cats came out into the final quarter and at one stage managed to extend the lead out to 16 points with 12 minutes to go. But Cootamundra cam back and managed to snare two quick goals which reduced the margin to four points.
In the final minutes, the game became a desperate battle of wills as Cootamundra threw everything forward to snare a match winning goal while Cooma did all they could to prevent it and hold on for what would have been a miraculous win. Cootamundra managed three points through inaccurate kicking caused by the Cooma defence and then with seconds remaining on the clock, Cootamundra rushed a final behind to level the scores.
And then the final siren sounded and there was only one winner - football.
The Cats head to Goulburn this Saturday before their final game of the season at the Snowy Oval the following week against Harman.
Trvia Night. The Cooma Cats and Snowy Supercats held their major fund-raising events at the Australian Hotel on Saturday night. Thanks to the great support of the all Cooma Cats sponsors and friends, the club managed to raise some much needed funds to help preparations for the 2013 season. A thanks to all sponsors and those players, families, friends and supporters who supported the event.
Last Modified on 05/08/2012 18:50
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