By JARROD POTTER
VICTORIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE
REVIEW – ROUND 17
PUTTING on a show for the hometown fans, Casey Scorpions powered to the front against the Carlton-aligned Northern Blues and cantered away in a 42-point win.
A tightly contested first quarter left both sides in the hunt, but Rohan Welsh’s men were able to find another gear through the next three stanzas.
The Scorpions kept the visitors goalless in the second term while piling on six of their own – led by Jake Best (3 goals), Jack Fitzpatrick (3) and a starring role by Max Gawn (3).
Northern’s wayward kicking let them down dramatically as it stumbled to six goals and 14 behinds for the match.
Gawn put in a powerhouse performance in his eighth VFL senior match of the year – continuing to monster the ruck duels as he smashed 54 hit outs this weekend in a one-sided battle against AFL-listed Blue Robbie Warnock – and with Melbourne’s AFL woes would be an obvious call-up to senior duties. Demons-listed Gawn also claimed 18 possessions and three goals to complete a best-on-ground performance while Matt Jones (26 possessions), Vic Michie (26) and Mitch Clisby (24) all put their hands up for selection.
Fitzpatrick smashed 28 hit outs of his own to complete the Casey ruck rout over the Blues.
With three matches left in the season, Casey clashes with premiership aspirants Port Melbourne at North Port Oval on Saturday before facing Footscray away at Highgate Reserve and its final match of the year against Coburg at home on Sunday 24 August.
VFL
CASEY SCORPIONS 4.2 10.4 12.10 13.14 (92)
NORTHERN BLUES 3.6 3.9 4.11 6.14 (50)
Casey Goals: J. Best 3, M. Gawn 3, J. Fitzpatrick 3, A. Scott, N. Page, C. Salem, M. Jones. Best: M. Gawn, V. Michie, J. Strauss, D. Barry, J. Fitzpatrick, M. Jones.
Northern Blues Goals: B. Walton 3, T. Totevski, B. Bransgrove, R. Warnock. Best: D. Armfield, T. Wilson, J. Wilkinson, P. Cripps, C. Sheehan, R. Warnock.
