By Nick Creely
VIC PREMIER
REVIEW – ROUND 15 (DAY 1)
Belief in sport is a powerful thing – it’s something that drives a team, an individual and coaches alike to achieve greatness.
With the game seemingly slipping away from Casey-South Melbourne on Saturday, as Greenvale pair Nathan Massey (44) and Kyle Adams (31) built up a strong partnership, the overall feeling was that this crucial result would go against them.
At 6/112, with just ten runs needed from the Roos to claim first-innings points, a piece of magic was needed.
“We were trying a couple of different things – we went back to Rosey (Brendan Rose) and Lambey (Nathan Lambden), and both guys delivered well – Sperlo (Lachlan Sperling) took a really hot catch at short cover and that got us going,” coach Brian Keogh explained.
“Lambey then took a blinder caught-and-bowled, a one-hander at a critical time, and the score was about 8/116 when he took that catch – the last batter came in and hit the first ball through slips and that took them to 9/120, then Rosey got through Smilie and that was it, he knocked him over.
“It was incredible – we have had a lot of close games, but I’ve talked a lot about that sense of belief that is growing among the group, and that shone through once again – when the game was slipping away we just found a way.”
The sentimental notion of ‘finding a way’ in sport, no matter the circumstances, rings true when assessing the rise of Casey in 2016/17.
But if not for a gritty performance late in the Swans’ first-innings, it is unlikely that they would have been in the position they currently sit.
“Both Jackson Fry (3 off 50 balls) and Leigh Diston (28 not out) were outstanding – we were 9/80 odd I think – not only did they put on 30-odd for the last wicket, but it was the way they went about it – to be fair Greenvale bowled well, and we didn’t bat well – Jacko and Diston were positive and incredibly determined, they changed the momentum for sure, and we went into the break knowing if we bowled well we were a chance,” Keogh said.
The tail-ended duo lifted the Swans to 121 off just 52.5 overs, after at one stage being 8/81 and staring down a horror day.
All-in-all, Keogh was proud of his side’s fight and praised two of his bowlers for their electric form, after both suffering mini-slumps in performance mid-way through the season.
“Rosey had a game against Footscray-Edgewater, a Twenty20, and he had a poor game and was a bit down on himself, but we talked about going back to what made him a great Premier bowler, his ability to charge in and hit the top of off-stump – ten wickets in the last two games is of the highest calibre,” he said.
“We bowl well in partnerships – Rosey got the five wickets but Lambden was probably the pick of the bowlers to be honest – those two as a combination is so important for us – Disto is back in form and Jacko is a great addition to the side.”
The Swans will enter day two looking to put more runs on the board in their second-dig.
