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Round
8
INJURED 'CATS CLAW THEIR WAY TO VICTORY VERSUS HIGH PARK DEMONSThis past weekend, July 7th in Hamilton, the (4-3) Wildcats took on the (1-6) High Park
Demons at Mohawk Sports Park. Both clubs were coming off a 2 week hiatus, due to the
Canada day long weekend, and the 'Cats were hoping to buck their 2 game winless streak
after losses to both the Toronto Eagles and the Etobicoke Kangaroos in previous weeks.
Unforfunately, due to a mix up between OAFL officials the league forgot to have umpires
dispatched to hamilton to take care of the Round #8 match-up and thus forced the game to be
delayed well over 30 minutes while the teams looked for answers and/or umpiring
replacements. Fortunately for both clubs, Hamilton's first year Aussie import Luke Main was
getting married the following day and his father was in the city for the weekend to enjoy some
Canadian footy and see his boy get hitched. Luke's father Allan Main, a retired umpire for
the past 13 years with 386 footy games in Australia under his belt, was more than willing to
make it 387 (payment was made in mass amounts of cold Canadian beer) due to lack of
umpires in Hamilton last weekend. With all craziness finally set aside, the game got underway
with Hamilton taking control of the ruck and moving the footy up field to their much taller
forward line time and time again. Despite missing several key players due to injury/work
commitments, the 'Cats used their limited bench to keep fresh legs moving through the guts
and forward line all game long against a reserve-less Demons side. This strategy seemed to be
working as the Wildcats took a commanding 16 point lead into the 1st intermission. As the
game wore on, it was obvious that without any interchange High park would have a hard time
containing the fresher Hamilton side, especially under an extremely hot July sun. Great
bursts of play from first year Wildcats Derek Rutten, fullback Greg "Plugger" Young and
Dominic "Uter" Krill helped to keep Hamilton ahead on the scoreboard through the first 3
quarters of play. As well as having his father on hand for the game, Luke also had his younger
brother Jake Main and best mate Trevor "Ted" Edwards suiting up for the 'Cats while on
vacation in Canada. Jake a former under 18's Geelong Falcons defender left his
mark in his first footy game on Canadian soil, notching a goal from a long run up the
boundary as well as helping out on half back flank with several great goal saving spoils.
Trevor didn't fair to badly himself, kicking 3 goals from the guts and helping to spark the
Wildcats offensive with his hard nosed style of play, on his way to earning Best On Ground for
his tireless efforts. Hamilton looked to build from these individual performances to help gain
more momentum heading into the final 20 minutes of play, and eventually ran out winners on
the day 10.6.66 to 5.7.37. the (5-3) Wildcats will now try to continue their home winning
streak this upcoming weekend vs. the (4-4) Toronto Dingos at Mohawk Sports Park on
Saturday, July 14th starting @ 11am sharp!
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