Thursday, 9 May 2024
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Gulls look to go two from two against Tigers
5 min read

As we pass the halfway mark of the season in the Gippsland League, it's now time for the repeat match-ups to begin.
Warragul will face off with one of the teams they managed to defeat in their first meeting, while Drouin are looking to, for the third week in a row, challenge a top five side.
Warragul vs Morwell
The Gulls will look to go two from two this season against the Tigers this weekend.
It's been a tough year for the Gulls, who have been utterly ravaged by injuries that have crippled any chance they had of a great season.
No doubt they'll look back on their round four win over Morwell quite fondly.
The Gulls were tough around the ball that day, and though they had five fewer scoring shots that day, were able to register a hard-fought 10-point win.
It's been slim pickings since then with five losses, four of them by 40 points or more.
They were right in the game against Bairnsdale last week, spurred on by the return of a number of their young guns like Lachlan Smith, Lane Ward and Jasper Alger.
At three quarter time they trailed by just two points. By full time it was 41 points.
It was a disappointing fade out for the Gulls, but they'll take plenty from the game, particularly the first and third quarters.
Lachlan Smith and Jasper Alger come out of the team this week, as does Tom Kelly, who returns to his duties at Mt Eliza, while Liam Sumner returns, as do young guns Lucas Carter and Alby Phillips.
Morwell, meanwhile, are desperate for a win here.
The Tigers sit three and six after nine rounds and are coming off an 85-point shellacking from Wonthaggi, well below what they would have hoped for given their barnstorming run to finals last season. For context. the Tigers lost a total of eight games in total last season.
It's left them very little wriggle room from here on out.
They simply can't afford many more losses, particularly against sides that, on paper, they should be beating.
Given they will face Traralgon and Moe in the weeks after this game, they should be considering this as a non-negotiable.
Traralgon vs Drouin
Drouin play away for the second time in as many weeks as they meet yet another premiership hopeful.
The Hawks have gone the first half of the season without a win, though not for a lack of trying.
A number of close losses early in their campaign left them as one of the unluckier teams in the league, but the last few weeks have been challenging.
46, 47, 61 and 99 points have been the margins over their past four matches, with games against top five contenders proving to be a challenge.
The Hawks' best has been good. Very good.
Their run and carry has shown the ability to challenge most teams, and is an exciting brand for fans to watch when it works.
It's when it doesn't work that things go awry.
In almost every game the Hawks have played, they've had down periods where they turn the ball over too easily, letting opposition sides put them to the sword.
While they're every chance to cause an upset in the run home, it's left them vulnerable when they play the best teams.
In matches against the current top five they've lost by an average of 52 points, their nine-point loss to Wonthaggi being the only result under 40 points.
Their last meeting with Traralgon was emblematic of their season - the Hawks were nowhere early in the match, conceding seven first quarter goals.
They then worked their way back into it brilliantly, reducing the margin to 10 points...before fading again.
A good start will be vital for the Hawks this time around. Should they let the Maroons off the hook early it may be another long day.
Charlie Bethune and Sam Pratt come into the team at the expense of Rhys Salter and Callum Tyler.
For Traralgon the top three is still on offer, meaning this is a game they'll be looking to tick off the list.
Drouin have a number of games against lower sides coming after this match which they'll certainly be keen for, but first they'll be trying to make a good showing here.
Other games
The second grand final rematch of the year is here, as Sale look to make amends when they play Leongatha.
The Magpies were utterly demolished by the reigning premiers earlier this year, going down by a whopping 142 points.
Jenson Garnham kicked 11 that day, a new record for the Parrots against the Magpies.
A response will be needed from Sale, who are now looking to maintain their spot in the top five.
Wonthaggi hosts Maffra as they look to keep their strong form rolling.
The Power are on a six-game winning streak, five of those wins being by 74 points or more.
Maffra's shown some solid signs in recent weeks, pushing Moe to the line last round, but one would think the Power take care of business here.
Finally, Bairnsdale takes on Moe.
The Redlegs burst away late against the Gulls last week, capping off a brilliant day as the club raised close to $100,000 for FightMND.
Moe escaped their own Big Freeze event with a win that took more effort than it probably should have, but the Lions are still travelling beautifully at eight and one.
The Lions won well when these two last met, and will be expected to do so again, while a Redlegs win would throw them right back into top five calculations.