AXV : Round 6 Match Report

[Toga]

AXV ROUND 6 MATCH REPORT

Laos Elephants (25.25.175) d. by Bangladesh Bears (29.15.189)
New Laos International Stadium, Laos
Friday 3/5/13, 7:00pm

Late changes:
Laos: none.
Bangladesh: Beau Waters replaced by Alipate Carlisle.

Best players:
Laos: S.Selwood, J.Redden, T.Boak, S.Crameri, B.Stratton
Bangladesh: N.Riewoldt, J.Selwood, M.Robinson, D.Stanley, P.Duffield

Match report:
What a match up between the Selwood brothers this week, with the two brothers, respective vice-captains of their clubs going head to head in the middle. With both teams' captains having quiet weeks, the Selwood boys stepped it up and put in huge performances. With Bangladesh losing star back man Beau Waters to injury just before the match, the elephants were in with a fighting chance, however the rest of the Bears' defence really stood up in Waters' absence, restricting the output of their rival team's forwards. Laos' young midfielders put in an admirable effort against the more experienced Bears outfit, which was without star Nat Fyfe, however a dominant effort from Nick Riewoldt up front put the result beyond doubt, beating his opponent Alex Rance decisively.

Taiwan Dolphins (30.17.197) d. UAE Tigers (27.15.177)
Sher-e-Bangla Stadium, Bangladesh
Saturday 4/5/13, 1:50pm

Late changes:
Taiwan: none.
UAE: none.

Best players:
Taiwan: C.Enright, E.Betts, G.Ablett, J.Adcock, J.Lewis
UAE: A.Christensen, D.Martin, I.Smith, J.Harbrow, C.Knights

Match report:
A big game this week between a team fancying itself as premiership contenders, and a young up-and-coming side that is trying to prove itself to the competition as a real finals contender. The Tigers forwards really stood up to the task before them this week, with mammoth efforts from Christensen, Martin and Knights really pushing Taiwan's defenders, who were well lead by experienced heads Enright, who was best afield, and Adcock. Eddie Betts put on a masterclass up front, and in the end, was the difference between the two teams, cementing the victory for his side. Disappointing efforts from UAE's captain Brett Deledio, vice-captain Richard Douglas, and fellow leadership group member Hamish Hartlett will be sure to attract the attention of the coach this week, who will expect more out of his star players next week.

Vietnam Vipers (26.16.172) d. Manila Folders (25.18.168)
My Dinh Stadium, Hanoi
Saturday 4/5/13, 2:30pm

Late changes:
Vietnam: none.
Manila: none.

Best players:
Vietnam: D.Meyers, M.Le Cras, M.Jones, S.Hurn, N.Suban
Manila: T.Cloke, B.Goddard, D.Swan, C.Mayne, R.Bastinac

Match report:
Wowee, what an upset! Early premiership favourites the Folders went down to the Vipers this week in a fiercely contested game. The Vipers, without captain Dayne Beams and fellow star midfielder Shaun Grigg, managed to win the game off the back of a few key members of their team: stand-in captain Mark LeCras, rebounding defender Danny Meyers, and half back Shannon Hurn put in huge performances to drag their team across the line, while Matt Jones decided to do his best impersonation of his opposition captain with a huge second half. With Vietnam's forwards well held by the Folders' defence, the Vipers' midfielders really stepped it up, which was where the game was won in the end. Travis Cloke put in a huge effort up forwards for the Folders but it was a case of too little too late, and he couldn't manage to pull his team over the line. The Folders will be looking to redeem themselves next week, however it may be a tough ask against the in-form Lambs in what is sure to be the game of the round. Congratulations to Vietnam's Bradley Hill in winning this week's Rising Star nomination.

Hong Kong Dongs (25.16.166) d. Sri Lanka Strikers (23.14.152)
So Kon Po Stadium, Hong Kong
Saturday 4/5/13, 7:10pm

Late changes:
Hong Kong: L.Hayes replaced by J.McKenzie.
Sri Lanka: none.


Best players:
Hong Kong: J.Bartel, J.Schulz, K.Cornes, L.Montagna, L.McPharlin
Sri Lanka: D.Thomas, K.Jack, J.J. Kennedy, M.Walters, J.Jenkins

Match report:
In a pretty low-scoring affair, the highly-rated Hong Kong side just managed to overcome a team described by some as 'bandaids on legs' on Saturday night. After a terrible run of injuries in the lead up to this game for Jayman and his team, it seemed as though luck had now turned against Head Coach of the Dongs, Nails, as some of his key players suffered injuries during the match. Jack Grimes is expected to miss two months of football after breaking his collarbone, and was subbed out of the match very early on, while his captain Brent Stanton was injured midway through the game, and precautions were taken to ensure that no lasting damage was done to his groin muscles. Sri Lanka's vice captain Kieren Jack was serviceable in the middle, making up for a lacklustre effort put in by captain Steele Sidebottom, while Josh Kennedy was dominant up forwards. For the Dongs, the game was won by a select few players standing up to the occasion: Jimmy Bartel, Kane Cornes and Leigh Montagna did a fantastic job in the middle, while Jay Schulz kicked a bag that would turn out to make all the difference after highly-fancied number one draft pick Lance Franklin again failed to perform, not kicking a single goal. The Dongs will look to reassert themselves as premiership contenders over the next few weeks after a couple of less-than-impressive efforts, but the coach is confident his team can rise to the occasion.

Mongolian Lambs (33.19.217) d. KL Crocodiles (23.18.156)
Bird's Nest Stadium, Beijing
Saturday 4/5/13, 7:10pm

Late changes:
Mongolia: none.
KL: none.


Best players:
Mongolia: S.Johnson, M.Murphy, M.Priddis, S.Thompson, P.Hanley
KL: S.Pendlebury, H.Taylor, J.Frawley, L.Parker, S.Coniglio

Match report:
The injury-stricken Crocs this week copped a belting from an in-form Lambs outfit, who posted the highest ever AXV score to date. It seemed as though all players on the field for Mongolia performed, lead by a classy Steve Johnson up forwards in his milestone 200th game, and skipper Marc Murphy who dominated in the middle in his match up with superstar Scott Pendlebury. KL Coach Ricochet can come away from the loss with a few positives, including the performance of his captain who was once again outstanding, along with some strong performances from youngsters Luke Parker and Stephen Coniglio. Lambs coach Toga was excited for his players to have put in such a strong performance this week, and stated that he hopes his team can take their form into next round's clash against rivals Manila, which is a game that will cement the Lambs as a serious premiership contender for this season.

PNG Head Hunters (26.15.171) d. Bangkok Crabs (22.17.149)
PMRL Stadium, Port Moresby
Sunday 5/5/13, 2:10pm

Late changes:
PNG: Andrew Carrazzo replaced by David Mackay.
Bangkok: Jake Carlisle replaced by Taylor Adams, Sam Docherty replaced by Brent Macaffer.

Best players:
PNG: J.Garlett, A.Swallow, G.Ibbotson, D.Armitage, D.Mackay
Bangkok: H.O'Brien, A.Treloar, J.O'Meara, J.Darling, J.Steven

Match report:
After a coaching mishap, the Crabs were left a bit undermanned this week with two defenders withdrawing from the match late, with no defender emergencies being named, forcing midfielder Taylor Adams and forward Brent Macaffer to play out of position in the back line. There were some positive signs for both sides, with PNG's midfielders dominating most of the play, lead by skipper Andrew Swallow, and late call-up David Mackay, with Jeff Garlett dominating up forwards, and Garrick Ibbotson being serviceable down back. Bangkok's coach would have to be impressed with the efforts of young guns Adam Treloar and Jaeger O'Meara, and Heritier O'Brien providing great run off of half-back. Both teams will look to consolidate this weekend's efforts with good performances next week, with Bangkok set to regain young star Dion Prestia this week.

[Toga]

Turkey Gazelles (26.19.175) d. Tibetan Llamas (21.16.142)
Turk Telekom Arena, Turkey
Sunday 5/5/13, 2:10pm

Late changes:
Turkey: Paul Chapman replaced by Sharrod Wellingham.
Tibet: Luke Russell replaced by Sam Kerridge.

Best players:
Turkey: M.Duncan, H.Shaw, D.Cox, S.Wellingham, R.Gray
Tibet: P.Dangerfield, C.Smith, T.T.Lynch

Match report:
A coach-less Llamas side this week took on an underrated Turkey outfit that suffered a huge late out, with Paul Chapman withdrawing from the second match in a row due to hamstring soreness. Fortunately for the Gazelles, replacement Sharrod Wellingham was more than serviceable, and was named as one of his side's best players on the day. There wasn't much to like about the Llamas outfit this week: Patrick Dangerfield was dominant in the middle, and was recognised by being named the captain of the Asian Round 6 Team of the Week. Dangerfield was well supported by young midfielder Clay Smith, with Tom T. Lynch being almost a sole target up forwards as the team's other forwards failed to have an impact on the game. Gazelles ruckmen Dean Cox and Ivan Maric ran the Llamas big men ragged, however Gazelles coach Noz will be sweating this week over the availability of big Ivan after he suffered a nasty ankle injury during the match. The Llamas will look to regain some form next week against the out-of-form Eskimos.

Australian Ales (26.28.184) d. Kathmandu Eskimos (25.15.165)
Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia
Sunday 5/5/13, 4:20pm

Late changes:
Australia: none.
Kathmandu: Sam Rowe replaced by David Ellard.

Best players:
Australia: C.Masten, L.Shuey, L.Hodge, L.Breust, J.P.Kennedy
Kathmandu: L.Jetta, M.Hibberd, D.Hannebery, M.Firrito, D.Ellard

Match report:
The Kathmandu coach is eating his words! After weeks of criticism for his lacklustre start to the year, Lewis Jetta has finally bounced back with a dominant performance against the Ales. Unfortunately for him, it was not quite enough to get his side even close to an Australian side that has had a slow but steady start to the year. The game was won in the midfield for the Ales, with Chris Masten, Luke Shuey, Luke Hodge and Josh Kennedy dominating the Eskimos midfielders, with Dan Hannebery the only real shining light for KoopKicka this week. Leaders Trent Cotchin and Brad Ebert were outclassed all day long, although Cotchin is carrying a knee injury that will hopefully be recovered by this week, otherwise Kathmandu might be in for a surprise against the improvers of the competition in Tibet. Michael Hibberd has turned out to be one of the best defenders in the competition this year, and has consistently provided good run and carry out of defence, but the Australian defenders provided constant lace-out service to the forwards all day, proving to be too much for the Kathmandu defence to cope with.

LADDER AFTER ROUND 6

ROUND 7 SNAPSHOT

Friday:
Bears vs Dolphins

Saturday:
Elephants vs Vipers
Tigers vs Dongs
Folders vs Lambs
Strikers vs Head Hunters

Sunday:
Crocodiles vs Gazelles
Crabs vs Ales
Llamas vs Eskimos


What a weekend of footy we have ahead in Asia! Starting off with what will be a hotly-contested game between premiership contenders Bangladesh and Taiwan on Friday night, before a huge day of footy on Saturday with matches including a evenly-matched Laos versus Vietnam pairing, capped off with a clash between rivals Mongolia and Manila, with the winner cementing themselves as the real deal looking towards September. The final game of the round will be another interesting one, with the Llamas looking to cause a big upset against the out-of-form Eskimos.

[Adamant]

Great write up Toges. 8)

Bloody Waters and his late withdrawals. Costing us so many points. :(

[JBs-Hawks]

Going to finish it? :p

[Toga]

Thanks Ads

Going to finish it? :p

Haha just noticed it hadn't worked. Annoying. Think it was because Noz's stadium has one of those funny :u symbols :P


Should be right now.

[KoopKicka]

Massive Danger game for us.  :-X We to find some form quickly.

[Adamant]

Massive Danger game for us.  :-X We to find some form quickly.

Good pun. ;)

[KoopKicka]

Massive Danger game for us.  :-X We to find some form quickly.

Good pun. ;)

it wasnt intended either ;)

[JBs-Hawks]

Might aswell just start tanking for draft picks koops, your season is done :P

[Jroo]

Nice write up Toga, as you said Deledio as Captain and Douglas as VC stuffed me up  :'(

[Noz]

Geez those Gazelles are good!

Great write up also

[Toga]

Thanks guys :D