ON the shortest day of the year, Loseby Park hosted the longest program of club football ever staged in the Highlands.
When the under-10s took the field for the first game on Sunday they set in motion almost eight hours of non-stop action which ended with another great effort by the under-15s, who fell in fading light against the Northern Yellow Tigers.
With younger players such as Rhys McDonald, Jack Edwards, Luther Canute and Pete Sweegers stepping up a notch, the Hawks under-15s tenacity saw them leading at the first break.
Their intensity fell away in the middle stanzas but, with stout defence by Phil Syrros and Oliver Holmes, the Hawks came back to be down by only eight points at the last change. In the end it was a handful of bigger and faster Tigers who took home the four points.
Early in the game Oliver Holmes set the pattern of play when he ran from deep in defence giving and receiving some great handballs on the way.
At the other end, the goal of the game came from Aidan Brown who gathered the slippery ball right on the line, was immediately dispossessed but with great presence of mind still put his boot to the ball from an impossible angle to score a key goal.
The under-13s received a forfeit from the Lions but enjoyed a much needed hit-out in a scratch-match to keep their skills finely tuned.
The under-12s could not match Kiama Power who had clear winners all over the ground.
The Hawks kept their opponents under pressure and forced many errors on the forward line.
A three-goal bag from Justin Smith in the under-9s was a great effort for the Hawks and he can look forward to more success in the coming year.
Like a lot of players in the team, he already shows a great feel for the game.
The under-10s had another tight battle with the Northern Tigers and the game was evenly balanced until the last term when Angus Webb and William Wright booted the game-breakers.
Under-11s coach Andrew Bermingham continues to be pleased by the performance of all the new squad members who are steadily mastering the oval-ball skills.
In their game they came up against the ‘Roos who were too good on the day. Tearloch Carr’s long goal was a beauty.
Great interest was created in the first under-17 game staged at Loseby Park.
It was all over by halftime, but it gave the local supporters a chance to see their players in action when this very polished Nowra-Highlands combined team overwhelmed Bomaderry to maintain their undefeated record.
All four Highlanders had great games. Marco Basaglia kicked two goals while Lachlan Holmes and Joel Stankiewicz each booted majors. Hunter Schraeder-Wright played his usual steady game in defence.
With so many games on the program, it was a great opportunity for the local umpire development squad to gain valuable experience.
Jeremy Boland from the South-West Metropolitan Program was on hand, and Highlands’ umpire co-ordinator Andrew Basaglia, was able to demonstrate the steady development of the aspiring umpires.
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