Greensborough moved to third place on the Northern Football/Netball League‘s Division 1 ladder after defeating Montmorency by 17 points at Montmorency Park yesterday.
The old foes entered the game with only percentage separating fourth-placed Greensborough and the fifth-placed Montmorency Magpies.
In a tense battle, Boro’s poise and composure going forward saw it claim a 15.10 (100) to 11.17 (83) win, despite having less shots on goal.
Box Hill Hawks forward Billy Murphy starred in his first game for Greensborough, kicking three goals and providing havoc for the Magpies defence. Jacob Ireland was also in fine form for the Boro, ending the game with three goals and a number of assists.
Patrick Fitzgerald was a handful up forward and booted four goals for the Magpies, while Ben Kennedy was solid in midfield. Matthew White provided run off half back early in the game, but his team fell away in the second half as his impact diminished.
There was a sense of anticipation in the air as the two rivals met for the second time this season. Greensborough came out of the blocks firing and had all the attacking play early in the first term.
Jason Rogers, who kicked six goals the week before, continued from where he left off by kicking the first goal of the game.
Montmorency began to work its way into the game and drew level with Greensborough courtesy of a goal from Jackson Jones.
The Magpies had plenty of the ball but in a precursor to how the game would transpire, they were wasteful with their forward entries. White was providing dash off half back but halfway through the term, the Magpies could only muster 1.4 on the scoreboard.
Having absorbed a lot of pressure in defence, Greensborough needed to make the most of its forward entries. Murphy and Ireland were both elusive on the ground and combined for three goals in the term.
At quarter time Greensborough led by one goal, despite having four less scoring shots. The Boro were playing smarter football and were lowering their eyes to find targets in the forward line, while Montmorency was happy to bomb the ball long into attack.
The second term was a goal for goal battle. Blake Murphy kicked the first goal to level the scores with a beautiful shimmy on the boundary. Billy Murphy then replied for the Boro, before Patrick Fitzgerald kicked his first to tie the scores again.
Montmorency’s inaccuracy in front of goal again proved costly as the Boro kicked three of the last four goals to head into half time with a two-goal advantage.
As the rain began to pelt down, Greensborough’s ball use helped it dominate the game. The Boro were able to find their targets, despite the slippery ball and this resulted in them extending their lead.
Zak McCubbin kicked a goal that would not be out of place at the FIFA World Cup. McCubbin’s sublime volley would have been useful for the Socceroos.
Josh Callaway, Tynan Smith and Ireland all hit the scoreboard to give the Boro a 27-point lead at the final break. The game looked done and dusted when Murphy kicked his third goal of the game to extend the lead to 34 points early in the final term.
But Montmorency was not going to die without a fight and through Fitzgerald, the Magpies reduced the gap to 17 points. The key forward showed his creativity to kick three consecutive goals to give the Magpies a sniff.
But time proved to be the Magpies’ enemy as Greensborough held on for its sixth win for the season.
Final score: Montmorency 11.17 (83) defeated by Greensborough 15.10 (100).
PHOTO: Supplied/Nathan William Media/NWM.
