Rochy unbeaten after last-gasp heroics

Rochy captain Wil Hamilton drew first blood and it wasn’t long before usual suspect Cricelli was in on the action as well.

Mooroopna wasn’t going to stay down for too long and, after a couple of behinds to get the ball rolling, was on the board through goals by Kobie Issell and Logan Campbell.

In a match that seemed pre-destined to go down to the wire, the Tigers held a narrow two-point lead at quarter-time.

The second period was another back-and-forth contest, with both teams kicking a pair of goals, and Rochy held a five-point lead at the major break.

Rochester had its most productive quarter of attacking football in the third term, breaking away from the Cats with Cricelli adding another to his tally along with Wil and Hugh Hamilton and Sean Williams getting in on the action.

Still, the Tigers struggled to mount a significant lead against the belligerent Cats, who were using ball movement and foot speed to cover much of the ground.

With just 14 points separating the two sides heading into the final quarter, Mooroopna came out firing, kicking the first goal through Jordan Formica to bring the margin back to a touch more than a goal.

Tobie Woodfine fired one through the middle to give the Tigers some breathing room, but back-to-back goals by the Cats left the match on a knife’s edge with the clock winding down.

A full field press by the Tigers saw the ball move within striking distance for a last-gasp effort, where it found the boot of Cricelli, who dribbled it through the middle to ice the game for the visitors.

In a relatively low-scoring affair, the Tigers got away with a seven-point victory, winning 11.7 (73) to 9.12 (66).

Rochester coach Ash Watson reflected on the contest and gave his flowers to a hard-nosed Mooroopna side which dug deep.

“We were happy to get the win. We’ve been over there a few times recently and haven’t won and we were up against it for a fair bit of the day, but it was great to get it done,” he said.

“It was a hot and dry day. They are a young side and quick, they moved the ball really well and their transition was great, so we couldn’t stop them at times.

“There were definitely some pleasing parts of the day, going over there and not being able to play the way we wanted to, but still getting the four points in the end and being up two wins on the season.”

Watson pointed to the inclusion of former GWS Giant Cooper Hamilton, who played his first senior football game for the club against the Cats, as a major benefit to his side.

“We had Cooper Hamilton back from Carlton VFL this week, which was handy, and he got to play with his two brothers Wil and Hugh, so that was awesome to have those boys all playing on the one side,” he said.

“Cooper played outstandingly. It was his first game back for a fair while, so it was good to see him get back and play the whole game.”

Looking ahead, Watson was bullish on his side’s looming match-up against Euroa on Good Friday and Rochester’s early success in 2025.

“We will just be working on a few structural things but mainly ball movement, so they’ll be our main focus at training this week when we come up against Euroa,” he said.

“We are feeling good ahead of next round. Good Friday will be a big day for the club with it being a night game under lights at Rochy.

“Euroa are a good side, we played them in the finals last year, so we know they’ll be around the mark again, which we’ll have to watch, but we are up to the challenge.

“It’s still very early in the season, so it’ll take a few weeks for it to sort itself out, but we are happy to start the way we have and feel like we are in good shape for the rest of the year.”

Rochester Football Netball Club will host Euroa on Friday.

12.15pm: B-reserve, under-15s netball

1pm: under-18s football

1.30pm: B-grade, under-17s netball

2.45pm: A-grade netball

3pm: reserves football

5pm: seniors football