By ADEM SARICAOGLU
THE Calder Cannons proved too good for the Western Jets in the opening game of the TAC Cup season on Saturday.
In typically blustery conditions at Craigieburn’s Highgate Reserve, the Cannons made better use of the scoring end in the first and third quarters to break away from the Jets on their way to a 40-point win.
Jets coach Torin Baker said his side needed to make more of its scoring opportunities count when the game was still up for grabs.
“We thought there was a three-goal wind down to one end in the first quarter, so it was just disappointing that in the second quarter we weren’t able to convert a couple of our opportunities to make it a close game at half-time,” Baker said.
“When you’re three goals down at half-time and Calder has the wind in the third quarter and it gets out to six goals, it makes it really tough for us to fight back.”
In-form utility Connor Menadue was the best Jet on the ground, while team-mates Corey Ellis and Liam Carter also drew praise from Baker.
Dillon Viojo’s work in the air and at ground level was also a highlight during the first half.
“I thought Corey Ellis’s game was very good,” Baker said.
“Whether we threw him down back or played him in the midfield, he was one player that produced a four-quarter effort.
“I thought Connor Menadue’s run and carry was excellent and Liam Carter, who was in his second game of TAC Cup football, competed really well down back and gave us a bit of drive as well.”
Baker admits there is a bit of work to do out on the training track ahead of this Sunday’s clash with the Sandringham Dragons.
On Saturday it was in the clinches where the Jets got found out, but Baker said he’d be keen to see just how much his midfield could improve in coming weeks.
“There’s no doubt we were beaten very easily at the stoppages and that was the major difference in the game, so we’ve got to turn that around really quickly,” he said.
“We’ve got a group of midfielders who haven’t played a lot of TAC Cup football in the midfield so we’ll just continue to work with them to make sure that they get better each week.”
