By GARY FRY
UNE’s Bellevue Oval was the venue for a tight tussle in the region’s AFL competition on Saturday afternoon. The home-ground advantage was not enough for the New England Nomads, who went into the game against the Tamworth Kangaroos undefeated this season.
The Kangaroos ended the Nomads’ winning streak with a 22-point margin, delivering what Nomads captain, Clint Ballagh described as a “wake-up call” for a side that he conceded had become “cocky”.
Kangaroos captain Colin Day said that Matthew Hodge and Dean Hoy were standout performers for his team, kicking at least one goal each, per quarter.
Point scorers for the Nomads included James Boatfield, Riley Connor, Grant Wagstaff and Adrian Walsh.
“It was really good to get one up on the Nomads. We haven’t managed it for a long time,” Day said.
The Nomads’ first and last quarters were relatively lack-lustre; in contrast to the Kangaroos’ consistency throughout the game.
“Our attitudes lost this game. We needed to come out firing from the onset and we didn’t,” Ballagh said.
After defeating an under-manned Muswellbrook Cats, the previous weekend by close to 100 points, the Nomads had a full complement but were under-strength, due to UNE holidays.
The Kangaroos were almost hopping with delight, at having given the Nomads their first taste of defeat in 2013.
Final scores:
New England Nomads 10 6 66
Tamworth Kangaroos 13 10 88
After two quarters, the score was:
New England Nomads 5 5 35
Tamworth Kangaroos 6 4 40
