By LIAM TWOMEY
SUNSHINE is into the WRFL division one preliminary final after smashing Altona by 54 points on Sunday.
The Kangaroos dominated the contest from the outset, kicking a staggering eight goals during a near-perfect first quarter to take a 43-point lead.
It was a case of more of the same during the next two quarters as the margin continued to grow and Altona’s season slipped away.
The sting was well and truly out of the contest by the last quarter as Sunshine supporters counted down the minutes before they could celebrate.
After being dealt a disappointing loss at the hands of Spotswood the week prior, Sunshine coach Brett Jacobs was rapt with the way his side responded.
“We know they (Altona) are a good side,” he said.
“They are the reigning premiers and they weren’t going to roll over.
“We put a really big emphasis on our start and we needed to show something early after last week’s disappointment.
“Every one of our players was disappointed after last week. We made a brave decision and went with the exact same 22 to give those guys a chance to respond from their poor showing last week. I thought all 22 contributed today.”
Macauley Goring and Kieran Murphy were both outstanding around the ground for Sunshine while up forward, Patrick Wiggins was impressive with four goals.
The Kangaroos will now take on Deer Park for a spot in the Division One grand final.
The two sides have met twice throughout the season with the wins split at one each. “We have a six-day break and a tough game against Deer Park,” Jacobs said.
“They are obviously a quality side with a lot of good players. We have another big job next week. We can’t be high-fiving and patting backs, we need to get on with the job in six days’ time.
“It was quite a long time ago now (when the two sides last met).
“They had a few players absent that day, we did as well and conditions were wet and that type of stuff. It gives us a bit of belief and we think that if we can play our brand of footy successfully we can match it with them and progress. Finals footy is a funny thing, anything is possible.”
