IT'S been a less than desirable season for Eastlake and the nightmare was far from over when they came up against Queanbeyan on Saturday, August 22, falling 27.19 (181) to 3.2 (20).
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Veterans Paul Williams and Merv Armstrong turned back the clock, putting on a show for Allinsure Park crowds with a ten-goal haul between them.
But it was a clinic from start to finish, Tigers dominated all areas, leading by 77-points at the major break and only allowing the Demons to score a major in the final term.
The domination allowed the squad to focus on the more technical aspects of their game with finals looming, assistant coach Dave Corcoran said.
"We entered the game as favourites to win, but to win by nearly 200 points was unexpected," he said.
"It was good to see, even without Kade [Klemke] and [Kane] Godde.
"In those sorts of games it's difficult to maintain that ruthless edge, but we were able to try some structural things that we hadn't done recently."
Usual suspects Brett Fruend (three goals) and captain Andrew Swan dominated and goal sneak Matt Grocott bagged three majors, but it was the brilliant efforts of defender Jed Simpson that caught the coach's eye.
"Jed Simpson (one goal) in back was very good, his ability to find space, hang back and not crowd the forward line- and he had good skill," Corcoran said.
"But everyone won their battles across the day and it was an even team effort. [Backman] Alec McCormick got his first goal of the season, so we really shared it around."
Queanbeyan performed well, so it was a strange sight to see them sprinting after the final siren, but Corcoran said it was all part of a six-week training plan.
"We knew we'd have a lull in our last couple of games, so we decided to do a little extra work at training and ease into the rest of the year," he said.
"We'll rest so we're ready for the first final."
Based on recent performances Gun-gahlin shouldn't be much of a concern for the Tigers this Saturday, August 29 at Allinsure Park, so the squad are looking towards their first home final against Ainslie the following week.
"There have been some great matches between Ainslie, Tuggeranong and Queanbeyan in recent weeks- I'm confident we can win the semi," Corcoran said.
"We should have Kade and Godde back for the first final, but Ainslie will be at full strength, so our first final will be one of our most difficult tasks of the year, we can't look past it.
"We can't rely on the McCormicks, Fruends, Swans to win us the game. I'd like to see Jack O'Halloran, Alex Page and Jono Bowyer step up, but we need an even team performance."