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Southport Sharks Seniors is the playing group that participate in the QAFL state league competition on a weekly basis as part of the clubs charter to promote and foster AFL football within the local community.
The QAFL system also provides the ability for players to be drafted to AFL clubs and players such as Nick Riewoldt, Sam Gilbert, Brent Renouf, Jesse White, Kurt Tippett, Andrew Raines and Dayne Beams all played football for the Southport Sharks.
PRELIMINARY FINAL
DETAILS
Southport Sharks V Morningside
Panthers Where: Giffin Park, Birubi
Street, Coorparoo 4151
When: Sunday
12th September
Starting Time:
2pm
WISE CROWNS SUPER SEASON WITH MEDAL
Inspirational Southport skipper Danny Wise went one better than last year to cap a stellar QAFL career by winning the JA Grogan Medal for the best and fairest player in the competition tonight.
The 28-year-old led throughout the second half of the count but had a nervous wait with three other players in contention going into the final round of voting. It was especially nerve-wracking considering he led at the same stage of last year’s count but was overtaken by Mt Gravatt’s Nathan Gilliland on the last card of the night.
“I was wondering if it was going to be a case of déjà vu,” Wise smiled.
There was no such heartache this time, however, with only joint runner-up Jason Howard from Labrador polling a single vote in final round, while Wise received one for a strong effort against Aspley. In a low count, Wise finished with 15 votes to win by two from Howard, Southport teammate Darren Pfeiffer, and Redland skipper Phil Carse.
Carse polled five votes in the last two games but was out of contention going into the final match. Remarkably, a third Southport player – full-forward Cleve Hughes – could also have won going into the final round. He polled four best afield votes for a total of 12 over the season.
“We were hoping for a three-way tie going into the last round,” admitted Wise, who was flanked at the Southport table by Pfeiffer and Hughes.
“I feel very honoured but I don’t think it will sink in until a couple of weeks when the finals are over. We’ve still got a job to do.”
The surprise leader after eight rounds was former Brisbane Lion Tim Notting, who polled nine votes after a string of energetic displays roaming the Labrador forward line. He didn’t poll another vote.
NT Thunder star Cameron Ilett, who was ineligible due to accepting a points penalty for a minor indiscretion late in the season, finished three votes behind the winner.
Wise’s class was reflected in the fact that two of his three best-on-ground votes came against top sides Labrador and Morningside. He and Carse polled votes in the most games - seven each.
The early bolter was Broadbeach midfield utility Jesse Derrick, who attracted eight votes in the opening four matches but, like Notting, failed to catch the umpires’ attention again.
It was a richly deserved victory for Wise, having finished a close second in the Syd Guildford Trophy voting for the QAFL Record player of the year as judged by independent observers. The diminutive onballer also captained Queensland for the first time in the Maroon’s crushing 79-point win over Tasmania on the Gold Coast in June, where he was one of his side’s best players.
So good was Wise’s 2010 season that he became the first QAFL-based player to earn selection in the Queensland Team of the Year, which has traditionally honoured only AFL players. Wise was born and bred on the Gold Coast.
There could yet be more glory in store for Wise, who celebrated his 100th game for the Sharks early in the season.
He still has the chance to lead Southport to a premiership after the Sharks rediscovered their best form last weekend to demolish Mt Gravatt and set up a preliminary final showdown with traditional rivals Morningside at Giffin Park, Coorparoo on Sunday.
Wise debuted with Southport as a 17-year-old and won a premiership in his first season. He was immediately offered a summer trial with the Brisbane Lions but was overlooked, with Woodville-West Torrens then luring him to the SANFL.
He played 60 games in six seasons with Woodville and North Adelaide, appearing in two grand finals and finishing third in Magarey Medal voting during his best season.
That prompted a courting from the Adelaide Crows, although he name was again overlooked at draft time.
Wise returned home in 2006 and finished fourth in the Grogan Medal. He had finished equal runner-up in 2008 and 2009 before finally breaking through tonight.
Grogan Medal Voting:
15: Danny Wise (Southport) 3-3-3-2-2-1-1
13: Phil Carse (Redland) 3-3-2-2-1-1-1
13: Jason Howard (Labrador) 3-3-2-2-2-1
13: Darren Pfeiffer (Southport) 3-2-2-2-2-2
12: Cleve Hughes (Southport) 3-3-3-3
*12: Cameron Ilett (NT Thunder) 3-2-2-2-2-1
11: Jamie Sheahan (Aspley) 3-3-3-1-1
*11: Dayne Zorko (Broadbeach) 3-3-3-1-1
10: Scott Clouston (Redland) 3-3-2-2
PANTHERS POWER PAST SHARKS
Sunday 29 August 2010
There were some serious casualties as Morningside rediscovered their best form at the right time of the year to overwhelm Southport by 43 points at Fankhauser Reserve today and set up a classic showdown with Labrador for the right to advance to the 2010 QAFL grand final.
The Panthers lost champion big man Jacob Gough with suspected broken ribs late in the first term of the qualifying final, former Southport premiership captain Darren O’Brien left with an identical injury around the same time, and then inspirational Sharks skipper Danny Wise strained his hamstring to cause big headaches in both camps.
While 19-year-old Tom Hickey rucked manfully in Gough’s absence in a brilliant display from a raw youngster, Southport could not find a replacement for Wise, who had begun the game strongly.
Morningside set up the win by kicking 4.1 to 2.4 into the teeth of a stiff 3-4 goal breeze in the opening term, then rammed home their ascendancy with an eight-goal-to-two second term.
Southport were unable to make a run at the Panthers at any stage, despite outscoring the victors by four points in the second half. The news gets worse for the Sharks, who have star wingman David James and young forward Matt Fowler on report, James for alleged abusive language and Fowler for allegedly striking Tom Bell. Bell was flattened off the ball in the opening five minutes of the game, sparking a string of spotfires that would last for three quarters.
Despite hitting the deck on a number of occasions, Bell was rock solid in defence and will have hugely impressed any AFL talent scouts in the sizeable crowd. The strength of the umpiring ensured that it didn’t, with the three field umpires working well together to pick up numerous free kicks off the ball.
Southport paid the heavier penalty, giving away two ‘double’ goals for with free kicks without the ball returning to the centre in the second term.
Morningside’s attack on the ball was fierce, while their tackling was equally ferocious and forced Southport into numerous turnovers.
“Our players’ discipline and ability to withstand all the pressure that was applied was very good,” said Panthers coach John Blair..
“That’s what it’s about, that controls the game. We were pretty happy in that department.”
Blair said his coaching staff did not need to overemphasise the need for discipline.
“Not that much, because the player kept on reminding themselves, you could hear them out there on the ground. They were very focused,” he said.
It may have been a watershed game for Damien Bonney, who was best-on-ground for the second week in succession.
Bonney, who was in the top 10 in Syd Guildford Trophy voting before it went into secret for the last month, will come home with a wet sail, and continued his great form in the finals. More importantly for his team, he didn’t get distracted from the task of winning the football despite all the niggle going on. He was able to get under the skin of Sharks opponents on a number of occasions and cut them to shreds through the midfield, his pinpoint passing being a feature of his game.
In fact, the Panthers collectively used the ball superbly, while the Sharks generally made life hard for their teammates with poor disposal, particularly moving forward. Morningside’s run and overlap from half back and through the middle was far superior to the Sharks, with Nathan Kinch in particular and Jack Lawler constantly hurting the home side.
Paul Shelton’s centre clearance work was outstanding and his understanding with youngster Hickey was important to the outcome. Co-captain Kent Abey was inspirational for much of the day, taking a string of strong contested marks, contributing two first half goals, and creating a number of others with his one-percenters. His regular opponent Kurt Niklaus mopped up well when required with the defence under siege, but had his hands full with Abey.
It was a similar story for the Sharks back six, who were too busy trying to stop their men and the fleet of Morningside midfielders running at them to provide enough drive themselves. Glenn Screech was the exception, while Tom Daniel also tried hard to get his side going forward. Rover Matthew Payne played close to his best game for the Sharks, starting well and getting better as the game wore on.
The only time the Sharks looking capable of stringing goals together was when Payne took control of the clearances in the last quarter. Morningside dominated the clearances for the opening three terms, with Alastair Nash doing an outstanding job in locking down on Sharks matchwinner Darren Pfeiffer. Pfeiffer was admirable in the way he tried to run the youngster into the ground, but Nash was his equal.
Sam Brown spent large portions of the second half on Pfeiffer in the second half and did a solid job, although Pfeiffer kept on running til the bitter end.
James won plenty of ball in the first three quarters of his 150th match milestone but his disposal was uncharacteristically wayward, while Ben Merrett couldn’t get into the game at centre-half-forward opposed to Aaron Rogers, but worked hard in the ruck when pinchitting in the second half in his 100th game.
Leading full-forward Cleve Hughes struggled to shake the close-checking Jarrod Price, who produced one of his finest games at full-back.
As Blair said afterwards: “We’re going through and rating everybody and it’s been hard to rate anyone as not at least breaking even with an opponent.”
Sharks coach Craig Crowley was bitterly disappointed with his side’s performance, lamenting their lack of security with the ball, turnovers, and poor discipline.
“At the end of the day, we were pathetic, we didn’t want to chase, we didn’t want to run, didn’t want to create. We didn’t do anything right,” Crowley said.
“We sugar-coated it a bit by outscoring them after halftime – that was purely and simply because they had done the job.
“They kicked four or five goals from our indiscretions and that’s poor football by anyone’s account. It was a totally unprofessional attitude to have.”
Crowley was frustrated that he felt his side had negated the rebound usually provided by Rogers from half-back, and that of Nick Tomlinson, but still were swept aside.
Veteran Dane Carmody prevented Tomlinson from rebounding his usual fashion, but was knocked out cold in an accidental head-clash early in the final term.
He had played a part in the Sharks kicking two goals in the first two minutes and were on the charge again when his fearless approach on the ball saw him KO’d before he hit the ground.
The five-minute delay while he was attended to stopped any form of momentum that the Sharks had generated.
While Morningside appear a huge threat to Labrador in the second semi-final at Cooke-Murphy Oval on Sunday, Southport have plenty of problems approaching Saturday’s first semi-final against Mt Gravatt back at Fankhauser Reserve.
“I believe they’re a good bunch of blokes with good character but they’ve got to come out the other side. It’s up to them,” Crowley said of his charges.
Both grades now get ready for Mt Gravatt this Saturday at home 11am & 2pm.
Milestone Games for Sharks Pair
Wednesday 25th August
This coming Sunday 29th August against Morningside at home in the Qualifying Final, David James 150 senior games & Ben Merrett 100 senior games will achieve much deserved milestone recognition.
David James who arrived at the club at the start of 2003 season from the Hastings Football Club on the Mornington Peninsular, has since played in three premierships 2005, 6 & 8 plus won three best and fairest at the club in 2004/6/8 as well as making the Sharks inaugural team of the first 25 years 1983-2008. David has also represented the state at senior level 2003-2006.
David played every game in 2003,2004,2005,2006 then missed two games in 2007 due to suspension which coincided with the birth of his and Kath’s first child their daughter Kybey who had just turned 1 yr old. The boys reckon it was sleep depravation that got him fired up as David has never been one to attack the player and is very much a ball player.
He then got back to his normal durability and played every game in 2008 including a stunning first quarter grand final where he contributed two magnificent running goals. A hip injury that he had sustained at training leading into the grand final then slowed him down for the rest of the game culminating in David requiring off season surgery that had him missing the first 10 senior games of 2009 and then playing a game and a half in the reserves before restarting his senior career in round 13 against the Brisbane Lions reserves.
Thankfully he is back in the swing now and requires just two more seasons to qualify for player life membership 150 games and 10 seasons of service to the club.
David, who works as a carpenter with fellow team mate Darren O’Brien, was spotted by Gary Watts and Keith Gent at Victoria country football championships back in 2002 and approached and the rest they say is history.
Ben Merrett a Surfers Paradise junior came to the club in 2004 and played three senior games in his first season, has gone on to play in senior premierships in 2006 & 2008 as well as represent his state at under 18 & 21 level plus was a valuable member of the state open age side this year that defeated Tasmania by 79 points.
Ben who has to hold down the difficult centre half forward position week in week out has been an outstanding contributor to the teams overall success with his leg speed and mobility making him very hard to match up on. The fact Ben averages over a goal a game over the last four seasons is testament to his value & contribution to the team.
None at the Sharks will forget his inspirational last quarter running goal from 55 metres out that assisted in getting the sharks back into the Grand Final of 2008 which again underlined his mobility for someone who stands 194cm tall.
Ben who is in his sixth season at the Sharks is looking forward to another strong showing from the team and batting deep into September and hopefully another Grand Final appearance and who knows another inspirational moment that will go down in Sharks history.
We wish both men well for their milestone games this coming Sunday.
SHARKS SHAKE HORNETS FOR TOUGH WIN
Sunday 22 August 2010
Southport survived an early scare from finals spoilers Aspley at Graham Road yesterday to resister a 31-point win and cement a home final for next weekend.
A loss to the Hornets would like have seen the Sharks forfeit second place to Morningside, but they ground their way to a 15.16 (106) to 11.9 (75) victory.
The home side threw everything at the Sharks in what was a very good hit-out going into the finals series for the perennial QAFL powerhouse.
Aspley jumped the Sharks early, kicking 4.2 to 2.3 in the first quarter, although the Sharks edged back to a two-point lead at the main break, and then kicked 5.5 to 2.1 in defining third term.
The critical move of the game was in-form Southport tagger Adam Devine onto Aspley gun Matt Shir.
Devine kept a heavily-strapped Jamie Sheahan from having an impact early in the game, but Shir was in everything despite carrying a leg problem that has hampered him for the last month.
Devine eventually went to Shir and the Hornets ace went right out of the game in the second half due to a combination of the close attention of the Shark and the injury.
At the same time, the skilful Connor Petterson injected himself into the contest and broke the game open with a 15-possession third quarter. Petterson was everywhere and proved too much for the home side to counter.
Veteran wingman David James and half-back Darren O’Brien had been close to their side’s two best players in the first half and continued in that vein in the third term, while skipper Danny Wise produced his best half hour of the game in the ‘premiership’ quarter.
While gutsy midfielder Sam Carpenter kept on winning ball for his side, he lacked support and the defence had to work overtime.
Full-back Tyson Hartwig did an excellent job on leading goal kicker Cleve Hughes, keeping him goalless in the first, second and final terms.
Unfortunately for the strongly-built Hornet, the glut of ball in the third quarter saw Hughes contribute three of the his team’s five goals.
Southport were kept in the contest by the clever groundwork of Brad Scalzo, who kicked half his side’s goals in the first half (three) and finished with five for the day in his most important contribution for the Sharks since joining them from the Pineapple Hotel Cup at the start of the season.
It was enough to ensure Hughes won the Ray Hughson Medal.
The reserves won again with Eddie Mallan, Justin Vanunen(4 goals),Terry Knight(3 goals),Luke Wise,Kapun Morris,Matty Smith, Dalton Tucker , Zac Callinan & Brett Davis all featuring in the best.
The reserves have finished three games on top the home & away ladder and have this coming weekend off.
SHARKS LOOK TO RECTIFY SHORTCOMINGS
Tuesday 17 August 2010
Southport is desperately in need of a spark to reignite their premiership hopes on the eve of the QAFL finals series. Four losses in five weeks have the Sharks again looking for answers, although two key areas are obvious.
They have been badly beaten in the middle and around the clearances, while they have not been attacking from defence nearly as well as early in the season. “We’re not looking for breakaways and then looking for the overlap,” said Coach Craig Crowley. “We’re congesting it (around the bounces) and putting ourselves under pressure.”
The Sharks looked good in a 104-point demolition of the Western Magpies a fortnight ago, but came back to earth with a 26-point loss to Mt Gravatt at home last Saturday.
Defenders Ben Caputi, Kurt Niklaus and Tom Daniel worked overtime against a flood of ball generated by Mt Gravatt, but Crowley is looking for more from the defensive unit as a whole.
“The backline was good defensively but offensively I don’t think we were very strong,” the coach said.
“We didn’t get any run from there and if we did, it was under pressure, so we turned the ball over going forward. “
A lack of genuine passion is also concerning the two-time premiership coach.
“The love for each other is not there at the moment,” he said. “We’re not bonding, we’re expecting. Unless we start loving each other…”
The Sharks had firmed to solid premiership favorites after winning their first seven games, and were still rock solid with an 11-1 record. While still highly competitive, the last five weeks have been a major disappointment for the Sharks.
“The games we won during the year didn’t give us a true indication because a lot of the opposition had players out,” Crowley pointed out. “Probably more than anything, other sides have had a good look at us and worked us out.”
The reserves sit three games clear on top of the ladder and had another meritorious win against Mt Gravatt winning 12-14-86 to 8-5-53 with best players being Dane Carmody, Brodie Grant,Matty Smith (3 GOALS) Justin Vanunen (3 GOALS) Zac Callinan, Dalton Tucker, Josh Clarke & Eddie Mallan.
Amazingly the seniors can still finish second on the home and away ladder if they defeat Aspley at Graham Rd Aspley this Saturday and therefore qualify for a home final against Morningside which is set down for Sunday the 29th August.
Should the boys not win against Aspley then the final will be at Morningside. The winners will go on the following week to play Labrador at Labrador while the losers will play the winners of Mt Gravatt V Northern Territory/Redland.
HUGHES BACK WITH A BANG
Saturday 7 August 2010
Cleve Hughes booted seven goals in a brilliant return from injury to help Southport break a three-game losing streak and celebrate Adam Devine’s 200th game in style at Fankhauser Reserve today.
Hughes left the ground eight minutes into the final term as a precautionary measure to protect the ankle injury that had robbed him of the previous two and a half games.
His injury coincided with Sharks losses to Labrador, Morningside and Redland, and coach Craig Crowley was delighted to have him back.
“With no disrespect to the players before him, to have someone down there who is going to give you a genuine contest (is very important),” Crowley said.
“His sheer presence gives you the undertaking that we have to get the ball to him. It gives the boys that bit more confidence going forward.”
Crowley and his match committee made six changes to the side this week, including omitting former premiership hero Dane Carmody, and the message was heard loud and clear by his charges.
Kicking into a breeze in the opening term, the Sharks piled on 7.3 to 0.3 to shatter the Magpies’ confidence.
Only wasteful kicking at goal in the second term prevented them from leading by more than 12.11 to 1.5 at halftime, and while the Magpies fought hard in the second half to limit the damage, the margin was still 104 points at the finish, 22.20 (152) to 7.6 (48).
Crowley was a much happier man than in recent weeks, despite the opposition occupying the bottom place on the ladder.
“We played first-option football and there was a lot more intensity,” he said.
The engine room in the middle of the ground was outstanding, with David James continuing his fine form on one wing, Darren Pfeiffer putting his name further forward as a Grogan Medal candidate, and Danny Wise returning to near his best after a subdued effort last week.
Devine, who had been freed up for most of the season, spent his milestone game back in the familiar role of tagging the opposition’s best midfielder.
He did a sound job on tough nut James Rozynski, although the Magpies were still pleased with their man’s efforts under considerable pressure.
Ed McDonnell fought hard against the odds as he has done all season and Greg Friis was solid, but the Magpies were simply outclassed when the game was at its fiercest.
The Sharks will closely monitor ruckman Dean Putt this week after the big man left the ground with a hamstring twinge midway through, leaving Michael Wise and Dane Grant to carry the ruck load.
The reserves continued on their merry way and stay three games clear on top of the premiership ladder wining 13-18-96 to 6-10-46 with Eddie Mallan,Dane Carmody, David Lynch, Byron Blackwood, Nick Johnston (5 goals) Kapun Morris,Brenton Male ,Chris Talbot all featuring in the best players.
The boys now get ready for a defining game against Mt Gravatt with the games starting early due to GCFC playing Werribee at 2.10pm this coming Saturday at home.
DEVINE CELEBRATES 200 GAMES
Friday 6 August 2010
Great Southport clubman Adam Devine becomes just the second Shark to reach the major 200-game milestone when he runs out against the Western Magpies at Fankhauser Reserve on Saturday.
Devine, who turns 29 in a fortnight, has been an ultra-consistent performer over a long period of time and his teammates will no doubt recognise his special game in appropriate fashion. A Southport junior, Devine has graduated through the ranks and sits behind only Shaun ‘Shakin’ Stephens on the most games record list (218) for Southport in the State League.
Club legend Zane Taylor managed 225 games for Southport across the Gold Coast and State Leagues, while Davey Burns played 238 games in the Gold Coast competition.
Devine goes into his big match with a different mindset – and body condition – than when he notched his 150th.
“The 150 and life membership was such a focus for me,” he remembered. “I did a hamstring in the last session before Round 1 (that season) whereas this time I’m travelling pretty well and I’m feeling fit.
“It would have been good to be playing an arch rival like Morningside or Mt Gravatt, but the Magpies gave us a real scare when we played them six weeks ago and need to be on our game. ”
The consummate team man, Devine’s mind was focused solely on victory in his previous milestone games, whereas this time he admits to having the odd thought about the big 200.
“Hopefully I can go out and enjoy it a bit,” he said. “We have lost three in a row so we’ve got to get back our winning feeling.”
He should have more personal freedom this Saturday, with coach Craig Crowley have relieved Devine of his regular tagging duties this season. Devine has run with the best midfielders in the League over the past six seasons, claiming more than his share of ‘scalps’. But he is loving the change nonetheless.
“Ever since Norm Dare threw me into the middle one day to follow somebody I’ve been doing it,” Devine said. “Playing on the (David) Lillico’s and (Ash) Evans’ has been good because they take you to the footy. I was fit enough to run off them and get some ball myself.
“But it has been really great to run around and get a kick this year,” Devine said. “I put a lot of pressure on myself when I’m tagging so it has lifted some of that, although no doubt if someone is toweling us up at finals time then I’ll get a tap on the shoulder.”
Devine played in losing Sharks grand final teams in 2001, 2002 and 2004 so he relished victory in 2005, 2006 and 2008.
The latter two were particularly special because the Sharks appeared ‘gone’ in both, but stormed home, especially 2008 when they trailed by 22 points 12 minutes into the final term against Morningside.
“We still couldn’t believe it a week afterwards,” he said of the storming finish to what was a classic grand final.
Devine, who freshened up for this week by taking fiancée Zoe to Bondi for three days for a long-planned mini-holiday, has plenty of kilometres left in his battled-hardened legs.
He will play for his beloved Sharks whether the new Northern League eventuates or not for at least the next two years.
SHARKS LOSE THREE IN A ROW
Sunday 1st August 2010
Redland smashed a 10-year hoodoo and put a whole new complexion on the QAFL premiership race with a stunning eight-point win over Southport at Victoria Point today. The Bombers played with an intensity and passion – and equally importantly skill level – that proved too hard for Southport to counter in a top quality game of football.
The final score was 17.13 (115) to 15.17 (107).
The Bombers bounced out of the blocks with a scintillating 8.5 to 5.1 opening term, held a 14-point advantage at halftime, pushed that out to 26 points in the third before the Sharks hit back to within two goals, then won a war of nerves in the final term when Southport moved to within four points at the 24-minute mark. The victory was Redland’s first over Southport since they joined the QAFL in 2000 and came after 25 unsuccessful attempts.
“We’re just improving all the time. We’ve made some terrific ground since midway through the season and we’re getting better and better,” said delighted Bombers coach Matty Francis. “We’ve been improving, we just haven’t been able to put it together for as long as that.”
Their win leaves Labrador alone in first place, Southport now in a battle with Morningside for hosting rights for the qualifying final, and Redland level with fifth-placed NT Thunder. The Thunder has a danger game at Aspley next Saturday, while the Bombers have another tough assignment at Labrador.
The Bombers will worry about that tomorrow, content to savor the delights of the greatest win in the club’s decade-long history in the QAFL.
A good start was always going to be important to the Bombers, but no-one could have imagined them booting eight goals in the opening stanza. They dominated the centre clearances with Jason Paxman and Paul O’Shea jumping over Dean Putt, and Matty Thomson sharking brilliantly at ground level.
With Phil Carse and Jamie Hackett also providing ground level support, the Bombers launched waves of attacks, with Ben Weightman kicking two early goals and having a hand in another.
Southport was kept in the game by the work of outstanding midfielders Darren Pfeiffer and David James, and centre-half-forward Ben Merrett. Redland booted five goals in time-on, including three in the last three minutes to open an advantage. Re-born full-forward Matt Ghirardello kicked two of them, giving plenty against tough opponent Kurt Niklaus. Southport’s midfield ran back harder in the second term in a more grinding affair where the Bombers forward line became more clogged.
The biggest difference to earlier in the season was Redland’s use of the ball, both by hand and foot, putting the ball to the advantage of their teammates rather than having to bend for it. The Sharks pulled to within eight points in a real arm-wrestle before James Charlesworth – elusive forward and in the middle – stole a late goal against the run of play.
The passion was rekindled in the Bombers during the halftime break and they exploded out of the blocks in third term, Weightman nabbing his third goal within 40 seconds of the re-start and Adam Mueller getting his second two minutes later. Three times during the quarter the Bomber stretched the lead past four goals, only for Southport to steel themselves and hit back.
Adrian Williams hit back in his contest with Merrett through the middle stages, Putt took a string of contested marks around the ground and in a great battle with Paxman, and Scott Clouston covered tremendous ground from half-forward to continually present as an option.
Matty Payne was busy all day for the Sharks and he and James generated plenty of run for the Sharks in the latter stages of the term as the Bombers appeared to be tiring from the heat and their hard-running efforts.
When Thomson kicked one of the goals of the season, winning the ball out of the middle, regaining it at half-forward and burning off Pfeiffer to goal on his left foot, the Bombers appeared inspired. But the Sharks grabbed two goals in three minutes near the end of time-on to move within 12 points.
Controversy raged as Redland swept the ball forward in the dying seconds, Weightman reading the ball brilliantly off the pack to run into an open goal and raise the roof of the members stand.
However, the siren had sounded – heard only in some part of the ground – and after much deliberation the umpires judged the siren had sounded before the ball hit his foot.
It might have devastated the Bombers of old, but this group kept on counter-punching and Clouston and Daniel Dzufer showed all their experience by winning a glut of ball early in the final term. It took 12 minutes for the first goal to come, via Merrett, who came back strongly into the game when moved to full-forward.
Clouston replied within two minutes to calm home side nerves as players from both sides tackled and applied pressure relentlessly, despite being out on their feet.
When Payne crumbed a pack and nailed his third at the 24-minute mark, the margin was just four points and the Sharks’ 26th win in a row over the Bombers was still a possibility. Two furious minutes ensued before the hard-leading Justin Carey found himself in space at half forward and booted the most important goal of his Redland career.
While Southport coach Craig Crowley was angry after his side’s third consecutive loss, they did participate in a quality game. However, he was disappointed with the contrast in excitement levels shown by the Bombers players compared to his Sharks all day. “Their lesser players played higher than ours,” Crowley said, concurring with Francis. “They committed themselves, they got involved in the contest, and they ran harder at the football. “We’ve got to get together. We’re not playing tight as a group.
“There are no excuses; we were beaten by a side who wanted it more than we did.”
James, Pfeiffer and Payne all tried their hearts out, James going blow for blow with Clouston in the see-sawing final term.
In the reserve grade the boys had another outstanding win guaranteeing themselves a top of the table finish. Good players were again many with Brad Scalzo, Edward Mallan, Tom Daniel,
Dane Grant, Hayden Graham, Kapun Morris, Byron Blackwood, Shane Bourke, Zac Callinan & Terry Knight all contributing on the day.
The reserve grade ran out winners 22-13-145 to Redland 8-10-58. Unfortunately Terry Knight who had kicked six for the game strained his hamstring late in proceedings.
The boys now get ready for Western Magpies at home on Saturday 7th August and Adam Devine’s 200th senior game for the club.
SHARKS JUST GO DOWN
Sunday 18 July 2010
Morningside’s defensive pressure proved the difference as the Panthers ground out an important 13-point victory over Southport in another epic clash between the two great QAFL clubs at Esplen Oval today.
In a game of three distinct momentum shifts, the Sharks kicked five of the first six goals, conceded 11 of the next 15 through the middle stages, then surged to get within seven points late in the final term.
A goal after the final siren by Panthers full-forward Shaun Mugavin extended the final score to 15.14 (104) to 13.13 (91) at the finish.
Southport’s two best performed midfielders Danny Wise and Darren Pfeiffer helped the Sharks get off to a flyer, despite Wise conceding two free kicks for off-the-ball infringements in the opening five minutes.
With Matthew Payne helping out the dynamic duo in defence and running freely down the ground, the Sharks booted five goals in 11 minutes to lead 5.3 to 1.3 at the 24-minute mark of the opening term.
However, in a 35-minute first quarter, Morningside moved back to within 21 points at the first break due mainly to some super work by Damien Bonney and Aaron Rogers.
Bonney won plenty of ball and kicked a miracle goal under pressure on the boundary line from 55m.
Jacob Gough, celebrating his 200th game, was quiet early but put his body on the line to win a free kick and goal on the stroke of quarter-time.
It seemed to inspire the big man, whose palming of the ball in the second quarter gave his midfielders and armchair ride.
Gough batted the ball to the advantage of Bonney, who goaled within 15 seconds of the restart.
Sensing danger at quarter-time, Morningside’s attack on the football was fierce throughout the second term and the Sharks began to turn over the ball under heavy pressure.
The half-back line in particular began to dominate with Aaron Rogers destroying the ball and rebounding at will, and Jarrod Price backing him up superbly in the last line of defence.
Sam Faure engaged in a gripping battle with David James for most of the day, and the lively Faure took control for a key period during the second term.
Connor Pettersson was a livewire in the first half and his interception and goal against the run of play helped the Sharks stay in front by six points at the long break.
Morningside’s relentless pressure continued in the third term, drawing level 10 minutes into the term and kicking 21 points clear at the last change. Their lead should have been greater, with posters – on the inside edge – to Gough and Tyson Upton denying the Panthers.
Running half-back Nathan Kinch came into the game strongly in the third term and the defence conceded just 1.2 for the period.
Youngster Tom Bell did plenty of good work and Rogers reigned supreme by this stage.
Wise and Pfeiffer weren’t quite as prominent as the warm weather and hard running began to take a toll, with Adam Devine doing a power of work across half-back and Michael Wise trying to lift his side.
The Sharks lifted their intensity at the start of the fourth term and kicked the all-important first goal four minutes in courtesy of Devine, who ran the length of the ground off Paul Shelton to take a big mark 15m out.
Devine again ran forward to make a crucial intercept and set up Ben Merrett three minutes later to reduce the margin to nine points.
Bonney got the steadier for the Panthers following a sensational tackle on big Dean Putt, who had been useful around the ground for the Sharks.
Putt made the mistake and grabbing Bonney high as he got up and conceded 50m, allowing the Panther to goal from the square.
Both sides threw themselves into the fray and Luke Wilson got free from Price to goal halfway through the quarter, only for Shelton to take a spectacular mark over Devine and goal at the 21-minute mark.
The Sharks refused to die and Danny Wise popped up to goal two minutes later to reduce the margin to eight points.
The ball swung between the half-back lines before Brett Davis missed from 35m at the 26-minute mark, the Panthers sweeping the ball forward from the resultant kick-in and Mugavin marking and goalling after the siren.
“We had significant control of the game in the first quarter, they came back at us and we didn’t adjust,” said Southport coach Craig Crowley. “They got momentum and we couldn’t pull them up.
“We came back hard at the end, our last quarter was good.
“We didn’t win the disputed ball and they were able to get it out and run away. We did that in the first quarter and looked good, but they controlled the stoppages better than we did after that.
“13 points was probably a fair indicator. They had a good two and a half quarters and we had a good quarter and a half.
Panthers coach John Blair was ‘very pleased’ with a win that took Morningside to within a game of Southport and Labrador, and kept them two games clear of fourth with four games to play.
“They have got a lot of good players who know what they’re doing,” Blair said. “They’re a good footy side so to get close to them and beat them was very good.”
In the reserves the boys had a gritty win leaving them three games clear on top of the ladder winning 10-11-71 to Morningside 3-17-35
Best Players were Tom Daniel, Dane Grant, Brad Scalzo, Eddie Mallan, Regan Salter, Adam Baulch, Brenton Male, Fraser Thurlow & Adam Clarke in what was a terrific team effort.
The teams now have this weekend coming off as a general competition bye and our next game is V Redland at Victoria Point on Sunday the 1st August.
ANOTHER TON FOR CROWLEY
Craig Crowley will become the first man to have both played and coached 100 games for Southport in the QAFL at Esplen Oval on Sunday.
Thursday 15 July 2010
Southport coach Craig ‘Jack’ Crowley celebrates a significant personal milestone in Sunday’s clash against Morningside at Esplen Oval – his 100th game in charge of the Sharks.
“It means a lot to me because I played 100 games for the club as well,” Crowley aid.
Crowley is the first man to achieve the double feat of having played and coached 100 games for the traditional QAFL powerhouse.
“Being the first to achieve something is always good,” said Crowley, who was also the first Sharks player to register 100 games in the State League back in the 1990s.
He tasted premiership success in his first season at the helm at Fankhauser Reserve in 2006, taking a young side boasting plenty of Gold Coast talent including Kurt Tippett and Brent Renouf to an unlikely grand final success over the Zillmere Eagles.
Another grand final appearance followed in 2007 and a second premiership in 2008.
Nonetheless, Crowley believes he is a better prepared coach now than in his mentoring infancy.
“I’m up to speed a lot more with the personalities of the team,” Crowley said. “Especially having been assistant to Norm Dare before me, I’m trying to think outside the square a bit more.
Crowley said there were a number of games that stick out where he felt his coaching had a significant impact on the result, although there were as many where all the best laid players went awry and ‘you looked like a bit of dill’.
Most satisfying was the 2008 grand final, when the Sharks came from 22 points down 10 minutes into the last quarter to be at arch rivals Morningside, who ironically Crowley celebrates the milestone against.
“We went a bit unconventional and threw (Clint) Watts and (Kevin) Tandogac onto the ball, and Broc McCauley and Ben Merrett had double teamed (Jacob) Gough hoping he would eventually tire,” Crowley said.
“Merrett had a significant impact, hitting (David) Cameron with a pass and goalling from 55m. Gough eventually came off late in the last quarter, although we would have preferred that to happen in the third!”
Crowley admitted it was ironic to be running into the Panthers on Sunday in a huge game for both clubs, with Morningside champion Gough celebrating his 200th game.
“They will be up for Gough’s 200th as they always are, although it doesn’t matter what the respective positions are on the table, these games are always a fairly good tussle,” he said.
Labrador made of stern stuff
Saturday 10 July 2010
Labrador have conquered the final frontier after beating Southport for the first time ever at Fankhauser Reserve today.
In a defining game for both clubs, the Tigers blew the game open with a big last quarter after the Sharks had watched ace goal kicker Cleve Hughes hobble from the field with a serious ankle injury.
With Hughes gone, Labrador led by just 10 points at the final break, but roared home to win 13.17 (95) to 8.11 (59).
“We have played here every season for 14 years and never got a result, so it was about time we changed that,” said Tigers coach Jarrod Field. “We have broken a massive hoodoo for us.”
Perhaps even more importantly than smash a long-standing hoodoo, the Tigers showed they are made of stern stuff after rebounding from a huge 77-point loss to Mt Gravatt last week.
“Mt Gravatt outplayed us in every area of the game - we needed to prove last week was a one-off and not indicative of where we are at,” Field said. “We lost a fair bit of respect last week.
“It was pointed out we were very flat in our warm-up last week so we put a pretty big emphasis on warming up well and starting well.”
The Tigers did just that, kicking 2.5 to 3.1 into a stiff breeze.
While they were without Russell Alleway and Aaron Shattock, they were bolstered by the inclusion of Charlie Dixon for his first game in Tigers colours following disciplinary action from his Gold Coast FC side.
Dixon responded in the best manner possible, booting four goals, missing two other easy shots and taking a string of contested marks against the benchmark defensive unit in the QAFL.
“Charlie was outstanding, he has got some big things ahead of him,” Field said. “His contested marking was great, it was really a six-goal game from centre-half-forward.”
Hughes began well with two first quarter goals for Southport opposed to Fred Sleeth and another in the second quarter against the breeze, but injuring the ankle shortly before halftime.
His side was 12 points behind at that stage, with fellow goal kicker Cameron MacLaren being well held by Steve Wrigley.
While the State forward pocket finished the game with two goals, Wrigley consistently ran off him and delighted the Tigers with his effort.
“We knew that MacLaren had not trained all week but in saying that, Wrigley did a really good job on him,” Field said.
“Hughes was a massive loss for them.”
With Curtis Allen engaging in a fascinating tagging role on Danny Wise, who still got plenty of ball but was always under pressure, the remainder of the Tigers midfield went man on man with their rivals.
One man they couldn’t stop was Darren Pfeiffer, who showed all his class and did everything he could to lift his side.
“We struggled with him,” Field admitted.
Labrador maintained their small advantage through a dour third quarter and turned for home kicking to the scoring end.
After a tight opening to the final term in which both sides threw their bodies fearlessly at the ball, the Tigers goaled, and then broke the game open.
“We got that first goal that took a while and it gave us a bit of belief,” Field said. “They (Southport) couldn’t rotate as much with a couple off the ground for good, and for the first time we had four fit blokes on the bench.”
Michael Wise played one of his best games for Southport and Kurt Niklaus was solid in defence with Tim Notting being held to a solitary goal.
In the reserves the boys had another win16-14-110 to Labrador 9-9-63 with the added benefit of Gold Coast players Jake Crawford, Rex Liddy, Joey Daye and Josh Milani all playing strong games in defence.
The under 18’s traveled all the way to Noosa on Sunday to put up a very note worthy effort to go down by only 7 points to Noosa who sit 2nd o the ladder against our boys who sit 9th.
We now get ready for Morningside at Morningside this coming Sunday where coach Craig Crowley will coach his 100th senior game for the club.
BIG GUNS IGNITE SHARKS
Saturday 3 July 2010
Cleve Hughes kicked 11 goals and Danny Wise was everywhere in Southport's crushing win over an injury-stricken Broadbeach today.
An injury-ravaged Broadbeach were no match for the Southport machine at Fankhauser Reserve today as Sharks stars Cleve Hughes and Danny Wise destroyed the Cats.
Hughes booted 11 goals and Wise ran amok in the midfield to instigate a 21.12 (138) to 4.8 (32) shellacking.
The Cats have been brave all season but were lambs to the slaughter without Dayne Zorko (suspended), Korey Fulton (calf), Ben Walters (flu), Darin Stewart (Shoulder), Joel Wilkinson (collarbone) and Jackson Emblem (ankle).
Broadbeach were intent on shutting down the game, pushing huge numbers around the ball early.
It took seven minutes for the first score of the game to be registered, but with Matty Payne on fire early and Wise bobbing up everywhere, the Sharks eventually booted 4.4 to 0.1 for the term.
With so many numbers around the ball, every time the Cats did go forward they were outnumbered and outgunned.
With Kurt Niklaus marshalling the defence, Broadbeach limped to just 0.2 at halftime and were just 1.4 at the final change.
At the other end, Hughes was still able to find space to lead into, or simply took pack marks.
He would have taken the mark of the year, standing upright on the top of a pack, but for opponent Nathan Quick standing on the shoulders of a teammate right behind him and producing a most spectacular spoil.
Hughes kicked five goals in the first half and six in the second as he took his season tally to 60 from 12 games.
While Payne and Wise were running rampant, they had plenty of company from Darren Pfeiffer, who has also added plenty to the five-star midfield.
Pfeiffer was tagged early by Ryan Clough, but the hard-working Cat found himself constantly under pressure from Glenn Screech, allowing Pfeiffer the space to win the ball.
Former Broadbeach player Brodie Grant produced a strong game against his old club, while Adam Devine was prominent in a more free-running role.
It was a tough day for the Cats, with Josh Searl winning plenty of early ball and showing some dash opposed to the finely skilled Cameron MacLaren.
The reserves also had a 100 point plus demolition of Broadbeach whilst the under 18’s succumbed t a talent laden Redlands on Sunday
The boys now get ready for another home game this Saturday against Labrador who got their colors lowered by a fired up Mt Gravatt.
SHARKS MADE TO FIGHT
Saturday 26 June 2010
The lowly Western Magpies gave Southport a serious hit-out at Chelmer today, the Sharks' fast start proving fatal.
Southport got the early jump on the Western Magpies at Chelmer today but had to earn every kick thereafter as the competition leaders failed to kick 100 points for only the third time this season.
“They hit us hard and got good numbers around the footy,” Sharks coach Craig Crowley admitted afterwards.
“We turned the ball over a lot through their pressure…they were very competitive.”
Southport led 5.5 to 1.1 at the first break and a cricket score looked to be on the cards, but the home side were only outscored eight goals to four from there, eventually losing 13.17 (95) to 5.9 (39).
“We went inside 50 about 50-odd times and they went in 40-odd, so their midfield were good,” Crowley
Unfortunately for the Magpies, the Sharks defence was at its miserly best with Kurt Niklaus impassable and Glenn Screech and Adam Devine equally as good.
The midfield dominated early with Darren Pfeiffer and DannyWise continuing their outstanding form.
David James has also enjoyed a stellar season and apart from some scratchy ball use early was the Sharks’ best.
They peppered the goals in the opening term and missed a number of easy shots under little pressure, and were perhaps lulled into a false sense of security.
There was nothing forthcoming over the final three terms; however, as dogged Magpies onballer James Rozynski more than matched his five-star rivals.
With Mark Dowley doing the best job against Sharks full-forward ace Cleve Hughes this season, holding him to just two goals, and Ed McDonnell working overtime to help out in the back half, the Magpies provided a super contest.
Gerard Moore also repeatedly dropped back to fill the hole, making it difficult for the Sharks forwards to find any space.
They were aided by the fact that key leading forward Ben Merrett left the ground in the opening half hour with a bad cork, while Jason Bourke also was hurt early.
Southport debut former Broadbeach utility Brodie Grant and 17-year-old ruckman Fraser Thurlow, and Crowley was delighted with both.
“Brodie contributed pretty well and Fraser did really, really well,” Crowley said. “They deserved a chance because their form in the reserves demanded it.” said.
In the reserves the boys also had a fantastic win with Rex Liddy, Terry Knight, Zac Callinan Dane Grant, Brett Davis, Josh Clarke and Jethro Calma Holt all getting mentions in what was a strong team effort all round with the boys running out winners 17-20-122 to Western Magpies 8-8-56.
The under 18’s then combined on Sunday to beat Broadbeach at home 11-8-74 to 5-8-38.
The reserves and seniors now get ready this Saturday the 3rd of July 2010 at home versus Broadbeach 8.45am and 11am starts respectively prior to GCFC V Box Hill at 2pm.
WISE SKIPPER, SHELTON VICE
Wednesday 9 June 2010
Danny Wise will captain Queensland and Paul Shelton will be his deputy in Saturday's clash with Tasmania at Fankhauser Reserve.
Gold Coast born-and-bred midfielder Danny Wise, who went agonizingly close to being drafted by Brisbane and Adelaide early in his career, will captain Queensland in the interstate clash with Tasmania at Fankhauser Reserve on Saturday.
Wise, 28, takes over from injured Morningside midfielder David Lillico after the Panthers stalwart held the job for the past four years. Wise was informed of his appointment at training last night by State coach Jason Cotter, the man who fast-tracked his development as a teenager in the late 1990s.
The Southport captain, Wise currently heads the Syd Guildford Trophy for the best player in the QAFL competition. He has played for Queensland each of the last four seasons following his return from a 60-game stint in the SANFL. Wise was one of Queensland's better players in last year's State game in Hobart, where he collected 23 possessions and made a team-high six tackles.
His vice-captain will be Paul Shelton, another Queensland-born ace who spent time on both the Brisbane Lions and Hawthorn rookie lists without being given an opportunity at the elite level. Shelton is in his second season back in the QAFL at home club Morningside after a stellar career with Coburg in the VFL.
He gathered 34 possessions against the Tasmanians last year and will likely form part of an explosive midfield with Wise, Darren Pfeiffer and Cameron Ilett.
HOT THUNDER END SHARKS' UNBEATEN RUN
Sunday 30 May 2010
The emerging NT Thunder held their nerve to inflict the first defeat of the season on Southport and put a whole new slant on the QAFL premiership at TIO Stadium last night.
The 13.14 (92) to 12.12 (84) triumph continued the Thunder's perfect record in Darwin this season and reignited their finals hopes.
The game was played in unseasonal May humidity and it was the home side that adapted best early with sure ball handling, numbers around the contest and hard running to create space.
Cameron Ilett was dangerous from the outset and in combination with Jake Dignan and the elusive Aaron Motlop controlled the middle of the ground, which created the first two scoring opportunities for lively Bradley Palipuaminni. It would have been three goals for the Thunder pocket-rocket had another shot not faded late and hit the post.
In the goal squares it was Shaun Tapp v Cleve Hughes and Kurt Niklaus against Ray Hughson Medal leader Darren Ewing.
Hughes kicked the Sharks' first major deep into the opening quarter, which was countered by a long range goal just before the siren by Thunder skipper Jarred Ilett.
The Thunder took a 17-point advantage into the first break and the second term continued in a similar vein, with both sides on top defensively.
Sharks skipper Danny Wise worked overtime to rally his troops but once again it was the Thunder with more efficient use of the ball with goals from Motlop and the pacy Dion Munkara split by a good conversion by Southport small Brad Scalzo.
Cameron Ilett picked up 17 first half possessions but was poleaxed fairly in a great contest for the ball by Southport's Jason Bourke, and the Thunder midfielder had to be assisted from the ground by trainers.
Jarred Ilett hit the contest hard at the top of the goal square and kicked truly from the resultant free kick on the bell again to give the home side a handy 27-point break at halftime.
The game opened up in the second half with players from both sides being mindful of not overusing the ball. Hughes kicked his second as did Munkara then a set shot from Wise saw the gap narrow.
Big Thunder ruckman Kenrick Tyrrell was having a great battle with Dean Putt with both players working lateral of the contest but when Tyrrell marked and kicked truly from 40 metres the home side had again repelled the challenge.
Zephi Skinner had been creative and exciting with his use of the ball and played a pivotal part during the third quarter with his marking proving a factor. The Thunder had to explore other avenues to goal as Niklaus was completely shutting out Ewing and Skinner converted from 40 metres out.
He was then awarded a secondary shot after being knocked to the ground and duly slotted from the same spot again as the margin increased to 38 points.
To the Sharks' credit they regrouped mainly through the hard running efforts of Darren Pfeiffer who stamped his class on the game with a raft of possessions through the middle of the ground. This led to closing goals from Scalzo and Matt Payne to narrow the margin back to 28 points at the final break.
When Skinner opened the final term with the Thunders 11th goal it looked to be all over. However, the Sharks had other ideas and swung Pfeiffer to centre-half-forward and used the ball directly through the corridor.
Hughes kicked his third, and then strangely there was another double goal, this time to the Sharks. After Matt Fowler had kicked truly, Glenn Screech - who had been a solid contributor all night - was awarded a secondary shot on goal to which he made no mistake.
This was the beginning of a massive momentum swing and when Screech goaled again on the run from half forward it was game on with only two straight kicks separating the sides.
The intensity lifted and the home crowd, who had been relatively quiet all night, found voice more so in fear of their boys dropping off.
Cameron Ilett, who had been posted deep after his heavy knock, was moved back into the midfield and started getting his hands on the ball again as the Thunder surged forward.
They forced a boundary throw-in deep into their forward 50, and when Munkara sliced through a needle-eye opening to score, they again held a comfortable buffer.
Pfeiffer responded for the Sharks and they had other opportunities through Hughes and Fowler which went astray before Motlop won a free kick on the boundary line and iced the game with a cool conversion.
Hughes kicked his fourth before the final siren to probably give him a points decision over Tapp but the home side held on to stay in touch with the top five.
The Thunder were best served by Motlop, Cameron Ilett, Skinner, Dignan, Mitch Taylor, and the lightning quick Munkara whilst for the visitors Niklaus completely wore down Ewing and held the big spearhead goal less for the first time in the QAFL. Renowned as the number one defender in the competition he certainly did his reputation no harm at all.
Screech was good, Pfeiffer showed his class, Wise tried valiantly early and Bourke down back was a stout defender
The reserves had a scratchy win against Western Magpies by four points with Darren O'Brien, Jack Stanlake featuring in the best.
The boys now get ready for Mt Gravatt at Mt Gravatt this Saturday the 5th June.
PFEIFFER LEADS SHARKS ROUT
Saturday 22 May 2010
The Southport juggernaut continued to steamroll through 2010, rolling right over the Brisbane Lions Reserves by 61 points at Fankhauser Reserve today.
The turbo-charged Sharks led by almost 10 goals at halftime to end the contest, and only their poor efficiency in front goal prevented a much bigger blowout.
They registered a whopping 18 behinds in the middle two quarters in their 19.27 (141) to 12.8 (80) victory.
The star of the show was former Carlton utility Darren Pfeiffer, who ran rings around the Lions on a centre wing.
Pfeiffer, who still harbours ambitions of finding a place on another AFL list, capped a brilliant game with four goals.
The Sharks dominated the game because they had absolute control of both wings, with the in-form David James winning possessions at will when the ball swung across to his side.
The Lions fielded 15 listed players, plus their football administration officer and former Morningside gun Adam Spackman, and PNG international rookie Don Barry.
They needed to start brightly if they were to challenge the Sharks' unbeaten record, but did not convert their early opportunities.
They registered a wasteful 2.6 in the opening term, while the Sharks were still able to generate 5.4, then heaped on the pressure with a seven-goal-to-two second term.
Matthew Payne was in the thick of the action during the storming second quarter, roving packs beautifully to kick two good goals.
His battle with tagger Sam Sheldon was the highlight of the game, with both doing plenty of good things for their respective sides.
Little man Brad Scalzo also contributed to the Southport midfield dominance, despite ex-Shark Broc McCauley dominating the ruck.
McCauley also was able to find plenty of space and provide a marking target around the ground, but received little support.
Bryce Retzlaff started well on Kurt Niklaus leading the State full-back up the ground, but was starved of opportunities as the game wore on.
Matt Austin worked overtime in defence and was not disgraced, while the Lions coaching staff were also happy with the output of Don Barry and Sean Yoshiura.
Aaron Cornelius was solid at full-back opposed to Cleve Hughes, who booted 5.4 but was made to work hard for every shot at goal.
While Cornelius is the Lions' leading goal kicker for the season but was required deep in defence, Southport had the luxury of alternating Ben Caputi between centre-half-forward and centre-half-back and he did an outstanding job.
The boys now travel to Darwin to play Northern Territory on Saturday night at 7pm while the reserves take on Western Magpies at Sherwood at 10.15am on the same day.
SUPER SHARKS SAVAGE PANTHERS
Saturday 15 May 2010
Southport's recent pledge that they will only get better is a frightening proposition for the rest of the QAFL competition after the Sharks ripped apart reigning premiers Morningside at Fankhauser Reserve today.
The Sharks played some champagne football in the first half as they opened up a 54-point lead and went on to win 21.14 (140) to 9.10 (64) victory.
The home side's midfield brigade was dominant through the opening terms and the backline refused to give an inch to their Panther opponents.
Skipper Danny Wise was best afield and he received tremendous support from Darren Pfeiffer and Matthew Payne.
Recruit Cleve Hughes continued his excellent form with six goals against a quality opponent in Brett Connell, although he had silver service from the onball brigade.
Gold Coast draftee Matt Fowler was again dangerous across half-forward and finished with four goals and a number of assists.
The Panthers struggled to get the ball forward in the first half with prime mover Paul Shelton forced to do most of his work in defence
Coach Craig Crowley has got the credit from his players for having the side hit the season running, although the size of the margin over the Sharks' traditional rival was a surprise.
"I'd be silly to say yes but I'd be silky to say no," he said when asked if he thought his side could win by that much. "I knew we were up and running and they were decimated by injury but I wouldn't say I would have thought we would have won as significantly as what we did. Going into the game I would have said we were a five-goal better side (on paper)."
Crowley enjoyed the work of his backline, a feature of Sharks team in recent seasons.
"The backline played extremely well," he said. "Jason Bourke knew Shaun Mugavin coming from the same area (Warrnambool) and he slowed him down.
""Niklaus was very good on Abey - again. And Caputi did a good job on Lucy until he got free late in the game and started to run."
Ever the perfectionist, Crowley will look for more from his midfield when they confront the Brisbane Lions reserves next week.
"We beat them (Morningside) in the clearances in the first half but fell away in the second," Crowley said.
"Gough was good again for them, but you always expect him to be. I was pleased with the way 'Putty' (Sharks ruckman Dean Putt) got some ball around the ground."
The forward line functioned smoothly again.
"Hughes got six, Fowler got four and we had 10 goalkickers all around so that was good - you have to get your goals from the midfield as well."
Morningside lost speedy utility Damien Bonney from the team that beat Redland last week but didn't come out of this game with any more injuries.
Zippy Mark Kimball showed plenty of spark against the tide of play for Morningside, while half-back Alastair Nash also tried hard.
Crowley admitted to being happy with his side's impressive form and unbeaten position after six rounds.
"It is good if you look at our record as having been a slow starting side," he said. "We've still got a few hiccups but what he really stuck out has been the pressure from below.
"The guys have had to really respect their position in the side because the reserves have been fairly strong this year."
The reserves also had a good win beating Morningside 13-8-86 to 5-4-34 and the under 18's on Sunday also were victorious by 17 points. The boys now get ready for another home game this Saturday 11.15am and 2pm.
Saturday 8th May 2010
Giant killers Aspley came crashing back to earth after being stomped on by Southport's three-pronged attack today.
Cleve Hughes, Cameron MacLaren and Ben Merrett booted the Sharks' first 10 goals between them and 17 out of 21 in total as the Hornets defence was powerless to stop them.
Richmond recruit Hughes booted 9.5 in easily his best game for the club, while MacLaren added five more and Merrett three.The skilful, athletic MacLaren booted four of his goals in the first two quarters and was best afield to halftime, while Merrett and Hughes each had three.
Merrett's long leads and strong marking were a feature, while Hughes went through five opponents, starting with Steven Tapp and Tyson Hartwig, as he booted six majors in the second half.
They received silver service from a sublime midfield, with Danny Wise and Matthew Payne collecting possessions at will, Jesse Haberfield dominating on one wing and David James contributing on the other.
The writing was on the wall early when Southport booted five of the first six goals kicking into the teeth of a strong breeze favoring the Musgrave Avenue end of the ground.
Aspley clawed back two late goals to trail by 12 points at the first change, before the Sharks piled on eight goals in the second term to effectively end the contest.
David Lynch used the ball superbly running out of defence while Darren Pfeiffer's raking long kicks into attack were a feature.
Matt Shir and Jamie Sheahan continued to persist for the Hornets and they added five goals with the aid of the breeze in the third term, but the Sharks finished full of run for the second week straight at Fankhauser Reserve.
The home side piled on 5.12 to 1.1 in the final term to win 21.21 (147) to 11.3 (69) and register their fifth straight victory.It was another impressive performance by the Sharks, who ensured club favourite Wise, celebrated his 100-game milestone in fitting fashion.
In the reserves another impressive performance to keep up with the seniors winning streak winning 11-14-80 to 9-4-58 particularly after early match injuries to Kovacevic and Crawford left a limited interchange bench.
Best for Southport Ramge, Thurlow, Stanlake, Daniel, Smith, Brodie Grant, Callinan, Morris & Josh Clarke.
In the under 18's on Sunday against the Western Magpies again at home, the boys had a great come from behind victory with Dale Gregson,Brad Salmon, Nicholas Crowley,Ty Fankhauser,Alex Rentoul,Brandon Vanderwal, Chris Talbot all being named in the best.
The reserves and seniors now get ready for Morningside at home this Saturday 15th May with reserves at 9am and Seniors at 11am prior to GCFC taking on Geelong at 2pm.
100th Game for Wise
Wednesday 5th May 2010
Captain and triple Sharks Premiership player (1999, 2006& 2008) will play his 100th game for Sharks at Fankhauserreserve this Saturday.
Daniel who as a 17 year old played in the Sharks undefeatedpremiership side of 1999 before venturing off to the SANFL to play 38 gameswith Woodville West Torrens and 22 with North Adelaide in 6 seasons
in the SANFL competition before venturing back to the QAFLin 2006. Danny has also represented the open age QLD Stateside in 2006, 2007, 2008 & 2009 since his return.
SOUTHPORT DEFEATS NT THUNDER
Sunday 2nd May 2010
Southport are the only unbeaten team after the first month of QAFL competition following a hard-earned 20-point win over the brave NT Thunder at Fankhauser Reserve today.
The Sharks led by just three points at halftime and the final change, before booting the last five goals of the match to win 13.9 (87) to 9.13 (67).
The game began at a frenetic pace with the sharp skills of both sides a feature.
The ball zipped around at great speed and Thunder full-forward Darren Ewing benefited with two first quarter goals opposed to State full-back Kurt Niklaus.
However, they were to be Ewing's only success on the day as the match turned into a tough, grinding affair over the final quarters.
The match was played between the respective half-back lines for long periods, with Adam Devine and Matt Quigley particularly prominent for the Sharks.
Former Richmond ruckman Dean Putt played his best game for Southport, beating highly-rated Thunder big man Kenrick Tyrrell.
Tyrrell's frustration boiled over late in the third quarter when he was reported for striking Putt at a stage when his side had the lead and Zeph Skinner was shooting for goal following a great mark.
The turnover took the wind out of the Thunder's sails momentarily, although they hit the lead when Brett Goodes goaled early in the final term.
Any thoughts of another boil over following Morningside's loss yesterday quickly evaporated when former TAC Cup star Justin Vanunen goaled twice within 30 seconds.
Matthew Fowler, who had been quiet throughout, ignited late in the term with two more goals to effectively end the contest.
While Putt was in charge in the ruck, dynamic Thunder duo Cameron and Jarred Ilett cleaned up at ground level and provided enormous drive for their side.
With Shaun Tapp winning most of the one-on-one contests with Cleve Hughes, the Sharks found avenues to goal hard to find, although Hughes finished with three goals including a key one in the last quarter when Tapp had moved into the ruck.
Ben Merrett was lively in the first half across half-forward before fading, with Cameron MacLaren catching alight in the second after a slow start.
Aaron Motlop and Jake Dignan joined the Ilett's in winning the clearances, but the Territory broke down continually at half-forward.
Niklaus tightened on Ewing, with Ben Caputi often lending support while also dominating at centre-half-back.
While the loss sends the Thunder to second-last on the premiership table, their standing masks the fact that they were within a goal of heavyweights Morningside and Southport at three-quarter-time for each of the last two weeks and no have a 'softer' run over the next month.
Southport 2-2 6-4 8-7 13-9-87
NT Thunder 2-4 5-7 7-9 9-13-67
Southport Goals Vanunen 4 Hughes 3 MacLaren 2 Fowler 2 Pfeiffer 1Merrett 1
NT Thunder Goals Reti 3 Ewing 2 Wilson 2 Motlop 1 Goodes 1
Sharks Best Players Pfeiffer, Caputi, Vanunen, Wise, Devine.Putt, Niklaus
The Sharks will look to further cement top place when they host Aspley next Saturday.
SHARKS DEFEAT TIGERS, MACLAREN SURGES
Wednesday 28th April 2010
Victorian amateurs recruit Cameron MacLaren has made an outstanding start to his QAFL career with Southport, moving into the joint lead of the Syd Guildford Trophy after three rounds.
MacLaren polled three votes for his effort against Labrador last weekend to go with his four the previous week at Broadbeach.
The former Old Marcellin utility has adjusted smoothly to the fast-paced style of QAFL football and has been a key to Southport's lightning start to the season.
The big guns did come out to play in Round 3, with MacLaren's high-powered teammate Matty Payne producing his best game in Sharks colours to claim best afield votes, while Captain Danny Wise also had another great game.
The Sharks did not convert as well on the scoreboard as they would have liked with Cleve Hughes and Justin Vanunen kicking one goal five apiece while Matthew "Chook" Fowler made light of the situation by kicking a clever four goals straight and perhaps earning a VFL game for GCFC against Casey Scorpions at Labrador this coming Saturday.
The Sharks tackled well and ran the ball well and will certainly be looking to up their clearance rates at stoppages where Labrador had the ascendancy for the day.
Final Scores were as follows;
Sharks 3.5 6.10 13.15 15.22.112
Tigers 3.1 5.1 9.4 12.5.77
Best Players for Sharks Matty Payne, Cam MacLaren, Danny Wise, Darren Pfeiffer, Matt Fowler, Ben Caputi
In the reserve grade the boys also had a win(10-14-74 to 8-9.57) to give both Sharks teams a 3-0 start to the season with Dan Ramage,Kapun Morris, Terry Knight(four goals), Eddie Mallan,Tom Daniel, Joey Daye, Mick Wise all featuring in the best players.
The under 18's battled manfully on the Sunday again at Labrador but missed out on the four points.
The reserves now have the weekend off and the seniors prepare for the speedy Northern Territory at home on Sunday at 2pm.
The after match function and awards will be in Mackenzie's Bar starting at 5pm onwards this coming Sunday 2nd May 2010.
SHARKS STEADY IN TOUGH TUSSLE
Sunday 11 April 2010
Southport absorbed enormous pressure from a never-say-die Redland to post an impressive 27-point win in an intense QAFL season opener at Fankhauser Reserve yesterday. While there were plenty of errors during the see-saw contest, the commitment of both sides was first class and proved both will be tough to beat during 2010.
Each team had 12 new faces in their side compared to last year but there was plenty of passion for the respective jumpers. Southport won through their ability to capitalize better on their forays forward and hurt the opposition with a number of quick transitions from defence to attack.
The Sharks led 5.4 to 1.1 at quarter-time, but a repeat of the blowout of last year's qualifying final did not look on the cards because the Bombers had gone forward 18 times to 10 in the opening stanza. They made far better use of the ball in the second term to reduce the margin to nine points at the long break, before the Sharks stamped their authority in one devastating burst in the third term. "We let ourselves down with that seven-minute patch in the third quarter when they kicked five goals," rued Bombers coach Matty Francis.
In the gun again with a 34-point deficit at the last break, the Bombers booted the first three goals of the final term as skipper Phil Carse and Josh Norman took control of the centre clearances, before the Sharks responded in the crisis to win 16.14 (110) to 12.11 (83).
"It was a good hit-out but we've got a little bit of work to do to get a return on the work we do inside our forward 50," Francis said. It is testament to the new-found respect of Redland that the QAFL would even consider scheduling the Bombers for a first round clash at perennial powerhouse Southport.
"I was pleased for our footy club with the respect the opposition showed us after the game," Francis said. "We went down, but we made it one hell of a tough game." Francis also paid tribute to Southport's ability to withstand everything his side could throw at them. "Craig Crowley has moulded a tight knit bunch (in a short time)," he said. "They moved the ball beautifully and their backline was terrific with they way they outnumbered us at the fall of the ball."
Crowley admitted he was 'happy within reason' with the Sharks' first-up performance. "Obviously it is a big thing to bring 12 new blokes into a side and it has been a bit difficult trying to get a look at every new player during the pre-season games," he said. "This was the first time we have been able to field our best possible side and both teams should have been happy with the pressure they exerted."
Defender Ben Caputi ( pictured right) was outstanding for the Sharks and Crowley was delighted that his backmen could win a substantial number of one-on-one contests. They also received top service from Gold Coast listed players Joey Daye and Matt Fowler, Dayne providing enormous run and Fowler contributing strongly in a roaming forward role. Richmond recruit Cleve Hughes did his job with four goals and Ben Merrett and the evergreen David James were also winners for the home team. Newcomer Matt Quigley impressed the coach with his willingness to run and create an overlap.
In the early game the reserves also had a win beating Redlands by 20 points with forward Jethro Calma- Holt,Ruckman Josh Clarke, Midfielder Edward Mallan and backline players Hamish Watts & Dane Grant all getting the tick of approval from coach Brett Thompson.
We now get ready for Broadbeach at Dunlop Crt Broadbeach with reserves at 8.45am and seniors at 11am prior to GCFC V Williamstown at 2.10pm.
SHARKS SET TO STRIKE EARLY
Tuesday 30 March 2010
The Southport machine is ready to roll into 2010 after picking apart the Western Magpies by 86 points in their final practice match last weekend. Despite having to replace more than half their team, the Sharks have looked sharp throughout the autumn and look set to hit the ground running.
In previous years they have taken the first month or six weeks to jell when faced with a large turnover of players, but the Sharks were highly impressive in a first-up practice match loss to Brisbane, then beat grand finalists Mt Gravatt and now the lowly Magpies.
Quality recruit Cleve Hughes took his goal tally to 10 in two games with a six-goal haul against the Magpies, while Matthew Payne has booted a similar number in three games. Payne has featured in the Sharks' best player list in all three matches and looks primed for a big winter on his return to a competition he dominated with the Zillmere Eagles.
Newcomer Justin Van Unen showed he will be a huge asset as a midfielder-forward, while veterans David James (pictured right) and Darren O'Brien are purring. James, who ranks alongside Payne as the best performed player in the QAFL in recent seasons, will be like a new recruit for the Sharks after missing most of 2009 through injury.
The Magpies received a solid wake-up call that they have plenty of work ahead of the, despite having beaten Labrador the previous week. The black-and-whites were happy with the output of midfielders James Rozynski and Richard Wenham, who they need to have big seasons to be competitive.
The Magpies open their premiership season against Labrador on 10 April, while Southport host Redland on the same day.
Scoreboard:
Southport5.4, 12.5, 16.8, 21.11(137)
Western Magpies 0.1, 2.3, 4.3, 8.3 (51)
Goals, Southport: C Hughes 6, J Van Unen 3, M Payne 3, B Merrett 2, D James 2, G Screech 2, D Tucker, D Kovacevic, D Carmody. Magpies: C Judson 2, S Clarke 2, B Jaenke-Cain, D Hamill, G Moore, M Dillon.
Best, Southport: G Screech, D James, M Payne, J Van Unen, D O'Brien, D Tucker. Magpies: J Rozynski, R Wenham, S Clarke, J Pennycuick, C Mitchell-Hill, D Mitchell.
SHARKS STORM HOME
Saturday 20 March 2010
Southport produced another impressive pre-season performance in downing Mt Gravatt by 30 points at Fankhauser Reserve on Saturday the 20th March.
The Sharks produced a withering seven-goal-to-two final term to win 14.5 (89) to 9.5 (59) in a reverse of the teams' preliminary final match-up from last year.
On that occasion it was the Vultures who came from the clouds to secure a grand final berth and while today was merely a scratch match, the Sharks were no doubt happy to make a statement. Rover Matthew Payne continued his dynamic start to the year, albeit the pre-season, with a second consecutive best on field display for the Sharks.
Equally pleasing for the Sharks was recruit Cleve Hughes' with four goals and the efforts of ex-Blue Darren Pfeiffer. Rugged defender Kurt Niklaus showed he will again take some beating for the full-back position in Team of the Year after blanketing the in-form Shane Morrison. Former Shark Nick Barling was good in the ruck for Mt Gravatt, while Todd Jamieson was excellent around the packs.
Scoreboard:
Southport 3.1, 4.4, 7.5, 14.5 (89)
Mt Gravatt 0.0, 4.1, 7.4, 9.5 (59)
Goals, Southport: M Payne 4, C Hughes 4, G Screech 3, D Pfeiffer, D Grant, D Carmody. Mt Gravatt: D Savage, T Jamieson, R Lake, M Enright, M Doyle, P Johnson, J James, B Stewart, B Jones.
Best, Southport: M Payne, D Pfeiffer, G Screech, K Niklaus, B Merrett, Z Callinan. Mt Gravatt: T Jamieson, N Barling, D Page, S Carins, A Tarrant, R Lake.
SHARKS ANNOUNCE LEADERS FOR SEASON 2010
Tuesday 16 March 2010
The Southport Sharks announced their leaders for season 2010 at their jumper presentation evening held in the Sharks function rooms on Saturday night March 13th 2010.
Danny Wise was reappointed as Captain and announced to the 150 strong crowd that it was decided collectively and after asking for applications within the playing group that Glenn Screech,Dane Carmody and Adam Devine be appointed as vice Captains for season 2010. Backing them up to fill the final part of the leadership group will be Kurt Niklaus and Ben Caputi.
Danny said on the night it was a good process to go through with many worthy applications for the roles. He was also confident that the entire playing group would support each other throughout the season proper.
Dr Alan MacKenzie gave the welcoming address and reminded all attending that it was the 50th year for the club after being formed in 1961. Dr MacKenzie went onto welcome all existing & new additions to the club and remind them of the ever improving QAFL environment that will confront them once they pull on a Sharks jumper for season 2010.
Adam Garton current board member and weekly interchange steward for the seniors got the gong for interview of the night when he divulged that he was drafted by the bears from Glenelg in 1987 and has stayed ever since after previously playing in senior premierships at Glenelg with players of the calibre of Tony Hall and Stephen "Sticks" Kernahan in a successful era for the club prior to moving to QLD to pursue his AFL dream.
SHARKS ADD IMPRESSIVE DEFENDER
Wednesday 24 February 2010
Southport have boosted their defence following the loss of Damien Charleston with the acquisition of Western Border League standout Nick Johnstone.
The teenager was part of the Victorian Country Under 19 squad last year and was a standout for his club side Heywood.
Heywood finished on the bottom of the table in their competition, but Johnstone regularly stood out fighting against the odds in the backline.
Charleston has been an under-rated by exceptionally reliable member of the Sharks' defence for the last three seasons after walking into the club and asking for a game, but moved back to Sydney and will play for the East Coast Eagles this season.
The Sharks have also bolstered their depth with the acquisition of teenager Brett Davis from Warragul in the Gippsland League and Jesse Mawson from South Barwon in the Geelong Football League.
STARS TO SHINE IN MOUNTAINS
Thursday 11 February 2010
A new-look Southport head to the mountains this weekend for two days of bonding, with one of the best players to miss out in the last AFL Draft in their midst.
Justin Van Unen averaged 23 possessions per game in 16 matches and kicked 32 goals for the Oakleigh Chargers last year.
He was considered a strong prospect of being drafted to an AFL club last November, but was surprisingly overlooked.
The Sharks pounced on the 186cm midfielder-forward, who has trained with Southport with the same level of professionalism as if he were at an AFL club.
"Justin has shown a few of the local boys exactly where they need to be at to give themselves a chance at being drafted," said Sharks football manager Jason Cotter.
A great nephew of former North Melbourne champion John Dugdale, Van Unen most likes himself to clever West Coast forward Mark LeCras.
"I have a good goal sense and kick some tricky goals. I'm strong overhead and can play midfield and down back and read the ball well," Van Unen wrote in his pre-Draft profile.
With 10 quality players gone from their best 22 of last season, the Sharks will feature a rebuilt outfit in 2010.
While there are plenty of new faces at Fankhauser Reserve, they will quickly learn about how the proud club is still smarting from their QAFL finals exit last season where they were crushed by 12 goals in the second semi-final by Morningside and then relinquished a four-goal lead midway through the final term to concede the preliminary final to Mt Gravatt.
That will no doubt be mentioned more than once when the squad travels to the picturesque surrounds of Oki at the foot of Mt Warning this weekend.
Former Brisbane Lions stalwart and 1989 Sharks premiership player Matthew Kennedy will put the squad through some interesting drills as they get to know each other better.
KARMICHAEL HUNT TO BE A SHARK?
Wednesday, 10 February, 2010
Karmichael Hunt's first official game of Australian Football could be in the black and white of the Southport Sharks.
The former Queensland rugby league star, soon to return from a rugby union stint in France to begin life with the Gold Coast AFL club, has been allocated to the Sharks via the QAFL State League Draft.
This is the mechanism via which 33 contracted Gold Coast players and other squad members who do not have an alignment to either of the three Gold Coast-based QAFL clubs are given one.
They were split between Southport, Labrador and Broadbeach, with a local product from any of these clubs automatically re-assigned to that club.
This includes Queensland signings from other clubs, young Queenslanders on trial for a Gold Coast contract for their entry to the AFL next year, and players signed from interstate by the AFL's 17th franchise.
So, whenever Hunt is available to play and is not chosen in the Gold Coast side that will play this year in the VFL he will play under Craig Crowley with Southport in the QAFL.
The Gold Coast will begin their VFL campaign on Saturday afternoon, 10 April, against Port Melbourne at Southport.
The full allocation of Gold Coast players via the QAFL State League draft is:-
Southport: Jake Crawford, Joey Daye, Jesse Haberfield, Daniel Harris, Karmichael Hunt, Sam Iles, Rex Liddy, Brandon Matera, Zac Smith, Jack Stanlake, Rory Thompson.
Labrador: Michael Coad, Charlie Dixon, Michael Gugliotta, Taylor Hine, Marc Lock, Alik Magin, Luke Russell, Liam Rutledge, Jack Stanley, David Swallow, Maverick Weller.
Broadbeach: Roland Ah Chee, Piers Flanigan, Jack Hutchins, Hayden Jolly, Trent McKenzie, Lewis Moss, Tom Nicholls, Liam Patrick, Matt Shaw, Luke Shreeve, Danny Stanley.
JARJOURA JOINS EXODUS
Friday, 22nd January, 2010
Gun full forward Luke Jarjoura has joined a heavy off-season exodus from the Southport Sharks.
Football Manager Jason Cotter today confirmed that Jarjoura, the No.4 goal-kicker in the QAFL State League last year, would move to Shepparton for employment reasons and would be lost to the competition.
Jarjoura, formerly from ACT club Ainslie and SANFL club Sturt, played all 21 games and kicked a club-high 60 goals in his first season with the Sharks, including 10 against the Western Magpies in Round 4. He is the 10th regular senior player from 2009 and the ninth member of their preliminary final side who will not be with the club next year, balancing an excellent recruiting campaign.
Collectively, the 10 played a total of 180 games and kicked 154 goals, They filled positions 1-3-6-7-8 in the B&F, won three spots in the Queensland Open side and two more at U21 level. And they'll take with them a total of nine QAFL premierships.
Also moving on are:-
Justin Kahlefeldt - the 2009 B&F winner and State representative has signed with VFL club Coburg after doing pre-season with AFL club Richmond. A member of the 2008 premiership side, he played 20 games last year and kicked 16 goals.
Broc McCauley - another State Open representative who was third in the B&F and winner of the Sharks' Most Improved Player award, the athletic ruckman has joined the Brisbane Lions as a 2010 rookie. He played 20 games last year and kicked 15 goals after tasting premiership success in 2008.
Jason Burge - the livewire small utility, a 2006-08 premiership team member and the third Southport member of the 2009 State Open side that played Tasmania, has headed to VFL club Port Melbourne after finishing 6th in the B&F and winning the Sharks' Most Consistent Player award while playing 20 games and kicking 15 goals.
Damien Charleston - the ever-resolute defender, 7th in the B&F after playing all 21 games, has moved to Sydney for employment reasons. He was a 2008 premiership team member.
Mark Lynch - the small-defender/utility, 8th in the Southport B&F after playing 20 games last year and kicking 10 goals, will play for Kyneton in Victoria.
David Meli - Southport's only nomination for the NAB AFLQ Rising Star Award, the promising PNG half forward / midfielder has joined AFL club Essendon as an international scholarship holder after kicking 15 goals in 12 games in his debut campaign last year.
Fraser Pope - a 2006-08 premiership team member and 2009 State U21 representative, the goal-kicking half forward has headed to Port Melbourne with Burge after playing 17 games and kicking 11 goals last season.
Cameron Betts - a 2006 Southport premiership player who played 14 senior games last year, he has joined Wynyard in Tasmania.
Ben Headland - A 2008 premiership player and 2009 Queensland U21 representative who missed the 2009 finals due to a knee injury, he will miss the entire 2010 campaign following a reconstruction.
SHARKS SNARE BIG TIGER PUTT
Friday, 18th December, 2009
Southport have moved quickly to bolster a ruck division depleted by the loss of Queensland and Team of the Year big man Broc McCauley to the Brisbane Lions, signing former Richmond giant Dean Putt.
Putt, originally from the Wood End via the Calder Cannons, had two years at Punt Road without breaking into the senior side but is seen as a perfect replacement for McCauley after his rookie list selection by theLions.
Twenty-year-old Putt is an exceptionally mobile 203cm and 98kg, invariably running with many of the Richmond midfielders in the long-distance work.
He was drafted by the Tigers at No.52 in the 2007 AFL National Draft after playing a key role in the Calder Cannons' 2007 TAC Cup premiership in his third year in what is the game's primary development nursery in the country.
The prized capture of Putt adds to Southport's already impressive list of recruits, which includes former Grogan Medalist Matty Payne, who has returned to Queensland after 12 months with SANFL club Sturt, plus 16-game Richmond key forward Cleve Hughes, former Adelaide and Carlton player Darren Pfeiffer and Victorian Amateur Open and U23 representative utility player Cam MacLaren from Marcellin Old Collegians.
They compensate for the loss of McCauley, Justin Kahlefeldt, Jason Burge, Fraser Pope Damien Charleston,David Meli,Cam Betts and Mark Lynch.
STATE FOOTY AT SOUTHPORT IN 2010
Wednesday, 2 December, 2009
Queensland will host Tasmania at Southport's Fankhauser Oval in June next year to headline another busy season for the Queensland Australian Football League.
The Maroons, beaten by Tasmania in June this year after an historic victory over Tasmania in 2007, will seek revenge on Saturday 12 June in a double-header with the Queensland U21 side.
It will be the first full-scale interstate match played at Southport, which will be the training centre and primary match base for the Gold Coast VFL side next year while the Carrara Stadium is redeveloped.
And it will be the first 'home' match for the State side since 2005, having traveled to Canberra in 2006, Launceston in 2007, Townsville in 2008 and Hobart in 2009.
The Queensland U21s will play the Victorian Amateur U21 side in a curtain-raiser to the int
erstate clash on what will be a bye weekend for a QAFL State League premiership that will culminate with the Grand Final on Sunday 19 September (venue to be decided).
In other features of the 2010 QAFL State League draw announced today:-
%u2022 The NT Thunder, such a huge success in their first season in the QAFL in 2009, will have their travel load reduced by three games. They will play eight games in Darwin and four in Alice Springs, and make only six visits to south-east Queensland.
%u2022 Each team will travel to the NT at least once - premiers Morningside, Broadbeach and the Western Magpies will travel twice. Morningside, Mt.Gravatt, Redland and the Magpies will visit Alice. Broadbeach will visit Darwin twice, and Brisbane Lions, the Magpies, Southport, Aspley, Labrador and Morningside will visit the NT capital once each.
%u2022 Morningside (Alice Springs - Round 3), Western Magpies (Darwin - Round 6) and Broadbeach (Darwin - Round 18) will surrender a 'home' game to the NT to fill the Thunder's 12-match quota.
%u2022 Each QAFL team except Southport will play a Gabba curtain-raiser against the Brisbane Lions Reserves. The Sharks' scheduled 'away' game against the Lions will be played at Coorparoo due to a clash of dates with a Queensland U18 match against NSW/ACT in the NAB Australian U18 Championships.
%u2022 Morningside and the Western Magpies will play at Heritage Oval, Toowoomba, on Saturday, 5 June as they look to strengthen their presence in the western region.
%u2022 Western Magpies will have the most expansive travel schedule - they will play seven games at 'home' at Sherwood, will visit the home of each of the other eight QAFL clubs in south-east Queensland (including the Gabba), plus Darwin, Alice Springs and Toowoomba.
%u2022 Seven QAFL matches will be played as curtain-raisers to Gold Coast home matches in the VFL, which will be split between Southport (4), Broadbeach (2) and Labrador (1). These will involve Southport (5 times), Broadbeach (4), Morningside (2), Redland, Labrador and Mt.Gravatt.
%u2022 The Gold Coast will also play a 'home' game in Cairns on 17 July, a stand-alone match at Southport on Saturday 29 May, and at Labrador on 24 July, when there is a bye in the QAFL due to the Australian Country Championships in Canberra.
%u2022 The QAFL premiership season will open with a clash between the Brisbane Lions and Mt.Gravatt at the Gabba on Thursday 1 April as a curtain-raiser to the eagerly-awaited AFL clash that pits boom Lions newcomer Brendan Fevola against his former club Carlton. This match will come from Round 11 of the QAFL draw to accommodate a bye for the Lions Reserves in Round 11 to coincide with the Lions AFL bye.
%u2022 The first full round of QAFL fixtures will be played on the weekend of 9-10-11 April, with games in Darwin and at Southport, Aspley, Labrador and Morningside.
%u2022 All QAFL games will be played Saturdays and Sundays, except the Thursday night game at the Gabba to open the season, and the NT Thunder's Friday night game on 9 April in Darwin against the Lions in Round 1.
KAHLEFELDT TRAINING AT TIGERS
Monday 9th November 2009
Hard running Southport midfielder Justin"Spud" Kahlefeldt has capped off a stunning 2009 season by being invited to train pre Christmas at Richmond.
Kahlefeldt who won this years Best and Fairest at the Sharks and made his State debut against Tasmania was also selected in the Velocity Sports Cup 2009 Team of the Year and whilst the rumours are abound he may link with VFL club Port Melbourne the invitation to train with an AFL club is to good an opportunity to pass by.
Fraser Pope,Jason Burge and Mark Lynch are also considering a move to Melbourne who are all good friends with "Spud" Kahlefeldt.
Hughes and Pfeiffer latest Sharks signings
Wednesday 4th November 2009
Hot on the heels of securing the signature of Grogan Medallist Matt Payne Southport have added recently delisted AFL players Cleve Hughes (Richmond) and Darren Pfeiffer (Carlton) to their already impressive list.
Hughes the number 24 selection in the 2005 NAB AFL Draft played a total of 16 games at Richmond after being recruited from SANFL club Norwood and at 194cm and 95kg will certainly make his presence felt in combination with 2009 Southport leading goal kicker Luke Jarjoura.
Pfeiffer was originally taken at pick 17 of the 2005 NAB AFL Draft by the Adelaide Crows and ironically came from the same SANFL club Norwood. He was then selected by the Blues in the 2008 NAB Pre Season Draft and played 7 games that year. He had an injury interrupted 2009 playing for the Northern Bullants (VFL) registering his first senior game in Round 17 before going on to be a member of the losing Grand Final side.
Norwood was also the club of gun full forward Ben McEntee and last season released Western Magpies key defender Ed McDonnell back to the QAFL.
The Sharks are also believed to have been swimming in the waters of the VAFA and have picked up the versatile Cameron MacLaren from Marcellin Old Collegians (A Section). MacLaren played representative football for the VAFA at both Open Age and Under 23 levels.
Sharks Snare Payne
Monday 2nd November 2009
Southport have signalled their intentions clearly to rival QAFL clubs by signing former Zillmere Eagles Grogan Medallist Matt Payne for the 2010 season.
Payne a member of the losing Sturt SANFL Grand Final side has decided to return to the Sunshine State after a season in Adelaide which saw him play 14 senior games including four finals.
Prior to his departure from the QAFL Payne was clearly the premier midfielder in the competition over a number of years winning the 2006 Grogan and Zane Taylor Medals as well as a number of top three finishes in the States highest individual award.
He left Queensland after the 2008 season along with fellow Zillmere Eagle Jake Myles who was recently announced as Best and Fairest in the Reserve Grade for Sturt.
Payne missed a portion of the season through a knee injury but finished the year off strongly and will certainly add to the Sharks midfield rotations.
It is believed the Sharks headed off a number of rival QAFL clubs for Payne's signature and the two year deal was confirmed yesterday by Southport Football Manager Jason Cotter.
On the flipside three Southport midfielders in Jason Burge, Fraser Pope, and Justin Kahlefeldt are believed to be contemplating a move south to try out with VFL powerhouse Port Melbourne coached by former Hawthorn great Gary Ayres
Sharks Bow Out in Preliminary Final
After leading at three quarter time by 23 points against Mt Gravatt at Coorparoo on Sunday and still in front by at similar margin at the 11 minute mark of the final quarter the sharks amazingly bowed out of the finals race for season 2009.
The result was eight goals in 18 frenzied minutes as the Sharks - who had been super impressive for three quarters - stopped to a walk.
Mt Gravatt eventually triumphed 17.12 (114) to 14.9 (93), their seventh win in succession, to set up a grand final joust with neighbours Morningside, who have won 17 games in succession.
It was tough and uncompromising throughout, with plenty of casualties on both sides.
The boys battled manfully but could not finish off the Vultures at crucial stages of the last quarter and Mt Gravatt on the other hand kicked 8 goals four in the last quarter to seal the deal.
Dual premiership coach(2006,2008) Craig Crowley who has been reappointed for season 2010 said he and the playing group were very disappointed at the result after having score board ascendency for most of the day.
We probaly missed Benny Merrett and Benny Headland in terms of our structures and certainly a tall lead up forward may have helped but full marks to Mt Gravatt they lifted when it counted and it reminded us of last years final series when as a group in finals we found ways to win under pressure.
The difficult thing was that we controlled the game and our set ups were working and then they had cameo peformances from Barry,Vearing,Morrisson,Gilliland which turned the game,momentum is a powerful thing in modern football and obviously to have it in the last quarter means you get last crack with no reply.
Craig said we ended up skinny in terms of player depth, with a combination of departures to GCFC (seven of our best up and coming players) and mid season departures of Dan McEntee,Lance Oswald,Ryan Head,Nick Barling for work,personal commitments and playing opportunities elsewhere.
Craig is now keen to start the review process and set off field personell in place for next season plus get on with recruiting and retention.
We will all get together to recognise our year at trophy presentation on Saturday 3rd October here at the club and then everyone can recharge their batteries prior to the start of preseason late November early December. |
