GNFL round 4 preview: Brigades win over Northampton ‘gelled’ team as they prepare for Towns

After storming into Northampton and knocking off the reigning premiers, Brigades know the job is not done as they face a Towns-sized challenge at GBSC Sports Park on Saturday. Brigades went to Purcher International Oval last week as the underdogs and defeated Northampton 7.12 (54) to 6.11 (47). Coach Cory Foot said it was a big team win that had set the team up for success. “As a team it was sort of one that’s probably gelled us a lot stronger,” he said. “We’ve had a couple of new players in the team; it was just a real team building win that we can build on. “It does give you confidence, but it also gives us confidence in that the work that we’re doing is going to pay off.” The Hawks went through several changes in the offseason, including losing brothers Jayden and Kim Schofield to Chapman Valley, but Foot said the senior and junior players had worked well together in the fledgling season. “We’re lucky enough we’ve got a couple of senior boys in Fletch (Klasztorny) and Has (Ahmat-Watkins) that have come in and been able to mentor a lot of the younger boys,” he said. “I feel at the moment we’ve got a really good mix and you get the best out of Izac Ronan, Jordy O’Brien … obviously there’s a really good mix of age there and different backgrounds that push each other along.” New recruits such as Ahmat-Watkins showing up for Brigades has the club excited about its youth. The colts players have stepped up into the league side this year and put up big-time performances. “We were putting some work in behind the scenes into these younger guys and not throwing them in the deep end,” Foot said. “The ones like Calarni Dann, Aussie Breen, Lucas (Ronan), Riaz (Mohammad), they’re more than ready and I think they’ve shown that already in the first two rounds.” While happy about the win over the Rams, the side understands there is still a long season ahead of them. They will be tested again this week against a Towns side that has improved dramatically over the past year. “Towns aren’t the same Towns they were 12 months ago; we obviously would like that if we do the right things we will be rewarded, but if we take our foot off the pedal then any side can get you,” Foot said. “Towns have got a very good spine and we’re going to respect the fact that they’ve got players that if you give them an inch, they’ll take a mile.” The Bulldogs have undergone major changes this season, with new player-coach Beau Walker leading the charge after they picked up a second win over Rovers last week. Foot said the Hawks needed to focus on capitalising on their opportunities to walk away from the match 2-1 after the team kicked 12 behinds in their last hit out. “We’ve just got to make sure we’re getting reward for effort; I think our back line so far has been outstanding,” he said. “Our midfields hopefully can get a little bit more steadiness into the game. We need to make sure that we’re taking our opportunities when they present themselves.” Across the rest of the league, both Northampton and Rovers will be chasing redemption at Greenough Oval, with each coming off home losses. The Rams are coming off an upset loss to Brigades, while the Demons are yet to post points on the board. Mullewa will enjoy playing in front of the home crowd for the first time this season when they take on Railways at Mullewa Oval.