Werribee suffered a narrow loss to Brisbane in Round 20 going down to the Lions by 12 points in tightly contested match at Moreton Bay.

The loss leaves Werribee at 8-8 on the season but the Big W are still a chance to play finals if they can win their final two games. 

FINAL SCORE
Werribee: 1.4 4.7 7.9 9.12 (66)
Brisbane: 2.2 5.2 10.4 12.6 (78)

GOALS
Werribee: N. Hayes 3, N. Gribble 2, H. Garoni, M. Hanson, K. Declase, J. Porter.
Brisbane: T. Fullarton 2, H. Smith 2, M. Cox, T. Triffett, W. Buzza, B. Coleman, K. Lane, C. McFadyen.

BEST
Werribee: N. Hayes, N. Coughlan, T. Gribble, D. Brew, K. Declase, S. Conway.
Brisbane:

HOW IT HAPPENED
Not for the first time this season it was a player returning to the side who would have an early influence and against Brisbane that was Nick Hayes. After missing the previous week against Footscray the experienced forward got Werribee the first goal of the game after being rewarded for a strong tackle inside 50 after six minutes of play. After a quiet couple of weeks Shaun Mannagh was also prominent in the opening term along with Kye Declase, but despite dominating for long periods of time Werribee trailed by four points at quarter-time after failing to make the most of plenty of forward 50 entries.

Hayes and Werribee were again first on the board in the second term after Nick Coughlan picked out the number seven with a long pass inside two minutes. Brisbane didn’t take long to reply but Noah Gribble would restore a two-point advantage for Werribee just before the 10-minute as the young midfielder converted from 45 metres. With back-to-back goals the Lions pushed the margin to nine points with just over six minutes left, however Hayes’ third goal, which came via a free kick 30 metres out, helped cut the deficit. While a point down on the scoreboard Werribee went to the main break +45 in disposals, +8 in clearances, +12 inside 50s and led the tackle count 36 to 18.

After Werribee looked to have ended the first half with the momentum, with the final three scoring shots, it was instead the Lions who jumped out of the blocks in the third quarter with three goals in the space of five minutes seeing the hosts out to a game high 20-point lead. But Werribee was able to respond through Declase and then Noah Gribble who again kicked truly from the set shot to register his second major of the game after 13 and a half minutes. Matt Hanson lowered the margin to seven points with four minutes to go in the term however the Lions once again had an answer, adding a late major to make the difference 13 points with one to play.

After a couple of early behinds by Brisbane, Ollie Hanrahan almost soccered home a miracle goal from deep in the pocket, only for the ball to be met on the line by a Lions defender. Werribee’s task was made harder six minutes in when Brisbane goaled but the visitors weren’t giving up and Hudson Garoni would provide a much-needed major at the nine-minute mark, after laying a desperate tackle at the top of the goal square. Werribee held the Lions scoreless for almost 20 minutes but couldn’t generate the looks it needed in attack until Josh Porter marked a Tom Gribble kick, close to goal with four minutes left in the game. Porter made no mistake with his conversion to reduce the margin to six points before one final Brisbane major confirmed the result.

KEY PLAYERS
Tom Gribble: 35 disposals (19 K) at 83% efficiency, 15 handball receives, 5 marks, 8 clearances, 4 inside 50s, 11 score involvements.
Nick Coughlan: 29 disposals (25 K), 13 intercept possessions, 8 marks (2 CM, 5 IM), 8 rebound 50s, 4 inside 50s, 5 score involvements.
Matt Hanson: 27 disposals (19 K), 10 groundball gets,  6 marks, 3 tackles, 3 clearances, 3 inside 50s, 6 score involvements, 1 goal.
Nick Hayes: 22 disposals (17 K), 10 contested possessions, 9 marks (3 CM), 5 tackles, 6 score involvements, 3 goals.
Shaun Mannagh: 20 disposals (15 K), 6 marks, 8 tackles, 5 inside 50s, 5 score involvements.
Jack Henderson: 18 disposals (11 K), 5 marks, 3 tackles, 3 clearances, 3 inside 50s, 5 score involvements. 
Matt Keast: 16 disposals (19 K), 10 marks, 3 tackles, 4 inside 50s, 5 score involvements.
Josh Porter: 11 disposals, 7 marks (2 CM), 10 hit-outs, 2 tackles, 1 goal.

NEXT MATCH
Round 21
Werribee vs Essendon
Sunday August 14, 12:05pm
Windy Hill, Essendon

Several players continue to push their case for VFL selection with strong displays at local level. See who all the top performers were and who enjoyed wins with their community clubs last weekend. 

WESTERN REGION FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Saad El-Hawli – Altona

Amongst the best players in a 92-point victory over Point Cook. Collected 22 possessions and added a couple goals as the Vikings notched their 13th win of the season.

Spencer Johnson – Altona

Ran out for the first time in more than a month and spent time at both ends of the ground. Moved forward in the second half and kicked a goal. Finished with 18 disposals and four tackles.

Lochie Smart – Deer Park

A good showing in a 29-point triumph over Yarraville Seddon. Kicked two majors and now has multiple goals in five straight games. Ended the day with 22 disposals and nine marks.

Harrison White- Werribee Districts

Not as impactful as recent weeks but did some nice things and competed hard against some big bodies when thrown in the middle in a 53-point loss to league leaders Caroline Springs.

GEELONG FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Gennaro Bove – Newtown & Chilwell

Bagged a season-best three goals to be in the best players in a comfortable win over North Shore. Tallied 16 disposals and seven tackles and showed progress with his running patterns.

Sam Witherden – North Shore

Played mainly as a key defender in defeat to the Eagles where he competed well and provided plenty of run and carry. Totalled 23 disposals, seven marks and five tackles.  

Flynn Young - Grovedale

Made every touch count with good decision making and execution in a 13-point loss to Leopold.  Kicked three goals, was terrific in the air and used his body well in one-on-ones. One of the best for the Tigers.

Josh Porter – Grovedale

Copped close attention against the Lions but worked hard all day playing forward and in the ruck. Presented well, made good decisions and impressed defensively with several big tackles.

Toby Mahoney – Bell Park

Played on the wing for much of the game and used the ball well as the Dragons went down to Geelong West by 26 points.

VICTORIAN AMATEUR FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Harry Stubbings – Old Scotch (Local Player of the Week)

Great work rate over four quarters and a big performance with 31 disposals, 11 marks, four tackles and a goal as the Cardinals trumped St Bernards by 57 points in their Round 14 encounter.

BENDIGO FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Brady Rowles – Eaglehawk

Another team-first performance in a 19-point loss to Sandhurst. Was again willing to play different roles for the team and finished the day with 15 disposals and three tackles.

Long-time Werribee recruiter Mark Stone has been awarded Life Membership of the club.

Stone joined Werribee in 2005 and over the past 17 years has helped lure plenty of big names to Avalon Airport Oval. Among the players Stone has recruited are Michael Barlow, Brad Mangan, Ben Brown, Brody Mihocek, Matt Hanson and Josh Corbett.

Stone also briefly stepped in as football manager in 2017 and said it was a huge honour to receive Life Membership.

“I’m really humbled by this award, you don’t set out to get things like this,” he said.

“This is a great community club and I’m proud to be a part of it, so thank you to Martin (Carter) and the board and Mark Penaluna. My mum and sister are here, two of my greatest supporters and my dad who passed away five years ago, if he was here, he would be pretty excited.”

He said many former and current Werribee players and coaches had helped develop his eye for talent. Stone was presented his Life Membership by Simon Atkins, Werribee’s coach at the time he joined the club.

“He’s probably gone everywhere around Australia now, the majority of the time spending his own money to try and get the best players to the Werribee Football Club,” Atkins said.

“He is a humble person and a workaholic, I think he had five jobs at one stage and still found time to do the recruiting for the club. Stoney made my job so much easier because I knew we were leaving no stone unturned and he continues to drive around the country selling the Werribee Football Club as the best place to come to.”

Stone, who admitted he dislikes watching the team play because he can’t handle defeat, said he hopes ultimate team success isn’t far away.

“If I can see Werribee win a flag before I finish recruiting then I’ve done my job,” he said.

Werribee will make its final interstate trip of the year in Round 20 with the team to journey north to face Brisbane this weekend.

After back-to-back losses, a win over the third placed Lions will be a big boost to Werribee's hopes of playing finals in 2022 as the home and away season draws to its conclusion with three rounds remaining.

Brisbane has been in the top half of the top eight all year long and now has 11 victories from 15 games following a return to the winners list last week, with a 25-point triumph over Richmond at Punt Road.

TEAM NEWS

Matt Hanson, Nick Hayes, Josh Porter and Jay Dahlhaus all come back in after not playing against Footscray .

Joining them is Nathan Cooper, who is back for his first game since Round 12 after a hamstring injury, while under 22 players Matt Keast and Saad El-Hawli also return to the side.

Making way are Lucas Rocci, Reuben William, Logan Wagener, Tom McCaffrey, Darcy Cassar, Ariek Lual and Sam Paea.

Round 20 Match Centre

Watch live at afl.com.au

ROUND 20
Werribee vs Brisbane
Saturday August 6, 11:05am
Moreton Bay Sports Complex