by Jo Westgate

Things have been quiet around the traps over the past two weeks with Under 8s through to Under 14s having two weeks off due to triathlons’ and a long weekend.

Under 8s

With both the Crocs and Pyramid Power very undermanned on Sunday some very keen under 10s stepped up to help out filling positions for both the Crocs and a couple of the lads  donning Power guernseys so the match could go ahead.

On what was a very crisp early morning at Cazaly’s all the boys and girls put in a 100% effort for their respective teams with goals once again raining up forward for the Crocs. Harry Walker and Scott Cooper made the most of their opportunities booting 3 goals each, Geneva Gilbert chalked up 2 goals for the girls and Jake Sherwell and Jessie (you go girl) Buorguignon kicked a 6 pointer to add to the Crocs impressive tally of 10 goals.

Player of the match went to little Mr Enthusiasm, Cameron Nyko, and other awards were received by Scott Cooper, Jessie Buorguignon and Geneva Gilbert for their great efforts up forward.

Under 10s

Down in numbers on Sunday but despite having to work harder they put in one of their best displays of team football for the season. Their North Cairns opponents could only stand by as the boys dominated across the ground and their willingness to share the ball around and run to help each other was very impressive and a credit to the skills taught to them by Coach Rodney Davidson.

Being able to play together as a team is one of the most important skills to learn in AFL and gives them a good grounding for the future. What’s the old saying; you are better to have a champion team than a team of champions? Goal kickers were Daniel 3, Anthony 3, Toby 3, Ryan 2, Jack 1 and Reuben 1. Awards went to Tyson Lynch club medal, Anthony Long and Ryan Bourguignon although the whole team deserved an award last Sunday.

Under 14s

Port Douglas 6-10-46 def. Pyramid Power 2-3-15.

Port Douglas Crocs travelled to Cazaly’s on Sunday to take on Pyramid Power. With team numbers recently bolstered by the welcome addition a number of new players, including the McCauley triplets from the Tablelands, the Under 14s were confident and eager for action. The first quarter saw both sides kicking a handful of points, but 3 unanswered goals in the second ensured the Crocs went into the half time break with a handy lead.

After some settling words of encouragement from coach Pat Barnett, the Crocs returned to the field and continued to edge further ahead of the opposition with steady determination. The Crocs ultimately went on to win the match with a comfortable 30 point margin, earning the boys the privilege of trumpeting their victory with the singing of the club song.

Goal kickers for the match were Giles Hanley, Ben McCauley, Ethan McCullough and Daniel Smith. Jake Gibson received The Beach Shack award with the E.J.’s Takeaway voucher was presented to Jai Phillips. Other award recipients were Ethan McCullough, Ben McCauley and Ashley Davidson who each received McDonald’s vouchers for their efforts.

Thanks to Tom Goodall from the Under 12s for his valuable assistance once again on Sunday and also a big thank you to those volunteers who did their bit and assisted with match duties, especially Dave Evans who courageously ignored a foot injury to take up the flags and man the goals. Onya Double-O!

Under 16s

The boys have had a busy two weeks with a 6-4-42 draw against North Cairns two weeks ago and a loss to top side Cairns Hawks last Friday Night with the full time score reading Cairns Hawks 11-7-73 def Port Douglas 5-4-34.  

What a difference a few weeks can make in AFL at the beginning of the season we had a squad of around 30 players but with injury’s suspensions and a few boys leaving including Captain Max Aldrich and his brother Sam heading to Boarding School next term, and Vice Captain Mathew Westgate out for the rest of the season with a fractured ankle we are looking at a different line up approaching the business end of the season.

The Crocs were competitive in the first two quarters even though the Hawks had chipped away and established a 20 point buffer going into the third quarter. Micheal Mckeown as always played hard for four quarters kicking 3 inspirational goals and trying to lift the team. Ned Dibella had a triumphant return from injury playing his best game for the season and receiving an award for his efforts.

Zac Perry put in a great effort as did Brett Mckeown and Max Aldrich but they failed to make a dent in the Hawks early lead despite what was overall a pretty good team effort. This week the Crocs come up against bottom side South Cairns and with some new faces stepping up into key positions we should see a very competitive game and another win this Friday Night

Congratulations to another champion of the Goodall family in Tom Goodall who has made the squad for the Under 12s Queensland rep team. Tom is following in big brother Jack's footsteps having played in reps sides in various age divisions and will be travelling to Brisbane over the next few months.

This week we have a home game at the Croc pit and are once again expecting a large crowd to come along and cheer the boys and girls on.