Round 5 Summary

An undermanned Wildcats ventured down to Bristol with just the bare minimum of EU's available, including a semi-retired Kangaroo Paws Shaw, but still managed to put them away by 17 goals, with Richo bagging a lazy 11 from full forward, and opening up a nice break at the head of the goal kicking table. He was ably assisted by Quincey Allen, Sniffa, and don't laugh, but Sniffa's mate played well too. No offence Ty, but Sniffa's last mate made a prick of himself in Pamps, so it makes a nice change! Widdo also played well in the ruck, and Adrian worked hard all day, while new Irish recruit Padraic chipped in for 3 goals as well.

Back at Trailfinders, there was a more hotly contested event, with the local derby between the Emus and Raiders. Courtesy of a couple of no-shows, combined with a few injuries and the fact that the Emus were sitting above the Raiders, the Raiders went into the game as the underdogs. And at one point with only 13 fit blokes on the ground, it was a fairly courageous effort in the end by the Raiders to fall over the line by 18 points. The Emus had their chances to win, with more scoring shots than the Raiders, but couldn't finish it off on the scoreboard. It was a sensational game though, with all of the boys putting in a courageous effort, and with the way the draw falls, the next local derby in two weeks shhould prove another ripper. Rumour has it that SOF wants to have a hitout in that game, but he'd better prove himself on the track first or he might struggle to force his way in.

The Raiders were well served by Broomy, Benny Statton, Hurrican Hillard in his first hit out for the year, and Jimi "the mounting machine" Kelly, while Slates, who should work his way back up the ladder from here, was dominant for the Emus along with Big Nozza, Woody's Mutha and even Jon Jon Grapsas who continues to improve after having spent the last 13 years in the umpiring fraternity.

This weekend is a huge one for the club. The Wildcats take on Wimbledon, and having already dropped games from winning positions against two of the other big three so far this year, they are in a must win game to keep in touch for a top two finish and with Aubs taking back the reigns, I'm sure he'll be impressing this upon the boys. The Raiders take on Wimbledon's seconds, the Fulham Tigers, and need to win and win well if they want to end the year as minor premiers and assure themselves, even at this early stage, of a finals berth.

The great news around the club at the moment is the unending depth of quality players available, and we'll be putting out two of the strongest sides we have for the year this weekend, so it's all looking good for the boys to come away with two wins.