Dean Limbach booted three last quarter majors to deflate the Panthers, who played the game largely on their terms up until the final break, before falling 15 points short.
Lachie Richardson continued Eltham’s injury woes when he went to hospital with a back injury he sustained early in proceedings. Panthers coach Brett Weatherald’s problems were then compounded when Andrew Hughes rolled his right ankle, and consequently was limited from then on.
Despite Eltham’s casualty curse, Weatherald preferred to praise the class of Montmorency, rather than dwell on his team’s misfortune.
“We used a lot of gas early, we really did,” he said. “Don’t get me wrong, the injuries were no excuse. Their class showed out in the end, they are a great side. They are experienced and a lot of their midfielders are smart footballers and they basically got their hands on the ball and controlled the play.”
Comparatively, Montmorency coach Fab Carelli, while relieved with the win, was scathing in assessment of his charges first three quarters.
“95% of [our ordinary first three quarters] I put down to complacency … We were complacent and I think the boys knew it but they showed some pretty good fighting spirit in the last quarter,” he said. “It just makes it hard as a coach when you know you have got ability out their but they just aren’t quite executing what they need to.”
When Andrew Hughes goaled in the opening minutes of the last quarter, Eltham held a commanding 26-point lead. From then on the game became a Magpie onslaught. Seemingly every clearance, every contested mark, every fickle bounce of the Sherrin went the way of the visitors.
Gavan Connelly fleetingly stemmed the tide when he goaled against the run of play, turning stylishly onto his trademark left foot to keep the Panthers’ head marginally above water.
For much of the contest Eltham had toiled diligently, remaining true to Brett Weatherald’s buzzword of ‘intent,’ yet had never completely shut the door on Montmorency. At some stage, the inevitable Magpie surge was going to test the undermanned and fatigued Panthers.
The home team would be required to present a steadfast response, an act of unnerving courage would do. Even a majestic goal or team-lifting tackle would suffice, yet none of the above ensued and as a result Montmorency was left to do as it pleased in the latter stages of the final term. The contest petered out tamely the moment the visitors hit the lead.
Eltham was shattered, dejected and utterly spent. It became defenceless, drawing comparisons with its horrid performance in Round 10. Yet it is unfair to suggest its first three quarters were anything but spirited, a flashback to Round 2 when a full-strength team prevailed at Montmorency under lights in an ANZAC round thriller.
Earlier, Paul Currie led from the front with four goals. He was well served by midfielder Chris Varsamakis who relished the tap-work of Steven Foster.
Foster hasn’t played footy in two years, and looks to have plugged a gaping hole in the Panthers ruck division.
Meanwhile, Montmorency’s young speedster James Brooker was electric despite being heavily tagged by Oscar Philp-Taylor. On numerous occasions Brooker was able to escape congestion with his raw pace and elusive trickery.
Equally as impressive was ex-Diamond Creek star Jesse Donaldson and the big bodied Patrick Fitzgerald who booted two goals himself.
While labelling their first three quarters “pretty stagnant,” Carelli pointed to a scuffle early in the final term as the turning point in the match.
“A few of the boys really flew the flag especially Micka Steven,” he said. “This got us going with a bit more passion in the contest which is what we lacked for three and a half quarters before that.”
Weatherald agreed that the final quarter fracas, which saw Matthew Keys and Michael Steven yellow carded, was a pivotal moment in the game.
“Did we go into our shells? It certainly looked like we did … it’s very disappointing. Scuffles happen in footy, you’ve just got to get back and focus on the next ball.
“We got run over in the end which I am absolutely gutted about,” Weatherald said. “But we have set the bar now with our effort and intent. If we produce that sort of effort each week, I’m sure we will win more games than we lose.”
The Panthers remain outright fifth on the ladder, while Montmorency is hot on the heels of league-leader Heidelberg, who sits above the Magpies only on percentage.
Next week the Magpies travel to Preston City Oval to take on West Preston Lakeside, a team it beat by just two points in a thrilling goal-fest in Round 3.
Meanwhile, Eltham will be in search of its first victory in over a month when it meets Lower Plenty. An encounter which shapes as a must-win for the Bears survival aspirations and the Panthers finals hopes.
Final score: Eltham 15.12 (102) def by Montmorency 18.9 (117)
Tom Morris is a second-year Bachelor of Journalism (sport) student at La Trobe. You can follow him on Twitter @tommorris32
