20 rowdy Australian Masters players descended on Oxford in the early afternoon. They had a clear advantage on us in height and size, so Seb 'Flounder' Wylie and Geoff 'Condor' Pascoe did their best to tire out the tourists with a walking tour of Oxford, during which they upset the Magdalen elite with the presence of a dog, and former Australian PM Julia Gillard generously gave up a minute of her 'tight schedule' for a photo with the team. Arriving at Merton Ground with their entourage of physios and trainers, and fancy kit/equipment, the tourists looked a professional group.
But that didn't hold us back - within 10 seconds of the first bounce, season 2016/17 was off to a flyer, with new recruit Phill Hamer sharking the tap, looking up to realise the goals were within reach of the centre square, and slamming home a goal. The Masters replied in similar fashion immediately after, but goals became harder to come by from then on and a quality tussle began. In his first ever game of Aussie Rules, Josh McGeechan was getting plenty of the ball and passing it off well. In the backline, Alex Coccia wasn't letting his man get any easy footy. Nevertheless the tourists managed a couple more goals, before Seb, who had been crashing packs all over the place, took a strong mark deep in the forward pocket and saluted to keep Oxford in touch.
The second quarter was even tighter than the first. In the back half, Louis was taking strong grabs and Owen Webb was mopping up everything else and delivering with precision to the midfield. Ben Hunn was getting plenty of touches on the wings, and Jack Valmadre was getting on top in the ruck against a former AFL player twice his weight. Geoff slotted a top goal to give Oxford the lead (and later made sure the goal got a mention here), and it was looking like the speed and endurance of the Oxford boys (despite having noone on the bench) might trump the skill, strength and footy smarts of the tourists. At half time, Oxford 3.3.21 led Australia 3.1.19.
The Masters soon got on top on the scoreboard with a couple of goals. Phill and others continued going hard in the clinches (trying not to injure the more senior of the opposition), but one or two Masters players were well versed in ducking their heads and rolling their shoulders to draw free kicks for high tackles. They were also pretty adept at convincing the umpire to pay a free kick rather than ball it up, after he'd blown the whistle. Elliot Neame put on a few bursts through the middle which no Masters players had any chance of keeping up with. Genie found himself in unusual territory up forward, but snagged a textbook front and centre goal.
Having originally intended to play International Rules with a round ball in the final quarter, Masters coach (and former AFL player) Brent Staker decided his troops needed more work on Australian Rules, and so we carried on. Mitch Robertson, back from a year-long sabbatical (not WADA enforced), was wearing his man like a glove, and the returning Wande, who had nominated himself to move into the forward line, paid dividends on the move with a soccered goal. But the Masters stuck at it, and finished with a couple of goals to seal the victory.
Oxford 5.11.41 def. by Australia 7.10.52
But that didn't hold us back - within 10 seconds of the first bounce, season 2016/17 was off to a flyer, with new recruit Phill Hamer sharking the tap, looking up to realise the goals were within reach of the centre square, and slamming home a goal. The Masters replied in similar fashion immediately after, but goals became harder to come by from then on and a quality tussle began. In his first ever game of Aussie Rules, Josh McGeechan was getting plenty of the ball and passing it off well. In the backline, Alex Coccia wasn't letting his man get any easy footy. Nevertheless the tourists managed a couple more goals, before Seb, who had been crashing packs all over the place, took a strong mark deep in the forward pocket and saluted to keep Oxford in touch.
The second quarter was even tighter than the first. In the back half, Louis was taking strong grabs and Owen Webb was mopping up everything else and delivering with precision to the midfield. Ben Hunn was getting plenty of touches on the wings, and Jack Valmadre was getting on top in the ruck against a former AFL player twice his weight. Geoff slotted a top goal to give Oxford the lead (and later made sure the goal got a mention here), and it was looking like the speed and endurance of the Oxford boys (despite having noone on the bench) might trump the skill, strength and footy smarts of the tourists. At half time, Oxford 3.3.21 led Australia 3.1.19.
The Masters soon got on top on the scoreboard with a couple of goals. Phill and others continued going hard in the clinches (trying not to injure the more senior of the opposition), but one or two Masters players were well versed in ducking their heads and rolling their shoulders to draw free kicks for high tackles. They were also pretty adept at convincing the umpire to pay a free kick rather than ball it up, after he'd blown the whistle. Elliot Neame put on a few bursts through the middle which no Masters players had any chance of keeping up with. Genie found himself in unusual territory up forward, but snagged a textbook front and centre goal.
Having originally intended to play International Rules with a round ball in the final quarter, Masters coach (and former AFL player) Brent Staker decided his troops needed more work on Australian Rules, and so we carried on. Mitch Robertson, back from a year-long sabbatical (not WADA enforced), was wearing his man like a glove, and the returning Wande, who had nominated himself to move into the forward line, paid dividends on the move with a soccered goal. But the Masters stuck at it, and finished with a couple of goals to seal the victory.
Oxford 5.11.41 def. by Australia 7.10.52