Round 8 2009
From Snoutslouts
GLENELG turned up the heat on its SANFL rivals with a commanding 61-point triumph over an insipid Norwood at The Parade last night.
The Tigers smashed the disappointing Redlegs in every facet of the game to maintain pressure on competition pacesetter Central District.
While Glenelg made an emphatic statement with its victory, the Redlegs showed little fight and system and must be questioned as a serious premiership contender.
A Tigers rampage was far from the minds of all those at The Parade when Norwood's Sam Rowe nailed a goal just 90 seconds into the contest.
Given the Redlegs kicked only one goal in the corresponding game last year, it was just the start the home side needed.
But that was the end of the match as far as the Redlegs' hopes were concerned.
Mark Ruwoldt provided some individual brilliance to kickstart the Glenelg onslaught four minutes into the match.
After Adam Fisher nailed a goal a few minutes later, the tone for the encounter was established when Chris Kane ran unchallenged into the attacking 50m to add a third midway through the term.
But before the ball was sent back to the middle of the ground for a restart, Glenelg forward Todd Grima was awarded a free kick in the goalsquare after an undisciplined act from Redlegs defender Kieren McGuinness.
The Tigers attacked the body and ball with a fierce hunger for hard work and they refused to relent in their pursuit of the two premiership points.
They swarmed all over the Redlegs, constantly retrieving the ball from the packs with numbers prepared to get to the contest and push forward.
The Redlegs were brushed aside far too easily with too few prepared to make a stand. And when they did get their hands on possession, they were unable to produce clean delivery against a disciplined opponent applying constant pressure with strong tackling.
After securing a 27-point advantage at quarter-time, the Tigers kept the blowtorch on the Redlegs to extend the lead to almost 10 goals at half-time.
Glenelg, aided by some confusing umpiring, handled the wet conditions far better than the lacklustre Redlegs and were smarter with their ball use.
In a repeat of the first half, Norwood kicked the first goal of the second half when Jamie Vlatko kicked truly after a free kick just a minute into the third term.
But again the Tigers responded and restored their role as the superior outfit to build on their lead with arguably their best performance of the season.
When the Tigers went forward they had dangerous targets in Grima, Ruory Kirkby and James Sellar. In contrast, the Redlegs had no lethal weapons in attack although the likes of Tigers captain Ben Mules ensured a tough night for the Norwood forwards.
