Roughead focused as grand final looms

HAWTHORN footballer Jarryd Roughead will treat his third grand final this weekend as though it was his first.

So close: Hawthorn’s Jarryd Roughead is tackled by Geelong’s Harry Taylor during Friday night’s preliminary final. Photo: Colleen Petch/Herald Sun.

“You have got to experience the week and soak it all up because you never know when you will get the chance again,” he said.
The former Leongatha footballer recovered well from a collision with Geelong’s Mitch Duncan early in Friday night’s preliminary final and is set to make an impact on the Hawks’ forward line on Saturday when they take on Fremantle.
The Hawks overcame the Cats in the final minutes of the game, booting the last three goals to end the match with a five point victory, despite Geelong leading by 20 points at three quarter time.
Hawthorn restricted the Cats to just seven points in the final term to claim the game 102 to 97.
“It was rewarding,” Roughead said of the victory.
“In the end, there was a grand final spot on the line and we had to dig deep. We are the best last quarter side in the league and we had to work hard to pull together.
“Last night was another finals footy game and fortunately we got the chocolates.”
Talking to The Star on Saturday morning, the Hawks forward said either Sydney or Fremantle would pose strong opposition, despite Hawthorn not losing a match to either side throughout the year.
Sydney upset Hawthorn by 10 points – 91 to 81 – to win the 2012 flag.
While Roughead said the preliminary final “was not one of my best games” – he was restricted to scoring one behind – he said Hawthorn was fortunate to have a strong forward line.
He recorded five kicks, six handballs, one mark and a single tackle for the match.
He said coach Alastair Clarkson was impressed with his players, saying they had “ticked all the boxes”.
“Grand finals are what you play footy for. Not many people are lucky to play in one grand final, let alone three,” Roughead said.
Hawthorn players watched Saturday night’s other preliminary between the Dockers and Swans, before supporting their reserves side Box Hill defeat Geelong in the Victorian Football League grand final on Sunday.
The boys are now focusing on preparations for Saturday. Players will take part in the traditional grand final parade through Melbourne this Friday.
“We have four or five fresh faces in the side and I hope they can enjoy the experience,” Roughead said.
After nine years as an AFL player, Roughead has learnt to handle the pressure of playing before a national audience.
His experience and performance throughout the year resulted in his first selection in the All Australian team this year.
“It (selection) is going to be something to look back on at the end of the year but you are not there for the individual, you are there to win the big one,” Roughead said.
He still has family and friends in Leongatha, and said he would never forget where he came from.

Short URL: /?p=8777

Posted by Jacob De Kunder on Sep 24 2013. Filed under Featured, Sport. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry