A clash like no other
IT was a clash like no other: junior stars, past stars, wigs, costumes, fights galore, two dodgy umpires and the tiniest premiership cup ever.
But the game between the Leongatha under 12s football team and a team of adults (and older kids) did have its merits. For one thing, it was put together as a fundraiser for stricken senior Parrots player Beau Vernon, who suffered spinal injuries during a recent football clash.
The club has been working hard to ensure Beau is well cared for and a contingent of clubmen were at the junior home games on Sunday, cooking a barbecue, collecting donations and selling Beau Vernon bumper stickers.
Junior football club president Darryl McGannon said the juniors versus adults match was a chance to have fun and raise some money too.
“All the proceeds will go toward Beau’s fund. We had a raffle going with a load of wood, there was the guys running the barbecue and part of the takings from the canteen will go toward it too,” he said.
Once the game began, it was clear that the youngsters had the leg speed to dominate. The bigger, slower adults were forced to use strongarm tactics.
Dermott Brereton (aka Butch McGannon), never a stranger to going the knuckle, was dishing it out. But he took a few knocks too.
The older crew certainly were up against it, with not only the fleet-footed juniors running rings around them but umpires Craig Hoober and Martyn Scrimshaw handing down a number of dubious decisions.
When the siren sounded, the scores were locked at 4.4.28 a piece. A penalty shoot-out failed to alter the result.
In the end the scoreboard hardly mattered. Everyone was a winner.
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