Norwood withstood an early challenge from North Adelaide to kick 12 of the next 14 goals and secure a 55-point win at Coopers Stadium on Friday night.
Both sides had it all to play for in Round 18, with Norwood gunning for the minor premiership, and North’s spot in the finals on the line. But it was the ladder leaders who reigned supreme in a 18.10-118 to 9.9-63 victory.
Norwood players ran through the annual FORTIS Army guard of honour pre-game, and the Redlegs went to work after quarter time, turning a level ball game at the first break into a 62-point three quarter time lead following a rampant second and third quarter.
The Redlegs kicked 12 goals to two in the middle two quarters to keep its minor premiership hopes in tact.
Norwood had +107 disposal,+39 marks, +11 contested marks, +35 hitouts, +5 clearances and +15 inside 50m entries, as the home side had the top seven leading disposal winners on the ground.
Harry Boyd had 25 disposals, 44 hitouts, 12 clearances and five marks in another monster game which equated to 137 ranking points, while Jackson Callow kicked four goals.
Mitch O’Neill was a welcome inclusion from an ankle injury that’s sidelined him since Round 7, and returned with 24 disposals, two goals and four clearances. Baynen Lowe had 23 disposals, Pierce Seymour 21 and Jack Heard 20.
Vice Captain Heard provided the highlight of the night as the centre half back kicked his first goal in 72 SANFL games.
It was a hot start to a game that meant so much to both sides and much of the first quarter went goal for goal in a free-flowing, quick game of footy.
Callow took a strong contested mark in the goalsquare for the first goal of the evening 90 seconds into the match. Declan Hamilton missed one he should have kicked at the five minute mark, but Norwood was once again off to a strong start.
From a free kick in the back pocket, Norwood went end to end with an outstanding running passage of play, to finish with another mark to Callow in the goalsquare.
It was a fast-paced first quarter, and the Roosters found some free space. They kicked the next two goals through Ewan Mackinlay and Frank Szekely to level the scores at 2.1-13 apiece 18 minutes into the contest.
Like Hamilton, Dyson Hilder missed a straight forward set shot and the Redlegs made the Roosters pay. Again going end to end from the kick out, with Jacob Kennerley finding Sam Morris 40m out. Morris nailed Norwood’s third goal to reclaim the lead.
It was an entertaining first term which was going goal for goal, with North’s Mackinlay nailing his second and Norwood’s O’Neill snapping truly in his return game from injury.
Ken Farmer Medal leader Mitch Harvey kicked a goal after the quarter time siren to level the scores at the first break, 4.2-26 apiece.
O’Neill hadn’t missed a trick with eight disposals in the first quarter, while Billy Cootee and Seymour had seven disposals each.
The goal for goal nature continued into the second term as Tristan Binder took a strong contested mark and went back to nail the goal, taking Norwood five points in front.
After six consecutive going back to back, Norwood managed two in a row when Binder pounced on an errant North kick coming out of defence, finding Callow in the pocket who turned and hit Izaak Twelftree in the goalsquare.
The Redlegs quickly turned two goals into five straight goals in a powerful display, booting 5.0 within a 12-minute window.
Twlftree kicked two, Callow found his third, while Cootee just snuck his goal through the big sticks to help the Redlegs out to a 31-point lead.
The Roosters responded, stringing together several inside 50m entries, but it equated in three consecutive behinds. Their first goal of the term came after the siren once again, through Blayne O’Loughlin who capitalised on a Redlegs turnover in defensive 50m.
At half time Norwood led 9.4-58 to 5.6-36, a 22-point advantage following a five-goal-to-one quarter.
O’Neill had 12 disposals and a goal, Seymour 12 disposals and four marks, and Cootee 10 disposals and a goal.
Boyd was dominating the ruck once again with Norwood registering 31-7 hitouts, but North was leading clearances +4.
Norwood led inside 50m entries +5, marks +22 and disposal +42. North was +17 in tackles.
Callow kicked his fourth goal early in the third term, which was reward for effort following several weeks of being double and triple teamed in the forward 50m.
Twelftree’s third goal helped Norwood to a 35-point lead, and almost broke the back of North.
Norwood survived a couple of challenges down the other end, but eventually broke through again, carving through the middle of Norwood Oval to finish in Morris’ second major.
A 41-point deficit was a mountain too high to climb for the visiting Roosters.
The Redlegs ball movement was too slick, and this time it was along the Eastern Wing and into the hands of the waiting Henry Nelligan, who went back and put Norwood 47 points up at the 15-minute mark of the third term.
Even Norwood’s defenders were getting in on the action, as Vice Captain Jack Heard somehow kicked it over everyone’s head and dribbled an obliging Sherrin through the big sticks from 50m.
It was the defender’s first goal in 72 League matches… something every Norwood player was aware of as they mobbed the centre half back in celebration.
Heard’s goal was one of seven Norwood goals to North’s one in an outstanding showing in the third term as Lowe and Mitch Carroll kicked late majors to swell the margin to 61 points at the final break.
The Redlegs brought up triple figures in the third term, and led 16.8-104 to 6.7-43, kicking 12 of the last 14 goals of the game to blow North apart.
The Roosters kicked the first goal of the final term, but it was Norwood’s day as Matthew Ling took a hanger in the centre of the ground, and Binder nailed his second goal a minute later to surge the margin back past 10 goals.
O’Neill kicked his second to put a full stop on a great return game from the tough midfielder, and more importantly Norwood’s 14th win of the 2024 season.
The Redlegs travel to Woodville to take on the Eagles in next Saturday’s final match of the home and away season.
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