Kalkee 141 d Rupanyup 29
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
RUPANYUP coach Mick Finnigan believes Kalkee is still a premiership contender after the Kees dispatched the Panthers on Saturday.
Kalkee warmed up for the finals with a 112-point victory despite putting the cue in the rack in the second half.
Minus some regular senior stars such as Steve Schultz and Tim Wade, the Kees had no trouble in the first half.
They led by three goals at the first change before a big second-quarter blitz saw them score 10.8 to nothing.
From there the result was a foregone conclusion, as the players started to turn their eyes to Saturday’s qualifying final against Swifts.
Finnigan said the Kees, who won five consecutive premierships before being dethroned by Laharum last year, were far from a spent force.
“They proved why they are a premiership contender,” he said.
“We had a couple of guys missing but in saying that, so did they, and they proved they can be extremely dangerous on their day.”
Rupanyup battled hard and found plenty of the ball, but was let down by poor disposal at times.
Kee Ash Hastie’s hamstring injury was the only significant disappointment on the day.
Coach Trevor O’Brien said the team had not played its best football in the second half, but was happy to head into the finals with another good win under its belt.
Finnigan said the Panthers had a solid foundation to build on for next season, but needed to recruit some good young players to complement their veterans.