The Northern Blues succumbed to their second straight defeat, on this occasion a nine-point loss to local rivals Coburg at Preston City Oval.
The 9.15. (69) to 12.6. (78) result was the first victory for Coburg this year and their first as a standalone club since 2000, having terminated their affiliation with Richmond last year.
It brings the Blues’ tally back to three wins and two losses.
A tight opening term saw only three goals kicked, with the Lions taking a five-point lead at the first interval, mainly due to the brilliance of tall forward Lech Featherstone.
A finger injury to key defender Matthew Watson further compounded the woes for the Blues, who trailed by as much as 31 points midway through the second term.
However, clutch goals to Carlton youngsters Patrick Cripps and Nick Graham saw the deficit reduced to only 18 at the main change, and momentum was all Northern’s.
The opening of the second half saw the Blues pressing and dominating the ball, yet inaccuracy in front of goal cost Northern dearly.
Five straight behinds for the Blues were sandwiched by three Coburg goals, spread evenly amongst the team as Featherstone’s influence was quelled.
It set the platform for fellow forward Daniel Cooper to chime in with two goals, while Ozgur Uysal and Andew Sturgess also impressed for the Lions.
As the rain came down at Preston City Oval, it seemed as though Coburg’s five goal lead at three quarter time time would see the 150th instalment of this rivalry comfortably go the way of the Lions.
Quick goals to Cripps (three) and Dennis Armfield firmly put the pressure on Coburg as a stoppage-ladened final term saw the Blues come roaring home with a head full of steam.
Once again, poor conversion ensured that any chance of another infamous Northern Blues comeback would be unsuccessful, with the Blues ultimately going down by nine points.
After half-time, the Blues kicked 6.12 in comparison to Coburg’s 6.6, and will be lamenting missed opportunities late on.
In his first VFL outing since the round one comeback against Williamstown, first round selection Cripps again proved to be a huge factor for the Blues finishing with 22 disposals and significant influence in the final term.
The supply for the midfield group came through the assertive dominance of Cameron Wood, whose 19 disposals came as a sideshow to a whopping 73 hit outs for the game.
His influence saw the likes of Graham (31 disposals, seven clearances), Jaryd Cachia (27 disposals) and impressive debutant Jesse Tardio get first use of the football.
However, from there, Andrew McInnes - back in the side this week after missing through injury against Werribee - stood up, while vice-captain Joel Wilkinson provided plenty of run and carry of a back flank.
While the Blues had more of the ball (351-294 disposals), it was the efficiency and fast ball movement from the Lions which proved to be too troublesome for Northern.
Speaking post-match, coach Luke Webster said that next week’s game against Casey would require a four-quarter effort if the Blues were to end the run of two consecutive losses.
“We’re still in front of the ledger in terms of wins and losses and we have to move on before the game against Casey next week,” Webster said.
“We have to really concentrate on giving four quarters of consistent footy and effort, which we haven’t produced so far this season.”
Webster gave credit to his side for their last quarter display in which they almost snatched the four points, with late comebacks becoming a trademark of the Blues this season.
“The guys could’ve rolled over but they kept going and we saw in the first three rounds the spirit amongst the group to keep going. But in the end it was missed opportunities which cost us, as otherwise it could have been a different result.”
The Blues host the Casey Scorpions at Visy Park next Saturday at 2pm.
NORTHERN BLUES 1.1 3.3 5.11 9.15. (69)
COBURG LIONS 2.0 6.3 11.5 12.6. (78)
GOALS: Cripps 3, Johnson, Graham, Armfield, Coulson, Wilkinson, Cattapan
BEST: Cripps, Wood, Graham, Wilkinson, McInnes, Cachia
