Opening the account

By Garry Gorilla

Occasionally a Fitzroy game takes us to the deep south. And so it was with Round 5 of the season, when the Roys men travelled for an away game against Hampton Rovers at the quaintly titled Boss James Reserve (sounds like something out of the Dukes of Hazzard, but named after the club’s founder apparently).

That meant a couple of things: some bumper-to-bumper grimacing on Punt Road, and plenty of time to chat to Gorilla Junior during the commute.

His mind had begun to drift to his imminent grand tour of Europe, so while we chatted about likely destinations I took the opportunity to whack on an Australian music playlist on the car stereo: Ed Kuepper, The Go-Betweens, Kim Salmon – the kind of stuff he probably won’t get to hear over the next few months.

Talk turned to the upcoming match and he reckoned the Roys were locked in for a solid performance against the Rovers, a chance to open the account in 2025. There were a few wistful lines about how he would miss being part of the effort to get the Roys’ season back on track. But, hey, nothing a few pints in a Galway pub won’t help ease.

We arrived at the ground, and the Aus playlist was quickly replaced by the sounds of thumping tradies’ tunes drifting across from the massive construction site over the road.

Otherwise, conditions were perfect for football: blue sky, light wind and a vast well-grassed oval.

Having purchased the world’s hottest meat pie from the canteen, I carefully picked away at it whilst I settled in on a wing to watch Bernies’ Twos.

They were relentlessly first to the ball and used it well, and when they piled on three goals in as many minutes early in the third quarter they split the game wide open. From what I’ve seen, the undefeated Twos are a well-rounded outfit, and yet they haven’t really played to their potential over four quarters so far this season. They also have some players ready to step up to the next level.

After warming up amidst the shrubbery and beds of wood chips, the senior players ran out with yet another raft of forced changes at selection: Harvey, Lowrie, Minahan and Roberts were the handy ins to replace the four injured outs. I put the average age of the team at about 23, with only a handful of players aged the other side of 25.

From the opening bounce the Roys looked on, with a beautiful tap from Roberts to Ramshaw, who burst from the centre to find Hodder on the lead. He pushed his shot wide, but the first goal came soon after when Lowrie – in his first game of the season – charged through the middle and drove it deep to Lester, who marked 20 metres out directly in front.

The margin was tight at quarter time, but thereafter it was all Fitzroy.

Kudos to the midfield, who have drawn some Gorilla criticism this season, for leading the charge. They were hard at the pill and won it in congestion, getting it out into space through clean hands and slick, systematic movement. Shepherd, Nelson, Ramshaw and Tauber were among the standouts across 120 minutes.

Even better, the delivery into the front half was the best it has been this season, kicking into space for the forwards, where Hodder (seven goals) and Harvey (two) were the main beneficiaries.

The defensive unit was at its stingy best, conceding just one goal for the entire game and setting up numerous chains of rebound possession. But they were also aided by excellent team defence. The forwards worked hard to keep it in their area, then combined with a high work rate from the midfielders to ensure the Rovers were always under pressure as they moved it into their forward half.

With about 10 minutes left in the match, another little sub plot developed when skipper Hart took himself to the backline, allowing Gorilla Junior to go deep forward in search of his maiden goal from about 65 Fitzroy senior games. Three marks in as many minutes followed – but so did three wayward shots, including on that clipped the inside of the post.

Teammates and coaches threw their hands in the air in disappointment, and then had a bit of fun with it in the rooms after the match. It was all part of a day where smiles, spirit and camaraderie came to the fore in a way that will hopefully translate into greater confidence and self-belief, and ideally some more victories in the coming weeks.

A real challenge awaits this Saturday with another away game against cashed-up Old Ivanhoe at the Pine Lodge, Chelsworth Park on Saturday.