By Gary Stocks
Significant milestones have this season provided the impetus for North Beach victories and senior coach Bill Duckworth will be hoping for something similar when his team attempts to secure consecutive wins for the first time in 2011.
Popular forward Ben Wilson will this week play his 100th game for the club an important show-down with Fremantle CBC at Morris Buzacott Oval.
Wilson has been one of the consistent performers in a topsy-turvy start to the 2011 campaign which has seen uncharacteristic fluctuations in the performance of the A-Grade side. For the second week in succession the A-Grade teams will head south, after the challenge of playing North Fremantle at Gil Fraser last week.
The Beach came home with four valuable points and will be hoping for a similar result on this trip down the highway.
Wilson did not play last week because of injury, but has earned an immediate recall, given his fine start to the year.
In conjunction with James Sitters and Mitch Holbrook, it is hoped Wilson can provide the scoreboard pressure needed to answer this challenge. His inclusion was one of two changes with another lively forward, Josh McGinnity also resuming from injury.
Young wingman Josh Stott and midfielder John Turner are the exclusions.
The A-Reserves, coming off their first defeat of the season after taking a depleted line-up to North Fremantle, will be keen to rebound and have some imposing inclusions – including the Nunan brothers – as they attempt to hit the winners circle once again.
Michael Pratt has his team playing an impressive brand of football and even when the depth was tested against North Fremantle, who were also undefeated going into last week’s clash, put up a brave fight before going down by two goals.
The Phil Scott Colts will be looking to string together four quarters of football as they aim to get their season on track.
At times this season they have produced some sizzling football but have not been able to sustain that effort for long enough. Coaches Dave Barwick and Gary Stocks are confident the under-19s can turn that around and with a sustained effort, start to hit the scoreboard.
Inaccuracy has been a major issue (they kicked 7.14 last week), but the return of Mark Foreman and Jacob Carmody should assist in that area. Unfortunately, mobile key forward Adam Miotti will be missing after suffering a fractured pelvis.
The Brett Jones Colts have a bye this week, while the D1 and D-Reserves will play Trinity Aquinas at home and the E2 Grade travel to High Wycombe full of hope after a strong performance last week.
