By Gary Stocks

In sport , regardless of the level, the highs need to be celebrated because they are usually out-weighed by the lows.

On Saturday at Charles Riley Reserve, North Beach sunk to one of the low ebbs of the season – a 12-goal loss to West Coast when so, so much more was expected.

For whatever reason the O’Rourke Realty A-Grade team simply did not measure up to the expected standards – set by the players themselves. Energy levels were low, cohesion and unity nowhere near the levels they expect.

The result was that West Coast, from the outset, controlled the game and were never threatened.

The Beach was at their worst, or West Coast was at their best, depending on which way you look at it, during a dominant second quarter when the visitors rattled on eight goals without a blemish. That was a reflection of both the skills of West Coast and the lack of pressure from North Beach.

With the exception of Nick Reid, debutant Jacob Cooper, youngster Joel Brown and defender Matt Irvine, the output from the North Beach players plunged to unacceptable levels. A game which players and coaches believed could be won was lost by 72 points.

That defeat was in utter contrast to the two games that preceded it, with the Credent Financial Services A-Reserves playing all over the opposition, as had the Coast to Coast Imports Phil Scott Colts in the morning.

The A-Reserves were never tested and waltzed to a 142-point victory. On a day when everything was achieved without challenge it was difficult to assess form, but Liam Ellis was outstanding up forward and kicked eight goals.

Like-wise Ryan Ekert, who played in the colts grand final last year with Ellis, kicked four and with veteran Ben Wilson, they controlled play inside the attacking 50 metre arc.

Arran Goodard-Nash and Dion Cownie were among the midfielders who ensured a steady of flow of opportunities which was converted into a tsunami of goals – 23 of them in fact.

The Phil Scott Colts were similarly rampant in winning by 126 points. Nathan Adler was a focal point in attack and he finished with seven goals while Ben Evans, Jayden Higgins and Ned Halley were also exceptional.

To be fair, it was another one of those games where the chasm between the two teams was so pronounced that all North Beach players could figure in the “best” list.

The Cabling Network Solutions D1-Grade faced one of the biggest challenges of the day, against the undefeated Trinity-Aquinas and while they lost the game, they took some confidence away from a strong second half.

Trailing by five goals at the main break, the Beach rallied, kicked six goals to two thereafter and were a little unlucky to fall short by less than a kick.

James Belcher, Dean Wilson and Brennen Irvine were outstanding for the Beach and they will look forward to their next opportunity against the ladder leader with some confidence.

The Hybrid Linings D1-Reserves were also outstanding in the second half, recovering from what loomed as a major deficit at half-time to completely dominate the last two quarters.

They held Trinity-Aquinas to just three points after the break to win by 26 points – 10.12 (72) to 7.4 (46). Alex Csar, Michael Bramley and Shane Piggott were major factors in the form reversal.

The Red Hill Brett Jones Colts unfortunately won their match on a forfeit while the Express Bins E1-Grade were outclassed by Yanchep in a disappointing performance.

After a competitive first quarter, the Beach was blown away and lost by 102 points.

Results
O’Rourke Realty A-Grade
West Coast         4.3          12.3        15.8        17.9        111
North Beach       1.0          2.0         2.2          6.3          39
Goals – North Beach: Italiano 2; Reid, Sajich, Cameron, Bottechia.
Best – North Beach: Reid, Cooper, Brown, M Irvine, Webster, Cranley.

Credent Financial Services A-Reserves
North Beach       7.5          15.4        20.8        23.11     149
West Coast         0.1            0.1          0.1            1.1           7
Goals – North Beach: Ellis 8; Ekert 4; B Wilson, Goddard-Nash, Cownie 2; Billi, Fishlock, Host, O’Gorman, Quinlan.
Best – North Beach: Ellis, B Wilson, Goddard-Nash, Ekert, Cownie.

Coast to Coast Imports Phil Scott Colts North Beach       4.3          9.5          13.8        20.12     132 West Coast         1.0          1.0          1.0         1.0           6 Goals – North Beach: Adler 7; Campbell, Higgins, Gerrand 2; Dalton, Doyle, Halley, Holden, Marsh, Pardini, Tickner. Best – North Beach: Campbell, Adler, Evans, Higgins, Halley, Harbers.

Cabling Network Solutions D1-Grade
Trin Aquinas       2.1          9.4          10.5        11.6        72
North Beach       2.2          4.4            8.5        10.7        67
Goals – North Beach: S Duckworth 4; Christie, B Irvine, Foley.
Best – North Beach: D Wilson, Belcher, B Irvine, Heap, S Duckworth,

Hybrid Linings D1-Reserves
North Beach       2.2          3.7          6.11        10.12     72
Trin Aquinas       3.1          7.1            7.2         7.4        46
Goals – North Beach: Csar 3; Bramley 2; Boys, T Cavanagh, Clapham, Orr-Young.
Best – North Beach: Bramley, Piggott, Csar, Clapham.

Red Hill Brett Jones Colts
North Beach 15.0 (90) def Trinity Aquinas 0.1 (1) on forfeit

Express Bins E1-Grade
Yanchep               4.2          9.3          15.6        21.9        133
North Beach        2.0          3.0           4.1           5.1        31
Goals – North Beach: Holdman 2; Russell, Collins, Vry.
Best – North Beach: Collins, Ferreri, Kennedy, Russell.