By Lance Jenkinson
Spotswood needs a significant lift to avoid a straight sets exit from the Western Region Football League division 1 finals.
The Woodsmen are on their last chance after fading late in a 30-point loss to Deer Park in the qualifying final at Avalon Airport Oval on Sunday.
Woodsmen coach Anthony Eames expects to see a reaction from his team when it meets Werribee Districts in a cut-throat semi-final at Avalon Airport Oval on Sunday.
“We’ll dissect it on Tuesday night and learn from this,” he said. “We’ll watch the tape and identify a few areas.
“If we don’t learn from it, we’re no good.
“We’ve got to bounce back, we’ve got another final next week and the heat will be on there too.”
It will be one of the hardest games to tip for the season.
The two sides finished the regular season with identical 13-5 records.
In their two meetings, Werribee Districts won both games, but those were by a kick or less.
PHOTO GALLERY: Deer Park vs Spotswood
If Spotswood can rediscover the effort it showed in the first three quarters of the loss to Deer Park on Saturday, it could bounce back.
Sustaining that intensity for the full four quarters will be the key.
“Our tackling and pressure on their ball carrier was pretty good,” Eames said.
“We just didn’t sustain it for four quarters, which has been a bit of a tale for our year to be honest.
“They just lifted their tempo and we couldn’t go with them.
“We were in it for three quarters and the class of Deer Park stood up in the last quarter and got us.”
Werribee Districts will go into the contest in red hot form after thrashing Hoppers Crossing by 68 points in the elimination final.
Deer Park will move on to face Altona in one of the matches of the season in the second semi-final at Avalon Airport Oval on Saturday.
The winner will be the first team to advance to the grand final.
