Montmorency senior coach Ben Haynes has described the Magpies’ day as a “train wreck” after suffering a 73-point loss at the hands of West Preston-Lakeside.
The Magpies were outworked and outplayed by the Roosters for majority of the game, which was similarly deemed as “embarrassing” for the club.
The loss could potentially jeopardise Montmorency’s hopes of securing a position in the finals, with the Magpies now sitting two games outside the top-five.
Hoping to carry their momentum forward following a stirring win against Eltham last week, the Magpies were affixed on a pressure-laden start.
But the tide quickly turned in the Roosters’ favour, booting the first two majors of the game.
Callum Daley helped to regain Montmorency’s momentum, accumulating three inside 50s in the space of a few minutes – one of which eventually resulted in a Patrick Fitzgerald major.
Daley’s zippy footwork and dare through the centre of the ground proved to be one of the few Montmorency highlights of the term.
Overall, the Magpies lacked cohesion around the ground, which enabled West Preston-Lakeside’s Ahmed Saad to dominate.
The former St Kilda forward slotted two majors in the first quarter, and directly assisted another two Rooster goals, propelling them to a 25-point lead.
Saad ended his day with eight majors, and was a key factor in the Magpies’ defeat.
The margin at the term’s end – reduced by a late Ben Walton goal – was a “blessing” for the Magpies, Ben Haynes said at the quarter-time address.
Montmorency’s inability to apply pressure and outwork their opponents throughout the quarter, Haynes said, could have resulted in a much larger deficit at the first change.
Urging his players to back themselves going into the second quarter, evident signs of change were present within the Magpie armada.
Callum Daley and Matt Hunt combined to carry the ball along the wing on multiple occasions, pushing the ball into their forward half.
Joel McLellan and Blake Dillon also emerged as victors in the ruck contests, giving the Montmorency midfielders first use of the ball.
Yet the resurgence was dampened from a defensive turnover and subsequent West Preston-Lakeside goal.
This was the first of a six-goal term for the Roosters, whose swift coast-to-coast ball movement overcame the flat-footed Magpies.
The onslaught showed no sign of slowing down, with Ahmed Saad resurfacing to pile on two of the Roosters’ majors and assist in another two.
A desperate Alex Chiocci tackle in the latter stages of the quarter turned out to be one of the few pressure acts of the half.
The lacklustre display from the Magpies saw the Roosters race to a 57-point lead at half time.
Entering the third quarter determined to remedy the previous half, Brett Zorzi set the agenda with a crunching tackle.
Although Saad kicked the first of the quarter, Montmorency’s Stephen McCallum retaliated, with two inside 50s which darted into the safe hands of Patrick Fitzgerald.
The reliability of Fitzgerald remained unquestioned, with a four-goal term keeping the Magpies’ spirits alive
For the first ten minutes of the quarter, the Magpies held firm and regained composure – the contrast between this and the first half stood marked.
But despite this, the dynamic Roosters were unable to be quelled in the second half of the term, affirming their dominance by tearing through Montmorency’s unprotected centre.
The five-goal onslaught from West Preston-Lakeside – aided by the run of Josh Novelli, Andrew Walker and Michael Ercolano – saw the margin extend to 56 points.
Although driven to make amends in the final quarter, the Magpies only managed to score 0.2 opposed to the Roosters’ 3.1.
A defensive tackle on Ahmed Saad from Bill Jenkin was one of the few Monty highlights for the term.
Unclean skill errors, a lack of pressure and difficulty hitting targets up forward were prominent throughout the game, and contributed greatly to the loss.
Another home game next week against the in-form Whittlesea will test the Magpies’ resolve – and whether their appetite for finals football is still alive.
FINAL SCORE: Montmorency 7.8 (50) defeated by West Preston-Lakeside 19.9 (123)
BEST: Fitzgerald, Hunt, Walton, McLellan, Daley, Jenkin
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