It can be hard yards for a coach and a team that is giving its all but is constantly on the wrong side of the scoreboard.
That frustrating trend continued for Wyndhamvale on Saturday, slumping to a 10th straight loss and falling into outright last place on the Western Region Football League division 1 ladder after a 51-point loss to Sunshine Kangaroos.
“We were in the game for long periods of it, but lacked the execution and a touch of class towards the end of the match,” Falcons player-coach Daniel Bunworth said.
“Obviously it’s not great, you don’t enjoy losing, but the boys dug in today.”
Wyndhamvale is refusing to wave the white flag. The Falcons will continue to blood exciting youngsters – they had eight players 20 years or under playing against Sunshine.
“The message from the start of the game was to take the game on, reel and go and see if we can put them under pressure,” Bunworth said. “At half-time, the boys were up and about, and at the start of the third quarter, the boys were going into a three-goal breeze, but we still wanted to keep on taking the game on.
“We kicked the first goal of the third quarter to get within six points, but it was probably a little bit of class from Sunshine after that, they sort of steadied a little bit.”
The message does not change this week, even if they are playing against four-peat premiers Deer Park.
The ladder leading Lions would be the shortest-priced favourite for a game all season long if there was a betting market framed, but Wyndhamvale will still aim to play a brave brand of football.
Onballer Tyler Tessari is one player the defending premiers will need to keep in check. Tessari has been one of the Falcons most consistent players in a variety of roles.
“He goes through our midfield, he goes through our forward line – the great thing about Tyler, you know what you’re going to get, and that’s 100 per cent each time,” Bunworth said.
“He’s one of the easier players to coach.”
In division 2, Manor Lakes charged to a 44-point win over Albanvale at Howqua Reserve, with Nathan Montague starring in a best-on-ground performance with four goals.
In division 3, Sanctuary Lakes won its second game of the season and likely avoided the wooden spoon in the process, beating cellar dweller Laverton Magpies by 12 points on a day when Michael Szulc booted three goals.
Wyndham Suns overcame North Sunshine by 21 points after a strong showing from Dean Cachia, while Tarneit could only manage two goals in a 57-point drubbing from Parkside.
