Tara Murray
Werribee’s winning streak is now at a club record 14 in the Victorian Football League after a solid win against Collingwood on Sunday.
A strong start set up win number 14 in a row for Werribee against the Magpies and also propelled the team to the top of the ladder.
For Werribee coach Michael Barlow it’s one of those small milestones during the season that is pleasing to achieve.
“It’s pretty cool [to be on top] and get the club record wins on the trot as well,” he said. “Not in our wildest dreams did we aim for that.
“We tick them off one at a time. It’s about assessing that week and then the next week, but you take stock with the playing group and the wider club and it’s something to celebrate in the short term.
“Then it’s quickly getting back into it.”
Barlow said for the group it continued to be focused on improvement and not necessarily the result at the end of the day.
He said the way the team prepares and are able to execute the game plan has led to the rewards at the end of the game.
On Saturday, Werribee came out firing and led 33-0 at the first break.
Barlow said they had made a big focus on how they start in games.
“The last couple of weeks against Frankston and North Melbourne we have started slowly,” he said.
“We didn’t labour the point to start well, but we were able to put in a good quarter. Sometimes it goes either way to make the most of the opportunities.
“We felt like the first quarter was as well as we’ve played.”
After quarter time, the match was a lot closer with Werribee kicking nine goals to eight for the remaining three quarters.
Barlow said when you’ve facing a side with 16 AFL-listed players and has a captain that has played 200-plus AFL games, you are always going to get a response.
“They are a really good team,” he said. “They are a top four-six calibre team the way they have been playing.
“We knew that the response was going to come. It was hard at half time as we were a little disappointed due to recency bias with what just happened even though we had a good lead.
“A lot executed by our guys was good.
“It was a bit of an arm wrestle for most of the game, but we did all the work early.
Sam Paea and Hudson Garoni kicked three goals each for Werribee in the win.
Tom Gribble led the way in possessions with 30, while Jack Henderson had 29 and Michael Sodomaco and Bior Malual had 26 possessions each.
Barlow said one of the highlights for him was that some of their bigger names had quieter games and others were able to step up and pick up the slack.
“Michael Sodomaco was great off half back and the backline was our strongest line for the day.
“Bior Malual has had a couple of good weeks at half back and had 26 possessions and snuck forward and kicked a goal.
“Hudson Garoni pretty much had three goals in a quarter and then Sam Paea picked up the slack later on.”
With a finals spot already locked up, Werribee is keen on making sure that they finish in the top two and lock in a double chance.
Werribee sits two games clear of third placed Hawthorn, but has played an extra game than the rest of the teams in the top seven.
Barlow said finals were their first aim and now they want to ensure they give themselves the best chance come finals.
“Goal one was to play finals and we’re in a position to envisage top two and the opportunity gives you the double chance and it’s nice to have the prospect of playing home finals, in front of our local community, members and supporters.”
Werribee has a bye this weekend ahead of the final match of the season.
Barlow said that it comes at a good time for the group.
“We’ll do a bit of work on what the next period looks like,” he said. “This week we’ll take stock and prepare for what lies ahead in the next month.
“We’ll freshen them up and have a nice weekend away from footy before it comes quite intense.”
