By Lance Jenkinson
Werribee is locked in for a Victorian Football League finals spot after running out 25-point winners over Box Hill Hawks at Avalon Airport Oval on Saturday.
The Mark Williams-coached side will feature in the finals as a stand-alone club for the first time in more than 20 years.
Young Werribee forward Jake Riccardi is excited by the prospect of playing in his first VFL finals series and believes the win over the Hawks will provide some belief and momentum for his side.
“Them winning the flag last year and obviously being a good team for the last few years with a good system, to get a win like that at this time of year is very important for us,” he said.
“The win came at a good time before finals and hopefully a bit of form is building now and we can finish off the year really strong.”
Werribee will have the bye this weekend before facing arch-rivals Williamstown in the last round before finals.
While Werribee cannot break into the top four, it will be important for it to finish off the home-and-away rounds strongly with a home final on the line.
“We’ve got the week off now, which will be good to freshen up a bit,” Riccardi said.
“Then we’ve got Williamstown, which will be a tough game and then into finals after that.”
Riccardi was full of praise for Werribee’s defensive unit after the victory over Box Hill.
The Hawks have averaged 78 points per game this season, but were restricted by Werribee’s defence to just 51.
“It’s a real credit to the back six,” Riccardi said. “They’ve been unbelievable all year.
“You’ve got Dan Nielson, Ryan Hebron, Nick Coughlan and Max Spencer, they’re really good in the air, then you’ve got Dane McFarlane, Louie Pinnuck, Sods [captain Michael Sodomaco] and another couple of guys that just hold it down really well.”
Hudson Garoni made his Werribee debut, finishing with eight disposals, two marks and a goal. At one stage, Garoni, who played as a forward, had Hawks champion Jarryd Roughead assigned to him.
“Roughead was one of their key backs,” Riccardi said. “It would’ve been a good experience for him to play on Roughy.
“No one really got tips from Roughy, but he was willing to have a little chat here and there and make a few comments.
“He plays the game the right way.”
Michael Barlow was the undisputed best-on-ground for Werribee, racking up 42 disposals, 14 clearances, seven tackles and six inside 50s. Kye Declase did it all for Werribee too, playing in all three sections of the ground and having an impact.
Declase, Matt Munro and Jack Henderson booted two goals apiece.
