By Lance Jenkinson
Werribee is riding a wave of momentum heading into the 2019 Victorian Football League finals.
The Mark Williams-coached side made it five wins in succession in the final home-and-away round after conquering one of the toughest away venues in the league.
The boys in black and gold gatecrashed the Saturday night party of western suburbs rivals Williamstown for a gritty eight-point win in treacherous weather conditions under lights at Downer Oval.
Third-year Werribee defender Louis Pinnuck said the wild weather and tough opposition made it a memorable win for his team.
“Beating Williamstown at Williamstown is always tough,” he said.
“It was nearly some of the worst conditions that I’ve played in.
“It was almost as if a cyclone was blowing and the rain was coming in sideways.
“That’s what made it a bit more special, knowing we had to grind it out a bit more than some of the other games.”
Werribee has been one of the more impressive sides in the VFL in the second half of the year.
Bit by bit, Williams and the Werribee coaching staff have added layers to their game to the point where there is no noticeable weaknesses.
Pinnuck can see a great camaraderie has developed among the team.
A one-in, all-in approach has helped Werribee register some fantastic wins this season.
“Everyone has kind of come together,” he said.
“We’re all gelling well as a team towards the end of the year.
“That’s got a lot to do with that form.”
There is a buzz of excitement at Watton Street. It will be the first time a stand-alone Werribee side has featured in the VFL finals for 20 years.
“The vibe of the place is awesome and everyone can’t wait for the finals,” Pinnuck said.
Werribee will meet Box Hill Hawks in an elimination final at Adcon Stadium in Port Melbourne on Sunday at 2.10pm.
It was only two weeks ago that Werribee beat the Hawks by 25 points.
The Hawks will be tough opposition, like they always are, but they hold no fears for Werribee.
PHOTO GALLERY: Williamstown vs Werribee
“Obviously finals is a different game, but knowing we’ve done well the last couple of times against them, it will hold us in good stead hopefully,” Pinnuck said.
A feature of Werribee’s most recent win over Box Hill was its hard-nosed defence.
It kept a visiting Hawks team to just seven goals.
Pinnuck is proud of what the Werribee backline, of which he is a big part of, has been able to do this season.
It has kept opposition teams to under 10 goals in each of the past four games, including restricting third-placed Williamstown to just four goals on Saturday night.
“I feel like we’ve got one of the best back six in the competition,” Pinnuck said. “We’re all proud of each other and we’re going well. Hopefully we can keep that going into the finals.”
Tom Gribble, Michael Barlow and Dom Brew were outstanding for Werribee in the victory over Williamstown.
Matt Munro’s forward pressure was another feature.
It kept Werribee in fifth place, just a win and percentage away from the double chance places.
Pinnuck believes their strong recent form is what his team has threatened all season.
Meanwhile, Pinnuck, Bior Malual and Jake Riccardi have been invited to the Rookie Me state screening.
Pinnuck described the invitation to take part in testing in front of the recruiters as “really exciting”, but admits it will be the furthest thing from his mind in the coming weeks as he aims to play his part in a deep finals run with Werribee.
