Winning is becoming a healthy habit for the Werribee Tigers in the Victorian Football League.
The Tigers made it five wins on the trot after an edge-of-your-seat five-point victory over Richmond at Holm Park Recreation Reserve on Saturday.
One man that will not allow Werribee to get ahead of itself is coach John Lamont.
Lamont refuses to wallpaper over the Tigers’ cracks, reminding his side that a kick either way in the past two matches and the win streak could have been all but a memory.
“It’s a fine line as a coach, you’re winning games, you probably don’t have too much to whinge about, so you don’t want to be greedy and ridiculous, but we just would’ve liked to have won them a bit more convincingly,” Lamont said.
“The last two weeks it got to the 28-minute mark and the opposition has kicked goals late and it got down to less than a goal and you’re scrambling.
“I’m not saying we were vastly superior to the opposition the last couple of weeks, but I just feel if we had taken our chances earlier, we should’ve been further in front.
“We’ve had five wins in a row and we’ve had to beat good teams to do it, but the last two shouldn’t have got down to those margins and that scramble right at the end, so we’ve got plenty to work on.”
Werribee could have spared its supporters the heart-stopping finale with better conversion earlier in the game.
The Tigers kicked 4.5 in the first term, with a couple of gettable shots missed on the run.
They also had two elementary set shots sprayed late in the game.
Sloppy ball use in general play was also a concern at times for Lamont.
One thing Lamont cannot question is the effort of his players.
Whether it is the North Melbourne-listed players returning from the AFL or the Werribee-listed players, Lamont is reassured that he is getting universal buy-in on that front.
The two best players against Richmond came from the different sub-sections.
Daniel Nielson, a tall defender awaiting his chance for North Melbourne, and Ryley Barrack, a Werribee-aligned player who has made an impressive start to the season, were dominant on the half-back line.
“The Richmond team had their fair share of inside 50s, so the ball was going in there a bit,” Lamont said.
“They stood tall our backline, they did a good job, without a doubt.”
Andrew Swallow put his hand up for a North Melbourne recall with a starring role in the midfield.
The veteran of more than 200 AFL games has endeared himself to his Werribee teammates with the professional way he goes about his football.
“Our blokes love playing with him,” Lamont said. “They are getting to respect him more and more and will make the most of it when he is with us.
“I enjoy him being in the team, but I’d be rapt for him when he gets up in the North Melbourne team.”
The reputation of Werribee midfielder Matt Hanson enhances by the week.
Hanson was assigned a tagger, which he managed to break with his smarts around the ball.
“He was having enough impact that the Richmond coach assigned a tagger to him for three quarters of the game,” Lamont said. “It didn’t stop him getting the ball and, in the end, they dropped the tag anyway.”
Dane McFarlane played an important role as a rebounding defender in the absence of injured Werribee captain Michael Sodomaco. Louis Pinnuck, in his last game as the Tigers designated 23rd man, Declan Mountford and Sam Durdin were also among the best, while Jed Anderson and Will Fordham snared two important goals each in a low-scoring game.
Werribee, sitting fourth with five wins from seven games, will get a week to freshen up as one of four sides with a bye this weekend.
