A wet and blustery Round 15  saw another mixed bag of results with a draw, two wins and three losses. The highlight of the round was the tenacious win by the Fours to celebrate Brynne Farrell's 300th Game!  The B Grade League and Reserves were away at Mt Lawley, under challenging conditions and a sodden and muddy ground. Regardless, the League turned on their best intensive pressure game for perhaps the whole season, resulting in a reasonable lead to take into the final quarter.  However the same intensity never reappeared.  Despite trying hard, Mt Lawley had the wind behind their sails,  their 'bigger players' were becoming more dominant and Tha vocal large supporter group which urged them on as they gradually eroded North's lead.  The game was up for grabs in the final minutes, but neither side could break away, ending the game with shared points:  10-7 (77) to Mt Lawley 10-7 (77).  While disappointed with the result, the two points maintain North's clear second position on the ladder. The Reserves were challenged for the second week in a row, in atrocious conditions.  However the lads rallied in a low scoring arm wrestle, to steady the ship and run out winners to maintain their unbeaten streak:  4-3 (27) to Mt Lawley 3-4 (22).

While the wet, blustery weather for the D1 League (thirds) and Reserves (Fourths) at home impacted on the games against North Beach, the oval remained in good condition.  The day also saw the stretcher come out four times on the day.The Thirds fixture posed opportunities for both teams to secure second spot in the ladder.  While North had won this fixture in the first half of the season. Two early stretcher incidents  impacted on the thirds unsettling the team. It was North Beach had turned up to play.  They were more intense, well organised and challenged throughout, giving no quarter, to ultimately run out clear winners:  North 4-9 (33) to North Beach 13.3 (81). In contrast the Fourths game was a 'fairy tale story' which began Thursday when only 13 players were available for Brynne Farrell's 300th Game.  Utilising the power of social media, Suey successfully enlisted the support of several past players to not only fill a team on the ground, but also the bench and all the other jobs. It was sixth playing fourth!  To win the game for Brynne was a tall order and that's how the first half went.  The second half was a complete transition.  Perhaps the 'old brigade' had shaken the cobwebs off and along with more team intensity the lads began to steadily make inroads into Nth Beach's lead. The final quarter was nothing short of a miracle as Nth Freo took total control and ran over the top of Nth Beach:  8-4 (52) to 5-9 (39)!  The lads were stoked for Brynne and sang the victory Maggie song with gusto and pride in whattehy achieved.  It was like winning a grand final!  Congratulations to the lads and especially to Brynne on his 300th game!

Both Colts teams struggled in the conditions and the challenges they faced against North Beach and Mount Lalwley. It was a day to forget and to reload and set themselves for next week's games and an opportunity to remain in finals contention.

Next week sees the League take on Thornlie at home.  It is a must win game to maintain clear second spot on the ladder.  Let's see another BIG Maggie army crowd at the game to cheer them on!