WHEN it came to the crunch, one side held its nerve while the other made costly errors.
In conditions that significantly increased the weight of each goal kicked, maintaining focus was paramount, and Moyhu coach John McNamara said his charges' discipline was the key to a 27-point win over Benalla All Blacks on Saturday.
"Conditions were tricky," McNamara said.
"It was difficult for the big fellas and the little fellas.
"Our message was just to remain disciplined.
"We knew All Blacks would come out hard and throw everything at us, and it was just a matter of staying cool and keeping our heads over the football.
"Just making sure we won the hard footy, and I think we did that pretty well."
The Hoppers won the game despite the fact their two best on-ballers, Nathan Waite and Ryan Craig, were well held all day.
Jaimon McGeehan proved to be the match winner for Moyhu with three crucial final quarter goals, earning him a big pat on the back from McNamara.
"That's the beauty of our side the depth in the midfield," he said.
"They tagged two of our fellas and Jaimon McGeehan stands up, Scott Van Der Heyden stands up and Ben Waite was very good as well.
"Jaimon's a good player as you know and he can play in a number of different positions.
"He's dangerous at half forward and he wins the ball in the middle, and I think that was a real key for us today, pushing him through both areas.
"He had 35 touches, took 10 grabs and kicked three goals, so it really was a best on ground effort."
McNamara was also suitably impressed with his defenders, who got the job done against Benalla's powerful attack.
"After watching (Benalla's) talls last week you're always going to worry," he said.
"But once we got here in the windy conditions I knew it would suit our fellas.
"We just instructed them to get the ball to ground and get it out of there.
"The attack on the footy (Andrew) Balfour sets a great example and Leroy (Dowling), Gormy (Nathan Gorman), Reece Bilney and Cam (Forrest) you certainly can't fault their attack on the footy."
With the biggest job still ahead of them, McNamara said the Hoppers' destiny was in their own hands.
"At the start of the year you do your preseason and set a few goals," he said.
"You make a goal to reach the finals, then when you get there you obviously want to make the grand final.
"Now we're in there, so we're a real chance."
By - SCOTT ANDERSON.
www.nenews.com.au
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Moyhu defender Nathan Gorman gets a handpass away despite Stephen Pickering's tackle.
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Last Modified on 13/09/2011 12:45