The Canberra Demons couldn't resurrect their half time lead against the Southport Sharks and were left to nurse a one goal loss after a close game got away at Phillip Oval.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Canberra team struggled to convert their dominant position on the field into goals, despite chalking up more inside-50s than their opponents.
Canberra had to follow Southport's lead in the second half to maintain an ever tight margin, with the two teams taking turns to build small leads before the Sharks ended up with 88 to the Demons' 82.
A tired Canberra team let that margin slip in the final quarter but were unable to close the gap after Southport's Michael Manteit scored an easy goal 19 minutes in.
It was a disappointing finish for the Canberra side, who went into the game's second half with a two-goal lead.
But a goal-for-goal third quarter showed the limits of the tiring team against Southport, who kept finding important gaps the Demons' defences.
Harry Carr showed what kind of football the Demons had to play to hang on to their lead, after team mates Angus Taylor, Tom Faul and Rhys Pollock convincingly moved the ball to set Carr up for a 6-point kick.
But the Demons couldn't find momentum after each goal, conceding narrow leads to their stronger opponents when they failed to keep the pressure up.
Southport had a two-goal advantage over the Canberra side at three-quarter time, and had to work hard to maintain their lead in the final quarter.
Demons captain Aaron Bruce also did his bit to keep Canberra's prospects alive in the fourth quarter, returning a one-point margin after a kick 35 metres out returned another goal for the Demons.
Southport's Mitch Johnson held his own under fire from surrounding Demons to boot convincing goals in a third quarter that saw the Sharks double their score.
But a fast finish for the Demons wasn't enough to equal the scores. The team's new wind at three-quarter time ended up only blowing nowhere.
Demons debutant Harry Clark, 18, saw action towards the end of the game though. He became the club's sixth new player this season.
The Demons' Harry Carr snatched a Southport hand pass in a push that brought the Demons within range of the goal in the final minutes of a game that had begun to tire both teams.
The Demons let themselves down at the very end, playing scrappy football that kept the ball out of goal contention when they reached the final siren.
Demons player-coach Kade Klemke said his side should have won the game, but he couldn't fault the team's intensity and pressure.
"It was simple skill errors that cost us the game," he said.
Klemke said the Demons had more inside-50s but didn't use them well and crowded out the field. He put it down to the team's lack of maturity, which would improve with more games.
AT A GLANCE
Canberra Demons 5.3 6.7 9.8 12.10 (82)
Southport Sharks 3.1 5.5 11.8 13.10 (88)
Goals: Canberra T. Faul 2, M. Hardie 2, A. Paech 2, A. Kinasch 2, H. Carr, A Bruce, T. Highmore, J. Osborne Southport C. Ford 2, M. Johnson 2, J. Hall 2, M. Shaw, T. Roos, T. Fields, M. Doran, M. Manteit.
Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
