IT TOOK a little too long for the Tathra Sea Eagles to find their rhythm against the Bermagui Breakers, leaving the squad out of the running for the Sapphire Coast AFL premiership.
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The Breakers defeated the Sea Eagles 19.4 (118) to 10.13 (73).
The Breakers were deadly accurate with their kicking.
The Bermagui outfit landed 11 goals in the second quarter without a single kick drifting wide.
“They just couldn’t miss and we couldn’t hit the goals,” Tathra senior coach Luke Taylor said.
The result is almost “unheard of” as the Breakers stacked on 19 goals, with just four shots drifting to the behinds.
“Credit to Bermi they played a brilliant game.
“We outscored them in the second half, but they got us early on and it was too little, too late.”
Despite being out of contention, Taylor said the club had plenty of good things to focus on.
“It’s always disappointing to bow out of the finals, but we’re under no illusion of where we were at as a club,” Taylor said.
“To forfeit in round two and then make week two of finals, it’s heartbreaking to finish now.”
However, Taylor said the early exit has allowed the club a few extra weeks of preparation for the next season.
“If there is one thing about finishing early, you can prepare early.
“I would rather be playing in two weeks than worrying about next year,
“But the boys will enjoy a couple of months off,” he said.
Taylor said he will keep working over the break in conjunction with the club to develop plans and recruit for next year, but his body would thank him for the break.
“I’ll definitely enjoy a few weeks off, or my body will anyways,” he said with a laugh.
The squad also welcomed a flock of newcomers and some talented young players this year.
“We had a really inexperienced team this year, but we have five or six kids come on board that are playing footy at a high level.
“Next year we might be able to put together a reserves side and the club will be in a good place because of the experience of these young guys.”
In spite of the heartaches the club has endured this year, Taylor said he was proud to reach the finals and looked forward to developing for next season.
“At the end of the day we can walk away and say we won a final – yesterday was more good experience for the guys.
“Come next year with the same guys having 30 or 40 games under their belt the result could be vastly different,” he said.