‘Hawks’ wings clipped in loss to Frankston’
A determined Frankston outfit has trounced a notably depleted Hawks development squad by 43-points on Saturday at Box Hill City Oval.
With its player reserves ransacked, as senior regulars rested ahead of Tuesday’s Foxtel Cup clash against West Perth, the Hawks were unable to compensate for the absence of Gordon, Cust, Exon and others.
Box Hill were comprehensibly outplayed by their less fancied (and winless) opponents, in Frankston.
However there were certainly faint glimmers of light that shone in an otherwise overcast and indifferent day.
Aiden Franetic mounted his case for another seniors recall – after debuting in last weeks Anzac Day Cup win – with 33 disposals and 11 clearances.
2014 recruit Julian Soccio, will also come into senior coach Marco Bello’s considerations if he continues to star off the half back; the youngster finishing with 25 touches and a goal.
A diehard Hawthorn fan, Soccio said he would have traded his impressive stat line for a more cohesive group effort.
“It was an alright day personally, but at the end of the day you want to get the four points and sing the song with the boys, so the result was a bit disappointing,” he said.
In addition, the likes of James Stewart (26 disposals), Tom Miles (22), Aaron Bond (19) and Peter McEvoy (18) all applied themselves diligently.
The amount of rain came to epitomise the Hawks play: very patchy.
In fact, after opening with the first two majors – courtesy of Jackson Eade and Julian Soccio – the Hawks did not string two goals together for the remainder of the game.
Greasy conditions made it difficult for both sides to execute by hand and foot, leading to a stoppage ridden first half.
“Our possession let us down, they dropped one behind the ball and we probably didn’t recognize until late.
“So next time round we’ll endeavor to use the ball better going forward and really look to make the most of our opportunities in front of goal,” Soccio said.
Frankston frustrated the Hawks, clogging up the space and counterattacking forward at the opportune moment; a two goal lead at half-time a just reward for the Dolphins.
Five goals from Frankston, to the Hawks one solitary major, and the visitors looked set to open their account for the first time in season 2014.
However, Coach Kevin Collins, remained adamant his men could erase the Dolphins 37-point advantage at the final change.
It was not to be though, a gallant last quarter push from the Hawks negated by their steadfast opposition.
The loss leaves the development squad with three wins and two losses thus far this season.
Soccio earmarked the Hawks return clash against Frankston in two weeks time, as a chance to make amends for his teams surprise loss.
“We’ve just got to reset and look at the games we’ve won so far to see what we’ve done right.
“In two weeks time we get the chance to play Frankston again and we’re hoping to improve in the areas we lacked today.
“We’ll obviously have a look in the review and see what we need to work on and try to rectify those areas.
“I’m sure the boys will look forward to the game [against Frankston] as a chance for redemption,” he said.
FINAL SCORES
Box Hill 7.13 (55) defeated by Frankston 14.14 (98)
Goal Kickers: J. Munks 2, P. McEvoy 2, J. Soccio , J. Eade , M. Donoghue
Best Players: T. Goodwin, P. McEvoy, T. Miles, J. Soccio, A. Franetic, J. Summers
