Four-quarter effort the goal: Sullivan

The Box Hill Hawks’ Development win against the Coburg Lions on Saturday was another great step for the boys in their growth as a team. Leading at every change, Box Hill dominated at both ends of the ground.

James Sullivan spoke to boxhillhawks.com.au about the result on the weekend and how the squad went about it.

“The boys were really switched on in the warm-up and there was a really good feeling. The first bounce came and saw everyone come out and have a crack. We added some scoreboard pressure too which was good so we were really pleased with the first half.”

The second half of the game saw Coburg step up their pressure and their attack at the football, and proved a challenge for the team.

“Our four-quarter effort is probably an area that we’ve been lacking a little bit. The first game we allowed Sandringham to get back into the game in the second quarter, and then the third quarter against Williamstown we had a lapse, so we’re really trying to string together all four quarters.

However, one really strong area for Box Hill on Saturday was their tackling. Sullivan, with a game high of eight tackles, said it had definitely been a focus area for the group.

“I think the week before Williamstown broke a few tackles so Matty (Development Coach Matt Adolph) brought it up before the game to really make sure that we were sticking our tackles.”

“We knew that Coburg were a really tough and strong team around the ball so we definitely knew it was an area we needed to pay particular attention to. We just had to ensure that we stuck them.”

The game was a tough one for the boys and Sullivan said they were looking forward to their long break between games.

“It was a really physical game. We’ve just come off a six-day break as well so obviously that’s quite tough for us.”

“Fortunately we’ve got eight days now as we have a Sunday game, so we just need to do our recovery and look after our bodies. It’s definitely a good time for us to have an eight-day break.”

This weekend’s game will be against the Frankston Dolphins and is sure to be another big test for the group.

“Obviously we’re back at Box Hill but we can’t take them lightly. Again we need to try and work on our structures and again try to put a four-quarter effort together. I’m sure if we do that and play our brand of footy then we’ll come away with the four points.

The Development team plays Frankston at 11.00am this Sunday at Box Hill City Oval.