Bulldogs claim Battle of the West footy spoils, but Kangas' journeyman gets the BBQ snags

Guest Author Published July 29, 2022 at 2.57pm (AWST)

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Wynbay Bulldogs claimed the Battle of the West Community Cup in a hard-fought 64-point win against the Cohealth Kangaroos at Werribee's Chirnside Park during NAIDOC Week.

It was a great day for everyone who attended as players and spectators had lots of fun and shared a laugh while some good footy was played in a spirited team effort.

To kick off the day's proceedings, both teams stood together around the Aboriginal flag which was painted inside the centre square as Aunt Maggie did an acknowledgement to country.

After the coin toss, players quickly switched on to play the game as the ball was thrown up and the game was alive and played at fast pace.

The Wynbay Bulldogs were full of energy and run and hit the scoreboard quickly in the first term.

The Cohealth Kangaroos fought back hard in the second and dominated the quarter but found it tough going catching the young Dogs.

One of the moments of the year so far was seeing Jimmy Rose come out of his 10-year retirement.

Gary Barnett put his body on the line but was more focused on the six snags he was going to have post game (which he did).

As always Szymon was running through the midfield all game and was one of the Kanga's best on ground.

Aaron played an excellent game in the ruck for Cohealth - his leadership was instrumental in getting the ball moving forward.

Wattsy was in and out and up and down like a yo-yo and that's why we love Wattsy - he also kicked a beautiful goal.

Glen Scott played the team role and the crowd saw him turn into a ball magnet as he joined the midfield.

Jack again played a pivotal role transitioning the footy down to our forwards and around the ground, as did Lukey M and Sammy B who both kicked goals.

Patrick was getting down and dirty getting the hard ball and is stringing together a very nice season.

Vested trio of Kat, Sharee and Jamie put in another great effort and although it was quiet at times put together multiple possessions.

As the final siren sounded, players from both teams stood together around the Aboriginal flag again and were presented with special NAIDOC Community Cup medals presented by Uncle Manny, cohealth's Indigenous health team Yakeen Tharn and Latitude workers representing Wynbay.

It was then time for the umpires to present the 2022 Battle of the West Community Cup to the Bulldogs.

Everyone then got the chance to relax and share stories with one another while enjoying a barbecue lunch, before Gary ate all the sausages.

The final score was 16.3 (99) to 5.5 (35) in favour of the Bulldogs.