By RUSSELL BENNETT
LOCAL footy rivalries simply don’t get much bigger than Emerald versus Gembrook Cockatoo.
There’s always something extra on the line, and on Sunday even more so – it was the first time the teams had clashed since 2013, but the game itself was dwarfed by the bigger occasion; the two clubs coming together to honour the Anzacs.
Hostilities resumed on the weekend, with both clubs back in Division 2 of the Yarra Valley Mountain District Football League. Favourite sons put other allegiances and friendships aside for a game that seemed to mean more to the two clubs than just the four premiership points.
Hampton Park coach Matt O’Neil was back in his Brookers gear for the day, while Emerald Cricket Club captain-coach A.J. Walker returned to Chandler Reserve as an assistant coach for the Gembrook Cockatoo senior footy side, and Gembrook Cricket Club team-mates Jarrad Donders (Emerald) and Riley Wilson (Gembrook Cockatoo) lined up on opposing teams as The Last Post played to a massive, yet eerily quiet, crowd.
WWII veteran and Emerald RSL life-member Doug Livermore – the father of Emerald Football Club committeeman Steve, and grandfather of senior captain Matt – tossed a 1922 penny to start the clash and the Bombers got the early jump, leading by 10 points at quarter-time.
While Brookers player-coach Craig Clarke was lion-hearted in the ruck, Bomber Daniel Ferry was just as strong on the spread and Ryan Simpson was just as dependable off half back.
Bombers coach Jason Bek implored his men to lower their eyes and be smarter in spotting up their targets in the second quarter to maximise their lead, but they took just a 13-point lead into the main break despite having 16 scoring shots to eight from the Brookers.
But Emerald roared out of the gates early in the third, with a long set-shot goal from Nick Jansen. Riley Wilson did an outstanding job all day on Bombers forward Justin Davis, but Davis still found a way of impacting the scoreboard regardless.
Chris Vernal, Leigh Scott and Ricky Delphine all made their presence felt for the Brookers throughout a physical second half but Caillin Porter, Kalijah Asling, Mat Dompietro and Damien Volta had far too much in the tank as the Bombers won by 45 points – 12.17 (89) to 6.8 (44). Almost fittingly, it was Volta – a member of the Gembrook Cockatoo side that reached a string of Division 1 grand finals in recent years – who kicked the final goal of the game for the Bombers.
Emerald RSL president Peter Maloney presented Porter with the Anzac Medal for the best player on ground.
