DRAW AGAINST TURTLES IN FIRST UP 2008 PRACTICE MATCH

Panton Hill headed down the road to the magnificant Eltham College ground to take on the Eltham Collegians in the first practice game on the season on Saturday 15 March. In very hot conditions the Turtles got the early start on the big ground but the Panton Hill side worked their way back into the game to lead in the second half and look like they'd run on with the game. But the heat showed up the boys that haven't trained and the Turtles kicked the last couple of goals to level the game at the final siren - 72 each.

Glenn McAuliffe did a fantastic job at full back on former Panton Hill full forward, now the Turtle coach and full forward John Garrard. He was kept to a single goal for the day. A little tap on the nose by Garrard in the last quarter saw both players leave the ground, McAuliffe with a reddied nose and Garrard with a red card. It was only McAuliffe who was able to return a short time later. Whilst the Redbacks were missing a number of players there were certainly plenty of positive points. Ben Strongman returned to the club after a year overseas in strong fashion as did Pete Davey and Tim Clark. Robbie Parkison looked in fine form in the hot conditions after a stint in the Northern Territory playing footy over summer. Some new faces were also revealed with Paul Cisek from Boronia and Justin Whitcher from Montmorency providing great contributions to the team along with some young new recruits Adam Anderson and Simon Gunn.

On a disappointing note, Chris Cahir ended his day 2 minutes into the game with a broken arm. Chris will be devastated as this is the third time he has sustained a similar serious injury in a pre -season match and he was one of the most fit on the training track this pre-season. We wish Chris a speedy recovery. In the Reserves, the team battled hard all day but the hot conditions really impacted on the guys that hadn't trained. To the credit of all players, they didn't stop trying all day but the Turtles ended with a strong win. Highlights included fantastic ruck work by Grant Carr in his first ever game of football along with some burst into the open by rugby player Kiwi. We look forward to the contributions of all new players over the season.

The next practice game will be against Belgrave on Saturday 29 March (away). Hopefully there will be some rain and Panton Hill's home ground will then be in top condition for the first game of the season against Watsonia on 5 April.