AFTER an enthralling start to the game, Casey had a second half fade-out and fell to Williamstown by 29 points at Casey Fields on Saturday afternoon.
Casey Demons 12.13 (85) defeated by Williamstown 17.12 (114).
The final game of the home and away season had enormous ramifications, with Casey playing for the minor premiership and Williamstown seeking fourth spot on the ladder.
And both sides knew exactly what was on the line, battling out a heated contest early.
But the Seagulls rose to the occasion in the second half, kicking 10 goals to five to claim a crucial victory.
“We were just inconsistent in the basics of our game throughout the day,” senior coach Jade Rawlings told Melbourne Media.
“Whether it was through not linking up with the ball in hand, defending poorly or not being clean enough around the ball.
“Just all basis got challenged throughout the game.”
Despite the swaying momentum throughout a riveting first half, just one point separated the two sides at the main break.
Williamstown had a fast start in the third term, with quick goals to Sam Dunnell and Michael Gibbons, handing it an imposing 13-point lead.
The Demons struggled to get the game back on their terms as Nick Rodda slotted his third major and put Casey on the back foot.
Goy Lok drilled a vital goal to give the Demons a sniff, but Jaylon Thorpe steered one through after the three quarter-time siren to stretch Williamstown’s lead to 20 points.
With everything needing to go right for Casey, the Seagulls were the ones to fire in the final term, with three goals in the first six minutes to ultimately put the game to bed.
Albeit a poor result, it wasn’t all bad news for the Demons.
After a disappointing loss to the Hawks last week, Casey was clearly keen to make amends, and did so, playing with a fierce intensity from the first bounce.
“We looked a different team this week compared to last week,” Rawlings said.
“I thought we set the game up really well in the first quarter … but when Williamstown lifted their tempo, that’s where we were disappointing.”
The Demons did all the attacking to start the game, but it took them 16 minutes to finally hit the scoreboard, courtesy of Cameron Pedersen.
Pedersen returned to the side as a forward, booting two majors in the opening term and he significantly changed the set up for Casey.
“You want him as a forward, you want him as a ruck, you want him everywhere,” Rawlings said.
“It’s hard to maximise Cameron in the spots we need him, but I thought he performed well.”
Casey failed to capitalise on its early dominance which proved costly.
Tim Smith put his kicking yips behind him with a great snap to hand Casey a 12-point lead early in the second term, but Williamstown responded with three consecutive goals.
And from that point, the Seagulls looked the better side.
A young Casey line-up leaned on the nine Melbourne players for experience, and after a quiet outing last week, Jeff Garlett stole the show to half-time.
Garlett’s work-rate was unquestionable, hunting his opposition with constant pressure, and the reward on the scoreboard soon followed with four goals for the game.
“I think Jeff was one of our better players, coming off a poor game last week,” Rawlings said.
“He prepared really well this week and I was pretty confident he was going to play at a high standard.
“It just looked like a Jeff Garlett style game.”
The Seagulls were effected by injury with skipper Adam Marcon forced off with concussion and Lachlan Schultz suffering an ankle injury, but their ability to run the game out was impressive.
On the back of Geelong’s loss to Box Hill, Casey has clung onto second spot on the ladder, securing a home final at Casey Fields against the Cats next week (date and time to be announced on Sunday August 26).
CASEY DEMONS 3.3 7.4 8.8 12.13 (85)
WILLIAMSTOWN 2.2 7.5 11.10 17.12 (114)
CASEY GOALS
Garlett 4, Pedersen 3, Hutchins 2, Lockhart, Lok, Smith
CASEY BEST
Lockhart, Freeman, Johnstone, C Wagner, Garlett, Pedersen
