A goal to on baller Tom Couch gave them the lead with less than thirty seconds left on the clock. This gave Sandringham just enough time for one final push forward, but Farren Ray's shot for goal missed and Casey won its fifth game of the season by one kick or less to give it a 9-1 record, and a firm hold on a top two position on the 2012 Peter Jackson VFL ladder.
The skies were gloomy, the ground was soft afoot and intermittent rain affected the game between the two top four aspirants - and the first quarter was certainly a scrappy affair.
The Zebras dominated the early going and took first blood when Beau Wilkes marked and goaled. For the visitors, Evan Panozza and Will Petropoulos were busy and it was well into the opening term before Jordan Gysberts scrambled a goal, but the consensus among fans was that they were fortunate to be in arrears by only eight points at the first break although they had worked hard to produce the tight defensive football necessary to curb the home team's early dominance.
The tempo of the game lifted in the second term, and the rest of the game was marked by swings in momentum as first one side and then the other grappled for control of the game. Ricky Petterd and Stef Martin goaled in the opening minutes of the quarter to give Casey what turned out to be a very short lived lead. Sandy replied with three majors and ran out to a 15 point lead in a very short space of time.
At this stage, the Scorpions regrouped and produced some excellent running play. Petterd kicked his second, Rian McGough chipped in with a soccer goal and, when youngster Leigh Williams kicked one late in the term, Casey had a six point lead to take into half time.
The Scorpions maintained control of the game for most of the third quarter, scoring three goals to two, and at one stage had stretched the lead out to 17 points.
A late goal to the Zebras was significant because it kept them in the game and set up a cracking final quarter.
Coach Brett Lovett urged his players to work hard in the final term, and suggested that they should be the fresher team because of their lighter workload over the previous five weeks, but things didn't work out that way. With Wilkes on fire and the Zebras full of running, the lead was pegged back and eventually the home side took a narrow lead early in time on.
It took two great goals to secure the win for Casey, playing with two debutants in Chris Clay and Gippsland Power's Tom Muir among its eleven non-AFL players. Recruit Tim Smith marked near the boundary and his shot restored the lead for the Scorps, but then both sides scrambled points before Tom Couch, who had been heavily tagged all day, kicked truly to put them in front again.
Casey's best was skipper Panozza who had a team high of 30 disposals and is a much improved player under Lovett's coaching. Gysberts and Martin were also prominent, while another improver in Ricky Plummer was lively, and Tim Smith and Luke Tynan continued to produce some promising football. James Strauss got through his important return game after his broken leg 10 months ago and displayed some sublime kicking skills.
It was a triumph for Lovett and his team, who are getting used to winning the close ones. While luck plays a part in such results, it also takes a quality team to consistently produce them. In that respect, it was just another day at the office for the Casey Scorpions.
Casey Scorpions - 11.15.81
Sandringham - 10.17.77
Goals
Casey Scorpions - Gysberts, Martin, Petterd 2, Bennell, Couch, McGough, Smith, Williams
Sandringham - Wilkes 4, Shenton 2, Cockie, Ledger, Markworth, Polo
Best
Casey Scorpions - Panozza, Gysberts, Strauss, Martin, Plummer, Smith
Sandringham - Peake, Cockie, Markworth, Curren, Marigliani, Ferguson
AFL Development League
Casey Scorpions - 13.7.85
Sandringham - 9.7.61
Goals
Casey Scorpions - Salton 3, Fitzpatrick, Hill, Lindsay 2, Chin, Galvin, Lawrence, McInnes
Sandringham - Fallon, Lourey 2, Brown, Rist, Sands, Staley, Stevens
Best
Casey Scorpions - Pollard, Salton, Gent, Patti, McInnes, Weekes
Sandringham - Meehan, Sands, Widdowson, Stevens, Plostins
