By JARROD POTTER
FINISHING the year on a high note, the Berwick Miners junior squad clinched an emphatic 26-12 victory over the Pakenham Silverbacks.
It’s been a tough year on the track for the Endeavour Hills based American football team but there have been positives up and down the roster despite finishing sixth on the Gridiron Victoria ladder just outside of finals.
The Miners junior side featured a predominantly rookie line-up and forced coach Jamie Stafford to get creative with his roster and there were inklings of success no matter what the outcome.
“Junior development has been fantastic – the junior team had a bit of a restart this year and we didn’t have many returning players and the rest of the squad were rookies,” Stafford said.
“We finished 3-5 which in the league we played – with top age talent – is pretty good.“They’ll age out while our team is very young, 17 and younger, and to be as competitive as we were against the older strong teams will bode well for the next two to three years.”
Positivity is always a boon to a sports club and the Miners’ juniors had it in spades as they persevered and stuck together as a team even as the wins failed to come their way.
“Attitude all year was fantastic – when things were going wrong, they always maintained a positive attitude and were always resilient,” Stafford said.
“Was great on the weekend to see them get a win to finish the season off as a reward for their hard work.”
Standing out for the Miners this season has been the emergence of Tom Wing at quarterback – whose famous brother, Brad, is currently plying his craft in the National Football League for Pittsburgh.
Also impressing the coach were running back Ghok Yien Traing, Lachlan Haynes and line-backer Ethan Masters.
“Tom Wing – Brad Wing’s younger brother – came to us in week three and did a great job as an older player and one of the few leaders,” Stafford said.
“Running back Ghok Yien Traing has been our running back all year and had one game with six touchdowns.
“Fantastic athlete and he was a rookie as well, but picked the game up quickly and took to it naturally.
“We didn’t have to coach him up all that much and was a dangerous player for us all season. “
Masters, Wing and Hendrix Tuifelasai are three Miners juniors who will slot into the senior squad after exceeding the age limit of the junior program.
*The Berwick Diamonds women’s gridiron team squared off on Sunday morning for a spot in the VicBowl.
More on the Diamonds’ match will be available online on Monday.
