Blues claim crucial victory over Bloods

Picola United has bounced back from its loss in round seven with an important 13-point win over Tocumwal on Saturday.

The Blues survived a third-quarter fightback from the Bloods to pick up their fifth win of the season 13.7 (85) to 11.6 (72).

United coach Darby Walsh said the win was a crucial result for his side.

“It was a game that we had to win, it was a crucial game for us, I’m super happy we were able to get over the line,” Walsh said.

“I’m really happy with the result and getting the four points.”

United held the Bloods to just one point in the first term and led by 19 points at half-time, but it faced a tough challenge in the third quarter.

Tocumwal was able to trim the deficit and got the margin to within a goal, but United steadied the ship to restore its advantage before holding on in the final term.

Walsh said he was pleased with the way his side responded to the Tocumwal challenge in the third quarter.

“It wasn’t all smooth sailing, but a really pleasing part of that was our team was able to respond mid-way through that quarter,” he said.

“It’s something we haven’t been able to do so far this year, and that was a pleasing thing for us this week. We were able to change some things mid-quarter and turn it back around which is awesome.”

United lost to Katunga by 74 points in round seven and Walsh said he thought his side bounced back well this weekend against Tocumwal.

“It was a good improvement to get the win, but the way that we got it was really pleasing too,” he said.

“We’re really seeing some signs that we’re working in the right direction.

“We were able to change things on the fly. We were able to adapt, we were able to improvise. That was a massive improvement from the week before when things went wrong and we didn’t react.”

Walsh said the United backline was impressive on the day, while Mitch Hore led the way up front with five goals.

“Jordan Gattuso, Jeremy Salinger, Luke Woolan and Sean Solar played well in the backline and were all among the best,“he said.

“Mitch kicked five up forward which was really good for him, it’s really good that we have that target.”

Luke Woolan and Ian Fry were also two of the best on the day for the Blues.

United is one of four 5-2 teams in the PDFL this season, with the win on Saturday helping it move up to fifth spot on the ladder.