Country Championships: Ongerup produce slick final few minutes to beat North Pilbara, Joyce named All Star

Ongerup Football Association avoided relegation with a defining 10-minute period in Saturday’s clash against North Pilbara, in the Nutrien Ag Solutions Country Football Championships. Ongerup avoided finishing last and being relegated from division two after a gritty six-point win over North Pilbara, at Fremantle Community Bank Oval. North Pilbara controlled the game for large parts but Ongerup produced a slick final 10 minutes, dominating centre clearances and finally getting the reward on the scoreboard. Ongerup kicked the final three goals of the game to pinch the game 5.2 (32) to 3.8 (26) and secure their first win of the championships. The sour point was losing star key position player Timm House to a hamstring injury, but Connor Smallwood kicked the winner in the dying stages. On Friday in the opening two games of their campaign, Ongerup produced a strong first half to trail Central Midlands Coastal by three points but faded to lose by 13 at HIF Health Insurance Stadium. In a tough slog in game two against Upper Great Southern, Ongerup were held goalless and went down by 36 points. In the first clash between the pair since 2017, Great Southern and Ongerup squared off and it was the run and spread from Great Southern that proved the difference in the end. Morgan Davies was outstanding, receiving the Jim Hull Medal as the fairest and best player in games between the two sides at representative level. Great Southern kicked three majors in each half to claim the 6.2 (38) to 2.4 (16) result. Relishing his role in defence, Davies produced a wonderful running goal that helped snuff out any Ongerup comeback in the last half, before Camball McMahon sealed their fourth straight victory. Lewis Davis stepped up with two goals for Ongerup while midfielders Justin Joyce and Nic Winters won plenty of the ball. Ongerup’s woes were compounded with Mitch Smith going down in the final game with a hamstring injury while former Geelong player Sam Menegola didn’t feature in the championships after being named. Ongerup coach Luke Bairstow said his side played competitive football across the two days. “The first game against Central Midlands we were pretty competitive in that without the reward on the scoreboard,” he said. “The second game was a bit disappointing but I was happy with how the boys responded on day two. “The last five minutes of that game against North Pilbara, to keep in the division was excellent. “Congratulations to Great Southern, from a neighbouring association its pretty impressive what they’ve done in the last two years.” Star midfielder Joyce was named Ongerup’s fairest and best for the carnival ahead of fellow ball winner Hayden Richter. Bairstow also made mention of Riley Bridger who was given big jobs in defence, and said Harris Regan and Tate Barrett also impressed. Joyce was the sole Ongerup representative in the Nutrien Ag Solutions Championship All Stars team.