Wood Ducks Fly as Duck Season Begins

Weekend Warriors, who stroke their shiny guns and dream of bringing their child’s ‘Man of Honour’ video war game to life, pulled on their gum boots, splashed on their camouflage make up and headed out to swamp lands around Victoria again last weekend; ‘Duck Season’ was now in full swing. It makes a man feel like a man to go on a hunt and bring home dinner, faithful friend at his heel, focus in his eye and courage in his heart. The fact that ducks don’t shoot back is lost in the adrenalin rush of bagging another bird. The stories of each hunt, embellished as they are told to young ones around fire places on cold nights, fill their souls with a desire to be ‘just like Dad’ when they grow up.
These tales of great victory against a formidable foe will start to permeate around the terrace houses of Clifton Hill, the Californian Bungalows of Ivanhoe and the oak lined streets of Kew if any of the 15 premiership teams that now take aim at the high flying Wood Ducks can manage to secure an upset win. It truly is Duck Season however the Ducks in Latrobe’s Premiership fight back. I fine mix of youth and experience has seen them remain the only undefeated team. Triple WWW, a team mixing star recruits from the draft with proven underperformers of previous years, the latest to feel the emptiness of firing a shot and missing. J R Smith, a wood duck of the highest order, was magnificent with his 41 points lifting his team to new heights. The excitement is building for Bobby Gardner, Captain and owner of the best swing at Latrobe, who is looking to soar like Jonathon Livingstone Seagull and drag his team through the clouds of doubt to enjoy the heavenly bliss of Premiership glory. The Wood Ducks are on their way.
F Troop are continuing on as they look to rewrite their only history, a wooden spoon in their first year. They faced a ‘Brothers in Arms’ side that have been a powerhouse of the premiership and in their first real test, F Troop were as comprehensive as the Brothers in Arms were disappointing. The new blood in this side is pulsing strongly bringing life to a monster similar to Frankenstein the movie. It is a horror film to the rest of the Premiership sides who had enjoyed the easy 4 points offered up each week meekly last year by this F Troop team but these teams are now suddenly feeling the doubt of not knowing if they have the talent and the nerve to defeat this emerging giant. The Brothers in Arms sadly had no answer, their movie matinee over early, mauled without mercy by F Troop and also eradicated from the Eliminator. They have fallen to the bottom of the Premiership Table, in horse racing terms, 1 length in front of the ambulance, a blaring siren is not needed. If they cannot find a win soon, the ambulance will be replaced with a hearse and it will take the finals chances of this once proud team to their ‘finals’ resting place.
The Corruptibles have no need for that hearse as they have big plans in 2010 for July. They have a strong bonding culture inside a necessary thick skin that is prodded mercilessly by a Weekly email from the ‘Freedom Fighter’. Its thick sledging is designed to toughen up the stomach of a side that softened quickly under the heat of finals pressure in previous years. It appears to be working in alternating weeks with the Gummers taking advantage of an off week. The author of this weekly email must surely turn this blowtorch on himself this week after posting a score that if was his handicap would have him pressing or C Grade championship favouritism. The Fight for Freedom must surely be put on hold with a measure of practice to bring his drunken octopus like swing back into the realms of sobriety.
The Tridents overcome the Vultures who once again provided another example of that old cliché that there is no ‘I’ in team but there are 5 in “Individual Brilliance”. Kevin McKrohan was magnificent with his 39 points 6 shots better than the best that the Trident team could muster. He joined last weeks’ superstar Dennis Connell in gaining ‘Best on Ground’ honours in a losing side as the team scores quickly went south. It was a great win for the Tridents side with their Scottish Heritage on holiday in New Zealand and their ‘All Latrobe’ superstar struggling for the first time this decade. However the Tridents sit in 3rd position due to a combined effort of all players and have set up a Top 4 Blockbuster match this week against the seemingly bullet proof Ferrett team that are coming to terms with more headlines than Brendon Fevola and playing as though nothing has ever happened. Maybe more copy on that in coming weeks.