By Bruno Visentini
The Coburg Lions have made it 2 out of 2 in the Battle of Bell Street in 2024 following Sunday’s thrilling 3-point win over the Northern Bullants at Genis Steel Oval. In what was an entertaining but stressful affair with plenty of momentum shifts, the Lions came from as much as 17 points down to be victorious following Josh D’Intinosante’s match-winning goal late with just minutes to go.
With finals well and truly out of the equation for both sides this late in the season, a match like this would ordinarily not be too important. But for two sides with a rivalry dating back almost a century, these clashes are always a highlight of the fixture, and the rivalry is well and truly reciprocated. The Bullants had a lot at stake as a loss would all but secure the wooden spoon, while for Coburg, the chance to win a fifth match this season and secure the club’s best result since 2016 en route to retaining the Bell Street Cup was an extra source of motivation.
On a breeze-less day in Preston with conditions perfect for footy, fans were primed for a spectacle and owing to proximity, the Coburg army was in full force to cheer the boys on. The match had extra special meaning for both sides with the players wearing black armbands in honour of former player Mark Slater who passed away during the week. Slater. At Coburg, Slater quickly became an integral part of the team and won a premiership in his first season with the club in 1974.
The Lions came out of the blocks early with Mitch Podhajski snapping the opening goal just after a minute of play. The Bullants got their chance to fire one back and made It count when Christos Kosmas drilled a set shot to tie things up. Coburg were back in attack soon after as Podhajski kicked a second goal and Josh D’Intinosante joined him to get the Lions ahead by two goals. A maiden behind to the Lions prevented the Bullants from tying things up after kicking the next two goals.
Needing to break through and separate from the Bullants, Coburg got exactly that as Mitch Podhajski kicked his third goal from a set shot, and just minutes later he found himself with four goals for the first quarter. Podhajski almost had five for the term and would have if not for a Bullants defender touching his kick before the line, but nonetheless Coburg held a 14-point lead going into the first break.
Coburg had far more possession and inside 50s in the opening quarter, and still lead in tackles, so it was going to be a big task for the Bullants to turn things around in the second term. The home side got what they needed with an early goal, and some time later kicked another goal to get the game to within two points. Jesse Corigliano kicked Coburg’s first of the second term to create some breathing room, but the relief was to be short lived.
The Northern Bullants went on a tear, adding four goals in just eight minutes to put the contest on their terms and have the lead sitting at 17 points. Remarkably, neither side managed to score for the last ten minutes of the quarter which proved frustrating, but no more so than what the scoreboard read at half time. Conceding 6.2 while only adding 1.1 for the term was worrying and it was crucial to stop the momentum that the Bullants had built and instead return to the domination seen in the first quarter.
Things started well in the third term for Coburg with Jesse Corigliano kicking his second goal for the game in the opening minute, something Coburg would have hoped would be a sign of things to come. Plenty of opportunities arose but it wasn’t until the 12-minute mark when Donovan Toohey kicked a long goal to being the margin back under a goal. The Bullants bounced back with two more goals to make things tougher for the Lions, but Caleb Ernst benefited from a 50-metre penalty that brought him within striking distance where he converted a massive goal.
At the final change, the Bullants lead by just one goal, but Coburg would absolutely rue missed opportunities in that term, kicking a far from ideal 3.7 but positives were there to be found, mainly for quashing the Bullants’ dominance in the second term. With the margin so close, a lot was at stake and for how good of a game we had been treated to in the first three terms, all the markings of a classic match were on full display.
Relatively unsighted since his massive four-goal opening quarter, Mitch Podhajski gave Coburg the dream start, kicking a big goal to tie things up after a minute. The Bullants weren’t ready to roll over though, with ex-St Kilda player Sam Gilbert kicking a goal in reply minutes later. The game became an arm wrestle, with neither side able to score a major for quite some time despite several behinds being scored.
The goal drought was broken when Joel Trudgeon kicked a crucial set shot just shy of extra time to put the margin at 2 points. Sam Gilbert reappeared to kick another goal for the Bullants following a Lions turnover, but the Lions weren’t done yet in their pursuit of a comeback victory. As the Bullants looked to keep the ball out of Coburg’s possession, an errant Bullants kick was intercepted and in no time Max Thompson was able to kick a big goal to keep Coburg’s dreams alive.
The Bullants had a chance to kick a potential sealer, but their last score of the game was a behind following a set shot. With time running out for Coburg to regain the lead for the first time since the midway point of the second quarter, the Lions needed something big. The lucky break would arrive via a free kick to Josh D’Intinosante in front of goal, and although the shot in isolation wasn’t difficult, the pressure was immense. Fortunately, JD was cool as ice while taking his kick and slotted it, much to the delight of all those In the red and blue.
With only a couple minutes left to play, defence won out and D’Intinosante’s goal went on to be the last of the match, with the Lions bringing home a 13.13 (91) to 13.10 (88) victory along with the Bell Street Cup for the second time this year. Joel Trudgeon was deemed Lion of the Round by the coaches with 26 touches, 1 goal, 7 tackles and 5 marks. Next Sunday the Lions will take on Essendon at Piranha Park in what will be our final match of the season. Get down to the game to cheer the boys on one last time and help propel them to victory.
