The New England Nomads have ended a two-match losing streak with a 19-point win over the Tamworth Kangaroos on Saturday at Tamworth No. 1 Oval.
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The Roos felt the full wrath of the Nomads in the first half as the New England outfit kicked seven goals to one to take a commanding 44-point lead into the main break.
Kangaroos coach Ben Mitchell said the slow start ultimately cost his side.
“We were a bit slow to get going in the first half and they [Nomads] took advantage of that,” he said.
“We had a late fightback but it was left a little too late.
“We’ve struggled to put four quarters together all year, I tried to tell the boys that at the start of the game but we were just really flat.
“Probably at three quarter time, we got a bit of a feeling that we were in the game and played the sort of footy we like to play.”
Eight second half goals to the Roos saw the home side charge back into the match but the Nomads had enough in the tank to hold the Tamworth side off and score the 11.17-83 to 9.10-64 win.
The win couldn’t have come at a better time for the Nomads who meet Gunnedah in the major semi-final next week.
“Definitely, two consecutive losses and a number of blokes unavailable, we were keen to get a win and build a bit of momentum for the finals,” Nomads coach Tom Hunt said.
“We started really well, up by about six or seven goals at half-time where in previous weeks we had been a bit slow to start.
“It was good to jump out of the box and kick a few but the Roos really came back in the game, there was only a kick or two in it at one point.”
A glut of players have been missing for New England over the past few weeks but Hunt expected six to eight to return for the first round of finals.
In that time, a number of players have stepped up to the plate and on the weekend Clarence Barker, Paddy Tobias and Tim Keys stood out for Hunt.