Magpie Ezekiel Frank’s after the siren goal breaks Waratah hearts at Gardens Oval

[Nergal]

 

WARATAH coach Ryan Ayres chose his words carefully yesterday, less than 24 hours after watching his NTFL side snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

An Ezekiel Frank goal after the siren sank the Warriors on their home ground and meant three losses in their last four matches since upsetting Southern Districts at Fred’s Pass in Round 7.

Frank’s goal was the Magpies’ seventh in the last quarter, completing a six-goal comeback after Waratah lead by 35 points after five minutes of the term.

“It was a big momentum shift, something that is a big thing in footy and we were on the wrong end of it this time,’’ Ayres told the NT News.

“The game was a battle of the midfields all day, Palmerston was on top early before we came back in the middle of the game and they regrouped in the last quarter.’’

Ayres played the role of coach and mentor in the changerooms after the loss, consoling several players who could not believe they had just lost the unlosable match.

“The boys were pretty devastated and it became a matter of trying to pick them up after that,’’ Ayres said.

“There’s a lot to learn from that last quarter. There were a few occasions when we took a mark and decided to play on which probably wasn’t the right thing to do.

“There’s some small things we need to go back and have a look at on the video, then if we’re in the same situation we can do things a lot better the next time.’’