Football
18 August, 2025
Swifts finish season with victory over Pimpinio
Although the Swifts just missed out on a place in the finals, the Stawell side finished the season with a home victory over the third-placed Pimpinio on Saturday in the Horsham District Football Netball League.
The final score was Swifts 17.7 (109) to Pimpinio 12.13 (85).
After the Swifts and the Tigers exchanged early goals, the home side got the better of Pimpinio in the contest in the opening term, igniting multiple forward-50 entries that saw the Swifts kick six goals and enter quarter-time with a 37-9 lead.
After Sean Mantell extended the lead early in the second, Pimpinio started to create more scoring opportunities, reducing the deficit as the Swifts entered half-time up 51-32.
The Swifts entered the second half strongly with three early goals, and despite an even contest in the midfield, the home side were able to limit Pimpinio’s chances, eventually leading 79-42 at the final break.
Three goals early in the final term secured the win for the Swifts but a late-game push from Pimpinio saw them produce seven goals in the fourth quarter, finishing 24 points short of the Swifts.
Angus Murray starred in the midfield for the Swifts with countless possessions, while Bourke Nicholls impressed in the back pocket.
For Pimpinio, Brock Hamerston and Adam Westley were two of the better performers, with Hamerston hitting a team-high four goals.
Jordan Motton led the Swifts with five goals as he finished the season with 60 goals, second in the league.
Brett Hargreaves, coach of the Swifts, says he was pleased that the team finished with one of their better performances but disappointed they would not proceed to the finals.
“Bittersweet is the exact word I would use,” Hargreaves said.
“We finally played a game of footy I thought we were capable of playing and knocked off the third spot.
“It's obviously great that we could win on a high and I really wanted the boys to get the four points, which they did, but ultimately it also serves as a reminder of what could have been for the rest of the year.
“It sort of feels like a bit of a missed chance but if you don't win enough games, you don't get there.”
Hargreaves said constant pressure on Pimpinio across the ground was crucial in assuming control of the game.
“You could see pretty early in the first 10 minutes how they (Pimpinio) really like to set up with a lot of numbers: they push forward a lot,” Hargreaves said.
“Once we started to apply pressure to all their numbers, they couldn't use their spares and they started kicking around corners and handballing to no one, which helped us turn the ball over and get it back on our terms."
Asked who stood out for the Swifts in 2025, Hargreaves gave praise to Angus Murray.
“The bloke who probably really came of age this year, that was Angus Murray,” Hargreaves said.
“He's been super, just week in, week out.
“We told him he probably needed to get a bit stronger and he went away and did that last preseason, and he's reaped the rewards this year.”