KERANG remain the only undefeated team in the Central Murray following an 85-point victory over the winless Koondrook-Barham at the weekend.
It was the Blues’ eighth straight win of the season and came despite the reigning premiers missing several key players, including Bradlee Pay, Troy Coates, Marty Kelly, Troy Davis and Nick Lang.
While the Raiders were competitive for three quarters, a 30-minute lapse in the third term proved to be their undoing, with Kerang piling on 10 goals on their way to a comfortable 18.16 (124) to 6.3 (39) win.
Despite the final margin, there were plenty of positives for Koondrook-Barham, with their midfield controlling much of the play in the first half, along with whole-ground pressure and attack on the ball, for their most competitive half of football this season.
It was a performance that impressed Kerang coach Troy Coates, the veteran coach acknowledging the Raiders’ first half forced the best from the reigning premiers.
“Our boys all come off at the end of the game and said their (Koondrook-Barham) pressure in the first half was as good as we’ve experienced all season,” Coates said.
“Their midfield had our measure in the first half, but they probably lacked a bit of scoring power up forward to take advantage of their onballers’ good work.
“They played pretty defensive and put a number behind the ball, which forced us to try and even up the numbers in our forward half and also pushed an extra forward up around the contest to make sure they had the advantage in numbers at the contest.
“All up, they had a decent crack though, which was good to see.”
While Kerang may have been slower than expected out of the blocks, they did manage to keep Koondrook-Barham scoreless for the opening 30 minutes, before both teams slammed home three goals each in the second term.
“We were a bit frustrated in the first half and it seems to be a common pattern at the moment for us against teams that we’re expected to beat – it’s almost a bit like we go through motions at times,” Coates said.
“At half time we put it on the boys a bit and they responded, the midfield in particular, because we were actually getting beaten in stoppages which was a bit disappointing.
“Our third quarter was unbelievable though, we took control in the centre, started winning the clearances and winning the contested ball after half time, which turned the game in our favour.”
Rylee Smith was dominant all afternoon for the Blues, kicking five goals from the midfield, and Josh Hann, Sam Heavyside, Josh Nitschke and Ryan Gillingham were also influential out of the centre, while Michael Dalrymple provided a strong marking target across half-forward, despite not hitting the scoresheet.
The Raiders were well served by in-form onballer Mitchell Christensen, with Colin McVeigh, Jordan Bassett, Eli Boyd, Patrick Goble and full-back Scott Wood also named among the better players.
But while it was the usual suspects who won the game for the Blues, Coates also praised Kerang debutant Bohden McKnight, who not only kicked a goal but found plenty of the ball as well.
“(McKnight) played wing and half-forward and it was honestly one of the most impressive debut games that I’ve seen from a kid for our club in the last five or 10 years,” Coates said.
“We know how talented he is, but he was super impressive for his first senior game and to be honest, even though we’ll have a number of senior players to return after the bye, he will just about keep his spot in the team after a performance like that.”
FINAL SIREN
| KERANG | 2.4 | 5.8 | 15.14 | 18.16 | 124 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KOONDROOK-BAR | 0.0 | 3.1 | 5.4 | 6.3 | 39 |
VOTES
3 – Rylee Smith (Kerang)
2 – Josh Hann (Kerang)
1 – Michael Dalrymple (Kerang)
