KOONDROOK-Barham will start next season on the winners’ list, after the River Raiders ended their 32-game losing streak with a seven-point victory over Tyntynder on Saturday.
The win had been building for several weeks, pushing reigning premiers Kerang all the way seven days earlier, after also falling just three goals short against Lake Boga in round 15.
As impressive as the Raiders were, Tyntynder were equally disappointing, with the Bulldogs’ faint finals hopes now completely extinguished by the 10.11 (71) to 10.4 (64) loss.
Young star Will Lake was the hero for the home side, kicking the winning goal in the dying minutes the ice the game after Justin Ellis missed an opportunity for Tyntynder only moments earlier.
Lake’s composure in those hectic final minutes gained praise from Koondrook-Barham coach Will Callow, who earned his first win in charge of his home club since taking the reins two seasons ago.
“It was a pretty satisfying day,” Callow said.
“Obviously we’re a pretty young team, but to see the growth and development of the boys and for them to keep fronting up when you haven’t won a game for so long shows true character.
“We have about five players under 20 and another four or five that are aged 21 and 22, and they were the ones that really stood up in the moments when the game was there to be won.
“Will (Lake) iced the game, we were up by a point in those final minutes but just his composure was fantastic. For an 18-year-old to go back and kick a goal in that moment, you can’t buy that experience.
“To finally get that win has been amazing. I wish it could have come sooner because I think the group will grow from it, but it’s just good to get a win and get a bit of validation for their improvement.
“We were just hungrier I felt, we’ve been playing some really good footy lately, but we were desperate for the footy and just wanted the win.
“We’ve never really had more than half the team getting over 15 to 20 disposals for most of the season, we’ve always had two or three getting high disposals, but over the last couple of weeks we’ve just been really even across the board and sharing the load.”
Jack Thrum and Jack Shannon were sensational around the footy and were clearly among the River Raiders’ better players, along with Kye Attwell, whose four-goal haul was the difference between the home side kicking a winning score and not.
Attwell’s ability to provide his midfielders with a target inside their forward half of the ground was one of the keys to success, with the developing key forward continuing to improve the longer the season has progressed.
Also among the River Raiders’ better players was Tom Amor, who was given the task of quelling Bulldogs forward Jayden Magro, and James Martin, who was assigned to Marcus Wattie.
Although Wattie didn’t reach his usually lofty heights, he was still one of the Bulldogs’ better players, along with veterans Mick Dedini and Ellis.
Also among the visitors’ bests were Brock Storer, Cameron Cook and Isaiah Bull.
Although Saturday was Koondrook-Barham’s final match for the year, with a bye next Saturday, Tyntynder will front up for their final game of the home-and-away season when they host Woorinen at Alan Garden Reserve in what has quickly developed into a must-win game for the Tigers.
SCORES
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final Score |
| Koondrook-Barham | 3.5 | 5.7 | 7.11 | 10.11 | 71 |
| Tyntynder | 2.0 | 4.1 | 8.2 | 10.4 | 64 |
VOTES
3 – Kye Attwell (Koondrook-Barham)
2 – Jack Shannon (Koondrook-Barham)
1 – Jack Thrum (Koondrook-Barham)
