BALRANALD moved to the top of the Central Murray ladder after accounting for an inaccurate Lake Boga by 86 points at the weekend.
Last year’s grand finalists led from start to finish, setting up the 21.8 (134) to 6.12 (48) victory with an 11-goal first half.
It was Lake Boga’s first match under new coach Dean Helmers, and despite losing 19 senior players over the off-season, there were glimpses of promise.
The Magpies showed propensity to run and break the lines, despite being clearly outclassed by a team many feel will be fighting it out for premiership honours.
Balranald co-coach Tom Lister was impressed by his opposition’s attacking game style.
“(Lake Boga) are going to win a few games this year for sure, they strung together some really good passages of play, they just probably couldn’t sustain it for long enough,” Lister said.
“They got us out the back a few times and there was just no stopping them, when we made a mistake, they certainly made us pay.
“As they go throughout the year they’ll gel together as a group and they’ll improve pretty quickly.”
While the home side’s inaccuracy in front of goal hurt, kicking just six goals from 18 scoring shots, an inability to shut down Balranald’s key midfielders cost them dearly.
Matthew Neagle, Kobe Lloyd and Harrison Soraggi dominated out of the middle and around the ground.
Onballer Neagle also kicked five goals, earning best-on-ground praise from Lister.
“Our midfield got on top pretty early, but then our forward line really capitalised on our onballers’ good work as well,” Lister said.
“We’ve got a bit of a different looking forward line this year and it’s working pretty well so far.
“Matt (Neagle) and Kobe (Lloyd) took control early in the midfield and they got their hands on it first for us, along with ‘Larry’ (Jordan Wilkins) who was super in the ruck.
“I was happy enough with our performance, we had a couple of lulls which we probably weren’t overly impressed with, but it’s always nice to just get the win away from home.”
Also among the Roos’ better players were Jack Helgeland, who produced a breakout performance and provided plenty of run from half-back, Drew Lloyd and Jaxon Neagle.
Recruit Josh Wills played well for Lake Boga, the attacking half-back spending periods of time on Roos co-coach Jydon Neagle, while Brodie Tonkin also impressed in the middle along with Zac Warne, Nathaniel Holmes-Brown, Kai Everett and first-gamer Dylan McCosh.
The challenges will continue for Lake Boga this week, when they face off against a much-improved Tyntynder at the Alan Garden Reserve, while Balranald will enjoy a week off before hosting the Bulldogs at Greenham Park.
FINAL SIREN
| Lake Boga | 0.2 | 2.6 | 3.8 | 6.12 | 48 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balranald | 4.3 | 11.4 | 16.4 | 21.8 | 134 |
VOTES
3 – Matthew Neagle (Balranald)
2 – Kobe Lloyd (Balranald)
1 – Drew Lloyd (Balranald)
