BALRANALD have completed a great escape against a valiant Koondrook-Barham side, the Roos clawing back an early deficit to win by just three points to continue their undefeated start to the season.
The River Raiders turned it on early at their home ground, but Balranald’s grit and a few tactical changes brought them back into the game to win 10.9 (69) to 10.6 (66).
Koondrook-Barham leapt out of the blocks, kicking the first five goals of the game before Balranald could hit the scoreboard.
In search of their first win, the River Raiders’ intensity took the Roos by surprise, and after full forward Warren Lolicato slotted his third goal in the opening term Balranald were forced to make changes.
So good was Lolicato’s start, Balranald co-coach Jydon Neagle was swung into a defensive lockdown role against the strong Koondrook-Barham forward.
But Lolicato’s day was cut agonisingly short after sustaining a calf injury shortly after half-time, leaving the Raiders to keep up the scoreboard pressure without one of their main threats.
Half-forward Kye Atwell slotted into the hole left by Lolicato, kicking four goals to finish as the game’s leading goalkicker.
River Raiders coach Will Callow was full of praise for his full-forward and his team’s forward structure.
“Waz was on early, Jydon went back to play full-back on him so that’s how well he was going,” he said.
“We came with a plan and executed well, they have some serious star power so we had to work as a team to combat their impact on the game.
“We had a very even contribution across the board and thats the message behind close doors, play your role and you’ll get your turn to shine.
“Ultimately, we didn’t get the result we wanted, we played disciplined football for the majority of the day and came up short I’ve been proud of the groups progress.
“Despite being zero and five (win-loss record), the group continues to push each other to get better.”
River Raiders ruckman Mitch Christensen was huge throughout the game, enabling his midfielders with classy tap wok.
Koondrook-Barham skippers Jack Shannon and Pat Goble and fellow onballer Jason Hurt were key to the strong start for their side, hitting contests hard and winning the hard ball at all costs.
Balranald coach Tom Lister said the pair were the difference makers before his own midfield fought their way into the game.
“It definitely was an escape, very lucky to get out of that one,” Lister said.
“They smashed us at the contest from pretty much the start to the end.
“(Shannon and Hurt) were matched up on Matthew Neagle and Kobe Lloyd, and they beat them in and spread quicker than us.
“They had us absolutely cooked there for most of it and I still don’t know how we got away with the four points.
“They were just in first, went in lower and harder, a lot more physical and they got it going that way.”
Going into half-time 20 points down, Lister and Jydon Neagle put it on their midfielders to get on top of the contest and bring their side back into the game.
“We basically said it’s not going to be easy from here,” Lister said.
“We’re not going to win it in a quarter, it’s just going to be a slow grind.
“We put it on the midfield to start getting our hands on the ball.
It was a sudden switch in the second half for the Roos, who quickly found their way back into the game, kicking five goals to two in the latter half.
With Jydon Neagle moving back into the middle, Balranald hit their strides with their transition forward and cut down on their turnovers in the midfield.
As the game reached its final stages, Balranald’s pressure grew even more – the Roos weathering some last-gasp attacks from Koondrook-Barham to put themselves ahead by three points in the final moments of the match.
Balranald will host Woorinen in a second versus fourth showdown next Saturday, while the River Raiders will travel to Tyntynder full of hope as they hunt their first win of the year.
FINAL SIREN
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final Score |
| KOONDROOK BARHAM | 5.2 | 8.3 | 8.4 | 10.6 | 66 |
| BALRANALD | 3.1 | 5.1 | 8.5 | 10.9 | 69 |
VOTES:
3 – Kye Attwell (Koondrook-Barham)
2 – Kobe Lloyd (Balranald)
1 – Mitchell Christensen (Koondrook-Barham)
