THE Mallee Eagles have put this year’s finals aspirants on notice that they too are genuine premiership contenders with a shock five-point win over Balranald at Greenham Park on Saturday.
In a match that ebbed and flowed, the visitors finished strongest, kicking eight of the last 14 goals to claim their fourth win of the season, 13.10 (88) to 12.11 (83).
The win moves the Eagles move into the top five for the first time this season, while Balranald’s second home loss in a row dropped them from second to fourth.
Eagles co-coach Harry Allen said the belief generated from the win was set to propel the Lalbert-based side into the second half of the season after the King’s Birthday bye.
“Any time you beat a top team, but particularly Balranald in Balranald, it’s a great result,” Allen said.
“It’s always a tough game for us when we play them up there, even when they were struggling on the ladder, it was always a game that we pencilled in as being a tough slog.
“But we were pretty confident going into the game, we know our best footy stacks up against the better teams and we thought if we could produce our best for four quarters, that we’d be in with a strong chance of a win.
“There was basically a kick in it all day and it went goal for goal, it certainly had that finals-like feeling being a high-pressure game and that suited our game style.
“While it was just another game, it was good to frank our form, we’ve been pretty good since the Kerang game and we just needed to back that form up again, so we’re pretty content.
“There’s still plenty of the season to go and we’ve still got a fight on our hands, but we’re making up for our sluggish start to the season.
“It’s just more proof that we know where we sit amongst the competition and we’re confident now that we can beat anybody going forward.”
Among the Eagles’ better players were Allen himself, who has been in scintillating form since his return from a pre-season ankle injury, along with defenders Joe Halloran and Harry McGregor, and forwards Andrew Mead-Harding (three goals) and Darcy Hourigan (four).
Jai Middleton and Jordan Wilkins had a competitive battle in the ruck, with Middleton pushing forward and kicking three goals to take the honours.
Zac O’Meara across half-back and Darcy McGregor on the wing were key contributors for the visitors.
The most influential player on the ground, however, was Drew Lloyd, the Roos utility finishing the afternoon with six goals in a best-on-ground display.
Lloyd was instrumental up forward in the first half and was at his electric best, along with brother Kobe and Jaxon Neagle, who continued his strong season leading Balranald’s back six.
“We played OK in patches, but again, we couldn’t sustain it for long enough,” Balranald co-coach Tom Lister said.
“It was a hard game in the contest, as we expected and I thought we did fine in there, but our skill errors cost us goals at crucial times and our inability to convert in front of goal, especially in the last quarter, clearly hurt us.
“We were able to get space and use it, but then we would just turn the ball over and be all caught offside.
“Quite simply, (Mallee Eagles) played more consistently for longer and their skills by foot were far better than ours, so credit to them.”
While Balranald escaped the heavily contested game with a clean bill of health, the Eagles lost Wes Bennett to a minor hamstring strain. An assessment on the midfielder-forward’s availability will be made after the King’s Birthday bye.
SCORES
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final Score |
| Balranald | 4.2 | 6.5 | 10.7 | 12.11 | 83 |
| Mallee Eagles | 3.5 | 5.7 | 10.9 | 13.10 | 88 |
VOTES
3 – Drew Lloyd (Balranald)
2 – Harry Allen (Mallee Eagles)
1 – Zac O’Meara (Mallee Eagles)
