KOONDROOK-Barham’s hopes of breaking a six-year finals drought will all come down to this Saturday’s match against Tooleybuc-Manangatang following their shock 23-point loss to Lake Boga on the weekend.
Having sat inside the top five for the majority of the season, the Raiders have been replaced by the Saints following the defeat.
While the Magpies stunned Koondrook-Barham with their defensive pressure and attack on the ball, the Raiders could also be considered their own worst enemy with inaccurate goalkicking throughout the match coming back to haunt them.
The Raiders would finish the day with two more scoring shots than Lake Boga in the 10.9 (69) to 5.16 (46) result, with Koondrook-Barham coach Marcus Demaria frustrated with his team’s overall skill errors.
“I thought we actually started off well but couldn’t quite convert and from that point on, Boga controlled most parts of the game,” Demaria said post-match.
“They defended really well and maintained their pressure on us forcing us to turn the ball over and make poor decisions.
“They were more disciplined and committed to their roles as well.”
Although Koondrook-Barham’s defeat was the story of the day, it was Lake Boga’s day overall with the Magpies showing that their investment in youth development over the past two seasons is starting to pay off.
After an encouraging performance against Tooleybuc-Manangatang in their last match, where they lost by just 17 points, the Magpies are now beginning to believe in themselves according to senior coach Dean Helmers.
“They’re starting to play some real solid footy, they’re hitting their straps that’s for sure,” he said.
“Last week we were every bit as good as Tooleybuc-Manangatang, we just couldn’t quite break free and get our attacking game going.
“We’ve had to wait most of the year for a few of the younger guys to mature a bit and come up and play senior footy like silk, and bloody Darcy Butler and all these guys, and now that we’ve got these guys playing it just makes us so much more dangerous.
“(Rex) Hickman, Darcy Butler, Jayden Lonergan, Bryce Anderson, we’ve got targets everywhere now and I know for the most part they’re only kids, but they’ve given us plenty to work with.
“We can start moving a few magnets now, which I haven’t really been able to do earlier in the year.
“It’s no secret but we wanted to get as many games into the kids as we could so the side was always unsettled earlier in the year because we were rotating players through every week.
“We’re a little bit more settled now, but we’ve got the top two teams over the last two weeks so we’ll just try and be competitive and keep building.”
Among Lake Boga’s better players were the experienced duo of Rex Hickman and Braden Padmore, with Hickman working up the ground to give the Magpies a target across half forward and through the centre and Padmore winning possessions at will around the contest.
Also playing a key role for the Magpies was Ryan Fox on the wing, who produced perhaps his best game of the season, along with forward Darcy Butler and onballer Zac Warne, who came into the match under an injury cloud.
Benji Neal was again a standout for Koondrook-Barham along with Harry Bremner, who continued his strong first season in River Raider colours.
SCORES
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final Score |
| Koondrook Barham | 2.4 | 4.8 | 4.10 | 5.16 | 46 |
| Lake Boga | 2.1 | 8.5 | 9.7 | 10.9 | 69 |
VOTES
3 – Braden Padmore (Lake Boga)
2 – Rex Hickman (Lake Boga)
1 – Ryan Fox (Lake Boga)
