Blustery winds and heavy rain fall didn’t deter the Stony Creek Lions as, they took down the struggling MDU Demons by 82-points at Meeniyan on Saturday.
It was clear early on that the Demons would be keeping a close eye on star forward Kael Bergles. Brenton Arnup was given the direct job with Matt Harris and Nick Moore zoning in front of the pair at different stages throughout the day. But it didn’t take long for the superstar goal kicker to get his hands on the ball 0ff a great delivery from Lachie Thomas. Bergles marked and ran around to improve the angle for the first major of the game. But the Demons lifted their intensity through the midfield and started to control the play, using their spare behind the ball to switch the play across half back leading to a flying shot on goal from Tom Corry for a great reply. A few repeated entries by the Lions were to no avail, but the work of Bergles to bring the ball to ground for his smaller forwards was superb, with Jackson Nolan getting on the end of a good piece of play for the Lions’ second. The Demons gained another reasonably quick reply through , Jake Proctor’s snap around the body and the home side looked inspired. The rain began to set in which saw the skills from both sides drop significantly, but as if it were still dry, Bergles clunked a strong grab to then run around and snap a beauty from the boundary. The siren sounded after a shot from Jason Byrnes didn’t quite make the journey and the Lions held an 8-point lead, with the Demons taking the fight right to them.
But that’s just about where it stopped for MDU, with Lions clearly finding an extra gear after the quarter time break. Seven unanswered goals in the second term saw the lead blow out to 55-points at half time, a super effort considering the conditions. If Bergles wasn’t kicking goals he was creating a contest for his crumbers, and along with forward partner Jason Byrnes, the pair created a potent attacking duo. Darcy Atkins and Sam Marriott ran riot through the midfield, getting the ball cleared long and direct to the mouth of goal.
The pouring rain saw just the one goal kicked by the Lions for the third term, but the damage had well and truly been done. Bergles nailed his sixth for the afternoon in the final term as the Lions completed a top performance running out 82-point victors.
South Gippsland Sentinel Times

Fish Creek were winners at home at Terrill Park to Tarwin on Saturday on what was a bleak winter‘s day.

The Sharks had already beaten the Kangaroos this year and they were hopeful of a showing like that of their Round 1 encounter.

Tarwin won the toss and kicked with a solid wind advantage to the creek end, but from very early on however it was evident that it was going to be a tough day out for the Sharks. The Kangaroos were red hot early on and they had three goals on the board in the opening 10 minutes through Shaw, Cooper and Seccull and all this before the Sharks had ventured into their forward 50. The Sharks had to do something and so they started to try to get under the skin of the Fish Creek team to put them off their game and in turn get themselves into the encounter. At the 12-minute mark Fish Creek’s Macri and Tarwin’s Pastura were headed to the bench, yellow carded for not much more than a wrestle really but the umpires were keen to ensure that they kept control of the match as it was showing signs of turning ugly with plenty of small spot fires around the contests. Tarwin managed their first goal only a minute later through Williams but Fish Creek held firm to shut down any further advancement by the Sharks and late in the quarter the Kangaroos scored the final goal of the term to Hargraves with a pack bursting run and goal of the day.

The second quarter wasn’t much of a spectacle with the conditions not really allowing either team to play their normal style of game. Fish Creek’s Oaten kicked the opener only two minutes in and then the fans would have to wait 15 minutes before the next goal to Tarwin’s Williams again who was causing some headaches down back for Fish Creek. The Kangas closed out the half the stronger however and goals to Seccull and Harfield Park just before the long break had the margin out to 39 points.

Two goals apiece in the third quarter but again the game wasn’t a great spectacle for the supporters with intermittent showers and a strong wind blowing. At the final change the Sharks needed something special against the wind down by 42 points, but the final quarter never reached any lofty heights for either side but the Kangaroos, strong in defence led by Hayes and Gay kept Tarwin scoreless while they added a couple of goals to Smith and a third for the day to Seccull and in the end, the Kangaroos ran out comfortable 57-point winners.

South Gippsland Sentinel Times

Toora was almost back to full strength and looked fighting ht in its victory over Foster on Saturday. The Magpies were stung by injuries early in the season, but had some of its key players back in the line up.
In wet conditions at Toora, the teams looked even in the first quarter. Foster set the standard and kicked two early goals through Shaun Chaseling and Michael Green. Toora dug deep and responded with four goals on the board. One of these was an impressive goal from Luke Manders on the boundary. Two were kicked by young player Brady Mitchell. This gave him the confidence boost he needed, and he kicked four goals for the game.
Things took a bad turn for Foster after Peter Coelli suffered a leg fracture in the first quarter. Coelli will need at least six weeks to recover, so will only return to Foster in the 2018 season if the Tigers lead a solid finals campaign.
Toora continued to play as a unit into the second quarter and kept a hold on the lead. Each time Foster put a score on the board, Toora replied. Jack Weston was Toora’s man of the match. This was his first game back since a cheek fracture put him on the sidelines for six weeks. Weston played on ball and provided plenty of run into the forward line. Lincoln Toner dominated in the centre and gained the advantage for the midfielders. Richard Jaroszczuk was another returning player. He hasn’t played since round two and made a big difference out on the field.
Foster had plenty of the ball in the third quarter. The Tigers moved Nathan Grylls into the middle to come up against Toner, and began winning the centre clearances. Jonathon Segat responded to Grylls well, handling the ball well out of the centre. His tackling pressure in the second half was unbelievable. However, Foster couldn’t convert its opportunities.
At the end of the day, Toora’s accuracy made the difference. Toora ran over Foster in the last quarter to take the four points.
The Great Southern Star

Toora v Foster match review taken from article published by The Great Southern Star. To view original article on full online subscribe to The Great Southern Star here https://subscribe.realviewtechnologies.com/global/subscribe/rvportal/subscribe.aspx?cpid=14439

MDU v Stony Creek and Fish Creek v Tarwin match reviews taken from articles published by South Gippsland Sentinel Times. To view original articles in full online subscribe to South Gippsland Sentinel Times here https://subscribe.realviewtechnologies.com/global/subscribe/rvportal/subscribe.aspx?cpid=14264

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