Bridgewater returned to form with a hard-fought 26-point win over Bears Lagoon-Serpentine on the weekend, maintaining their grip on second place on the Loddon Valley ladder in the process.
The Mean Machine answered the critics after their disappointing 51-point loss to Pyramid Hill seven days earlier by leading throughout against the Bears in their 13.12 (90) to 9.10 (64) win, which now sets up a mouth-watering top of the ladder clash with undefeated Marong on Saturday.
The battle of the Loddon Valley’s leading goalkickers Josh Mellington and Lachlan Sharp never eventuated, with both key forwards unable to replicate their feats of previous weeks.
Bridgewater’s Andrew Collins kicked a game-high five goals to lead the way up forward for the Mean Machine.
Sharp finished with three goals, while Bears Lagoon-Serpentine’s Mellington could only muster four goals in a dirty day for the key forward, who was also reported for late bump in the first quarter, in which he was also yellow carded.
The win was set up in the opening term, with a five-goal-to-two quarter helping Bridgewater open up a 21-point quarter-time lead.
The Mean Machine then extended that lead to 27 points before the Bears hit back after halftime, cutting the margin to just nine points by the final change.
That would be as close as Jake Wilkinson’s men would get however, with Bridgewater kicking four of the last five goals to run away with the game.
Midfielder Boden Alexander continued his strong start to the season to be named as the Mean Machine’s best player, while Jack Neylon, who had the job on Mellington in the second half, was also in the better players for the home side.
Tyler Miles and Farran Priest were in the best for Bears Lagoon-Serpentine, while Justin Laird was influential in the ruck for the Bears.
The challenges will continue for Bridgewater, with the second-placed Mean Machine to face reigning premiers Marong at Malone Park on Saturday, with the Panthers fresh off another dominant performance, after recording a comfortable 97-point win over Calivil United on the weekend.
The Demons proved competitive in the first half, matching it with Marong in general play and contested ball, before the Panthers put their foot down in the second half, kicking 11 of the final 12 goals on their way to a 19.14 (128) to 5.1 (31) win.
Ryan Wellington kicked six goals for the Panthers, with wingman Cooper Hale and attacking half back Todd Davies also instrumental in the win.
Jack and Sam Maher were named as Calivil United’s better players, along with Sam Green, Kane Shelton and Tom Harcourt.
Inglewood tightened their grip on fifth position with their second win of the season, defeating Maiden Gully-YCW by 56 points in wet conditions.
After a tight opening quarter, the Blues held an eight-point lead at quarter time, before breaking the game open with a six-goal second term and giving themselves a 38-point lead at the main break.
From there, Inglewood were never headed, outscoring the Eagles by a further two goals in the second half as they posted a 19.10 (124) to 10.8 (68) win.
Mitchell Conlan kicked five goals for the Blues, while Will Farrer booted five for the Eagles, with Will Allen, Daniel Polack, Matthew Rowe and Conlan named in the best for Inglewood and Ed Crisp, Bryce Franzini and Grayson Brown the best for MGYCW.
The final match of the round proved to be a one-sided affair, with Pyramid Hill flexing their muscle on the way to recording a 162-point win over winless Mitiamo.
Pyramid Hill dominated the opening 30 minutes in a powerful display of attacking football, kicking eight unanswered goals to end the match as a contest before quarter time.
The afternoon didn’t get much better for the Superoos, who after kicking three goals in the second term, could only manage to add one more for the rest of the match in the 28.21 (189) to 4.3 (27) thrashing.
The Bulldogs had 13 individual goal kickers in the win, with Bailey Scott (six goals) and Zach Alford (five) leading the way, with Brad Ladson, Bailey George, Zac Dingwall and Scott Mann joining Alford as Pyramid Hill’s better players.
