Donald caused the first big upset of the North Central season on the weekend, with the Royal Blues recording a come-from-behind 39-point win over Nullawil on Saturday.
After trailing by four points at three-quarter time, Donald turned it on with an eight goal to one final term to blow the Maroons away 16.13 (109) to 10.10 (70).
It was a strong return to form for the Royal Blues, who were thoroughly outplayed by Birchip-Watchem seven days earlier, with Josh Potter’s men climbing their way back into the top four as a result.
The result, however, leaves Nullawil without a win after their first two matches under new coach Darryl Wilson, with the Maroons now sitting seventh on the North Central ladder and behind the top four teams.
Todd Stevenson proved to be the catalyst for the Royal Blues in the final quarter. The midfielder gave his side first use around the stoppages and helped Donald’s midfield gain the ascendency against Nullawil’s strong on-ball unit.
Ryley Barrack produced a strong four quarter performance along with Daniel Pearce, Dale Kerr and Dyson Bell-Warren.
Jordan Humphreys was a clear standout for Nullawil, while ball winners Matt Quigley, Matthew Wade and Rylee Smith were also among the Maroons better players, along with Mitch Farmer, who finished with three goals and played an almost lone hand up forward at times.
Sea Lake Nandaly and Birchip-Watchem remain as the North Central’s only unbeaten teams after the opening three rounds, with both the Tigers and Bulls recording comfortable wins on the weekend.
Sea Lake Nandaly proved far too strong for Wycheproof-Narraport, with the Tigers restricting the Demons to just a solitary goal on their way to a dominant 119-point victory. The Tigers kicked 11 unanswered goals in the first half to end the game as a contest before the main break, before running away 19.17 (131) to 1.6 (12) winners.
Despite the absence of full-forward Josh Jenkins, and missing injured stars Joel Donnan (Achilles), John Summerhayes (knee) and Brodie Adcock (hamstring), Sea Lake Nandaly were able to do as they pleased.
Co-coach Billy Mcinnes stepped up in Jenkins absence to lead his team to victory with five goals up forward, while Thomas Cox, Wade Donnan, Jack Poulton, Brodie Weir and Bryce Delmenico also among the home teams better players, with Boe Bish, Josh Walsh and Maysen Murgov serviceable for Wycheproof-Narraport.
Birchip-Watchem were the other big winners for the weekend, with the Bulls recovering from a slow start to eventually defeat St Arnaud by 71 points.
Two-time Richmond premiership midfielder/forward Josh Caddy and Melbourne Storm premiership winger Will Chambers suited up for one-off appearances for the Saints. The home side was quick out of the blocks, with St Arnaud holding a seven-point lead at quarter time. Normality soon resumed however, with the Bulls 15 of the next 18 goals for the match on their way to a dominant 16.13 (109) to 5.8 (38) win.
Ben Edwards was again instrumental in attack for Birchip-Watchem, with the key forward kicking his second eight goal haul for the season. Nick and Marshall Rippon, Daniel Bell and Lachlan Ryan were all key contributors in the Bulls third win for the season.
The final match of round 3 was at Charlton Park, where a seven goal to one second half saw Wedderburn run away 56-point winners over the Navies.
Anthony Zelencich kicked four goals for the Redbacks on their way to recording a 14.14 (98) to 6.6 (42) victory over the winless Charlton, with Wedderburn sitting third on the ladder and looking more and more like a team capable of matching it with the big three teams in the North Central.
