NORTH BALLARAT 5.3 (33)

FROM the opening minutes, North Ballarat Roosters were clearly outplayed by a well-drilled, more efficient and talented outfit.

Footscray came out snarling and refused to ease off in a 146-point win against the Selkirk Roosters at Whitten Oval on Sunday.

The reigning Victorian Football League premier has a new coach in Ash Hansen this season, and a new look with an exciting band of players now establishing themselves in the club's AFL ranks, but it was clear the tone head coach Luke Beveridge sets at the top is filtering through.

For all the Roosters' ineffective play and chip kicks making little ground, the Bulldogs were direct and lethal.

The game had its controversy when AFL ruckman Will Minson was reported and sent from the field, late in the second half, for pushing an umpire.

Minson was barred from returning to the ground, but while the Bulldogs could replace him, they lost big man Jarrad Grant at half-time as a standby for the club's AFL game later that afternoon. Grant had booted three goals.

They still had plenty of tall stock to trouble the Roosters - Jack Redpath took control to boot five goals, four in the second half. Tom Campbell dominated the ruck against decorated veteran Orren Stephenson.

The Roosters final score of five goals and five behinds - four goals in the second half - did not even pass the Bulldogs' quarter-time tally of 5.7, made against a scoreless Roosters.

Hansen, who watched the Roosters win at Etihad Stadium last week, admitted he was surprised at the margin.

He holds counterpart Gerard FitzGerald and the Roosters program in high-esteem but said his focus was on his own young team sticking to the game plan and maintaining intensity.

"That's what I'm really proud of because there was that slight distraction (Minson) and then Grant finishing at half-time...young players were exposed to a high percentage of game time and I was rapt with the way they shared the football and that willingness to keep taking the game on," Hansen said.

Onballer Nick Rippon was the Roosters' standout. Rippon made 26 disposals, including 10 in the final quarter. His kicking was effective and he was relentless in his efforts off the ball with six tackles, all in the second half.

Defender Luke Kiel maintained strong and tireless defensive pressure under heavy siege.

The Roosters were mauled at the stoppages and soundly beaten for inside-50s.

FitzGerald said his coaching team did not see the magnitude of that loss coming.

The Roosters recovered well from an Etihad Stadium win after two bad losses in the lead-up.

"Invariably, it's what we do in the next six days to our next game," FitzGerald said.

"There are no easy games and this was a reminder just how much you have to be at your best each and every time."

The Roosters now prepare for the VFL's traditionally formidable assignment - Port Melbourne at Port Melbourne on Saturday.

POSSESSIONS

- Footscray 390 (McRae 30, Webb 30, Hrovat 28)

- North Ballarat 317

NICK RIPPON 26

- 14 kicks, 12 handballs

TONY LOCKYER 21

- 14 kicks, 7 handballs

LUKE KIEL 21

- 9 kicks, 12 handballs

JAMES TSITAS 20

- 12 kicks, 8 handballs

NICK PETERS 20

- 12 kicks, 8 handballs

TACKLES

- Footscray 68

- North Ballarat 51 (Sewell 9, Rippon 6, Kiel 5, Lanyon 5)

HIT-OUTS

- Footscray 66 (Campbell 54, Minson 9)

- North Ballarat 34 (Stephenson 22)

CLEARANCES

- Footscray 57 (Hrovat 9, Webb 9)

- North Ballarat 31 (Sewell 7)

INSIDE-50M

- Footscray 63

- North Ballarat 34

MARKS

- Footscray 97

- North Ballarat 91 (Peters 8, Boseley 8)

MARKS INSIDE-50M

- Footscray 23

- North Ballarat 10

HANDBALLS

- Footscray 172

- North Ballarat 141