Eastern Ranges 1.3  4.3  7.4  10.5 (65)

THIS is the kind of team the Rebels need to beat in TAC Cup under-18 finals – a top-four metropolitan rival in Eastern Ranges.

The Rebels held strong when play was close in the opening half, then kicked their game up a notch to power to a 93-point win at Eureka Stadium on Saturday.

North Ballarat Rebels were exciting – Yestin Eades added spark up forward with impressive work in a five-goal display but equally, teammates Jacob Hopper, Hugh McCluggage and Callan Wellings would bob up with some forward bite.

Rebels captain Darcy Tucker absolutely starred. Joe Symons, Matt Johnston and Josh Webster did the solid grunt work through the midfield.

This solid, all-round team performance pleased David Loader, who said it was the most complete effort from his team this season – and another small step forward in their progress.

“We just got great balance around the ground. There were some really good passages of play but it was our overlap run and ability to spread – we probably got Eastern on the outside a little bit a few times,” Loader said.

“That was important for us to be solid and play four descent quarters of footy against a team that we really think will be there when the whips are cracking.”

The Rebels must wait to learn the full extent of an injury to decorated forward Jarrod Berry, who is scheduled to have scans on Sunday for a dislocated shoulder. The under-18 all-Australian sustained the injury in the third quarter. He remained sidelined through the final term. Berry had been in dominant form against the Ranges, booting four goals.

Loader said his team went away from the game plan a couple of times, but was overall, pretty solid with a nice even spread of goal-kickers. ​

There are three rounds until TAC Cup finals but the competition will first break for a development weekend. The Rebels will return to action for a road trip to Morwell on August 16 with their last two games home at Eureka Stadium.