By John McGregor

It was a solid, workmanlike and no-frills 19-point win for Springbank on Saturday against a Waubra outfit that has plummeted from the Central Highlands Football League top eight.

The Tigers’ injury worries continued with coach Michael Searl leaving the ground with a knee problem.

But there was a silver lining...16-year-old debutante Luke Boers plugged a hole for the Tigers and kicked his first senior goal.

Another under-18 player Kieran Maher joined his two brothers Joel and Brett to form a rare Tiger trio.

And Searl was rapt in the youngsters’ progress.

“We’re pleased to blood some of those kids from under-18s. It’s a good thing to give the kids a taste of senior footy and continue to develop them.

“Also build that relationship so that when they transition from 18s to senior footy, they know the boys and are comfortable in that environment.”

Springbank’s scoreboard pressure came from Tyler George, who had three majors for the day, and Lochlan Douglas and Billy Driscoll, who slotted home two each.

Searl kicked the first goal of the clash, while Matt Lakey and Brandon Rix joined him on the scoresheet with singles.

Without a doubt, Springbank’s best on ground was Brock Freeman, who matched it in the ruck contest with Waubra’s Geordie Lukich and held tough everywhere he went.

George and Driscoll showed a clean pair of heels around the centre and drove the ball forward, while Shannon Donegan was outstanding in defence.

Like the top-of-the-table Springbank, Waubra had some sore bodies and was thin on resources by the end of the game.

In a positive, the club’s chief goal-kicker Tim Boyle managed to get some touch back after a few scoring droughts in the past few weeks. Boyle kicked four goals, with one each quarter.

Austin Murphy took his chances with a bag of three majors and Joshua Doggett had one goal for the day.

Waubra skipper Tom Nash stood out and so did Nick Dinsdale and Ben Wilson. Tim Mullane, Will Booth and Matt Dawson continue to improve every week.

Roos coach Grant Luscombe was frustrated at the lapses in concentration which has dogged recent outings.

“Young players do produce some inconsistencies, but you’ve got to match it with these sides the whole game,” he said.

“We thought we had some depth… our twos are doing well… but we didn’t match it with them for long enough.”

The Roos are now ninth on the ladder.

Bungaree 10.13 (73) d Learmonth 7.7 (49)

By Tim O'Connor

It was far from pretty, but Bungaree emerged from Saturday’s battle with Learmonth victorious to consolidate its place inside the Central Highlands Football League top four.

In a scrappy contest littered with skill errors, the Demons broke free of the Lakies in the last quarter to secure an important 24-point win on home soil.

The result was in dispute for most of the clash, with the two sides trading the lead throughout the opening three terms.

Bungaree held a narrow three-point advantage at the final change and then took control of the contest in the last quarter.

Star ruckman David Benson was the best player on the ground and he was the architect of the Demons’ first goal in the final term. His tap at a stoppage found Joel Mirtschin, who snapped truly to give the hosts a nine-point buffer.

Jye Rich quickly hit back for the Lakies, before Benson took a big mark and converted his second of the day.

Mirtschin then bobbed up twice deep in the final term to seal the Demons’ win.

He was the most dangerous forward for the afternoon and finished with four goals, while the Bungaree backline was led by Jack Oostendorp and Jackson Murphy in the absence of Chris Cowan, who left the field after a heavy collision with Lakies forward Brodrick Campbell in the opening term. Campbell also failed to take any further part in the match.

There weren’t too many standouts for the Lakies, but Michael Zelencich and Scott Whiting were solid around the contest, Richard Zelencich kicked two nice goals before coming off with what appeared a lower back/hamstring injury in the last quarter, Nathan Ross was solid down back and Brenton Powell showed glimpses of class.

The success leaves Bungaree fourth on the ladder – a game clear of fifth-placed Gordon – ahead of the competition break next weekend.

“I thought we were pretty good in the contest and felt that if we could capitalise and hit the scoreboard, we were always going to kick away with the win,” Bungaree coach Heath Pyke told The Courier.

“But to their credit, they stuck with us all day and it took us until probably the 15 minute mark of the last quarter to really shake them off and kick a couple late.”

Learmonth coach Steve Biggin said the result showed his team was probably a little bit behind the better sides of the competition and believed the Lakies lacked a few quality players needed to be a genuine finals outfit.

Buninyong 20.13 (133) d Clunes 2.6 (18)

By Tim O'Connor

Buninyong forward Jake Dunne produced another impressive display in his team’s big win over Clunes.

Dunne starred in the Bombers’ victory against Carngham-Linton in round 10 and was at his damaging best once again in a 115-point drubbing of the Magpies on Saturday.

He kicked six goals, while coach Jarrod Morgan played deep forward and finished with five majors. Ned Gilbert and Nick Shell were other standouts for the winners.

Ballan 17.16 (118) d Carngham-Linton 9.4 (58)

By Tim O'Connor

Ballan registered a third victory from its last four starts on Saturday with a comprehensive win over Carngham-Linton.

The Blues followed up the previous weekend’s draw against Creswick by handing the Saints a 60-point defeat.

The success in front of home supporters has lifted the side to 10th on the Central Highlands Football League ladder.

Ballan led Saturday’s clash by 40 points at half time before booting eight goals to six in the last two terms to secure the 17.16 (118) to 9.4 (58) result.

Adam Kurzman was the leading forward on the ground with three goals for the Blues, while Sam Sher, Jarryd Graham, Darren Tanti, Sam Hitchings and Jake Wilkie all kicked two each.

Ballan coach Jason McNamara had a good day in the midfield alongside Tanti and he rated the performances of ruckman Dan Christie and Ash Mullane in defence.

“Our last month we have won three and drawn one and we are starting to play our brand of footy by controlling possession,” McNamara, who kicked a goal, told The Courier.

While 10th on the ladder, Ballan remains 10 points behind the eighth-placed Learmonth with six games left in the home and away season.

After the break, the Blues prepare for a clash against Clunes before another week off with the Smythesdale bye.

Carngham-Linton was best served by Tim Clarke, Jake Pring and Brodie Lewis on Saturday, with Dean O’Brien and mid-season recruit James Quayle the best of the forwards with two goals each.

The Saints, which are 15th on the ladder, have Dunnstown in round 12 before a tough run of games against Beaufort, Hepburn and Waubra.

Dunnstown 9.14 (68) d Creswick 9.5 (59)

By Tim O'Connor

Dunnstown’s mid-season charge is well and truly underway with the senior side registering a third-straight win on Saturday afternoon.

The Towners backed up victories against Rokewood-Corindhap and Skipton with a nine-point triumph against Creswick.

Dunnstown looked set for a rather convincing victory at the final change – when it led by 28 points – but the Wickers finished with four goals to one to make the home side earn the result.

The Towners named Joe Stefani, Daniel Harbour and Thomas Botter as their best, with Hepworth boys Liam and Caleb and Rhys Antonio the Wickers’ standouts.

Creswick coach Ryan Knowles kicked a game-high four goals in a losing side.

Daylesford 13.12 (90) d Newlyn 6.7 (43)

By Tim O'Connor

Daylesford has worked its way back into the top eight after handing Newlyn a 47-point defeat on Saturday.

The Bulldogs are seventh on the table after the success, which was soured by the report of Will Hughes, who had his number taken for using abusive, insulting, threatening or obscene language towards an umpire or in relation to an umpire.

Daylesford coach Marcus Goonan said ruckman Sam Winnard was a standout for his side.

Hepburn 28.18 (186) d Rokewood-Corindhap 2.3 (15)

By Tim O'Connor

Andy McKay has continued to push his case for a second Geoff Taylor Medal with another stunning performance in Hepburn’s thrashing of Rokewood-Corindhap.

McKay, who won the league’s highest individual honour in 2012, kicked eight goals in a dominant display for the Burras, which won Saturday’s match by 171 points on home soil.

“We didn’t have a bad player,” Burras coach Jason Olver said.

Beaufort 26.19 (175) d Skipton 0.3 (3)

By Tim O'Connor

Jack Duke kicked his biggest bag since joining Beaufort in the side’s thumping win over Skipton on Saturday.

Duke climbed to second on the league goal-kicking chart with 12 majors in the Crows’ 172-point triumph.

While Duke was named best on ground, he was well assisted by mid-season recruit Jarrod McCorkell in attack and through the middle and Zac Marrow, who had a good game off a wing.

Crows coach Rohan Brown said he was pleased with how his forwards worked together to kick the team’s biggest total of season 2017.

The victory leaves Beaufort in second position on the ladder behind pacesetters Springbank.

Despite a competitive start to the match, the Emus were unable to convert a goal for the entire afternoon.

Skipton coach Greg Middleton said onballer Lakota Stranks was his side’s best.

Following next weekend’s break, the Emus take on Hepburn and the Crows come up against Creswick.