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LAKE WENDOUREE V BALLARAT
Rival coaches Dale Power and Joe Carmody echoed similar frustrations after Lake Wendouree and Ballarat played out a bye in the Ballarat Football League at CE Brown Reserve on Saturday.
Each reflected on the cost of straying away from game styles which had put their sides in winning positions to instead try to protect leads.
Ballarat gave up a 41-point lead in the third quarter to earn its first premiership points of the season.
Lakers took a five-point lead when young defender Josh Bibby snapped their sixth goal of the last term on 26 minutes.
Sam James replied with less than two minutes to play and then Liam Hepworth tied up the scores with a behind from a set shot.
While Carmody took plenty of positives out of the game - the performance being a vast improvement on the Swans' thrashing at the hands of Bacchus Marsh in the previous round - he still rued the way players had chosen to try to protect the lead when they had Lakers at their mercy.
This was a focus of his post-match address..
"We've learnt today you cannot stop and attempt to protect a lead."
Carmody said this also reflected the need to be better and more consistent from quarter to quarter.
"Our best is good. We just need to be at our best more often."
Ballarat restricted Lakers to one goal in the first half to lead by 28 points, but allowed nine majors after half-time.
Power expressed some frustration about the Lakers' mindset to go conservative in the last moments after hitting the lead rather than continuing to press as they had in wearing down the Swans.
He said finding consistency on a week-to-week basis was Lake Wendouree's biggest challenge at the moment.
Power said players had gone into the game with a mindset that the win was just going to happen.
Josh Bibby and Jack Elkington were rock solid in defence for Lakers, while Bailey Edwards was a catalyst of the fight back as he opened up space through the midfield..
Onballer Sam James again provided spark for Ballarat. Bailey Van de Heuvel and Taylor Sutton had lead roles in a hard-working defence.
Lake Wendouree started the season well enough, with wins over North Ballarat City and Sebastopol in rounds two and three. but losses to Redan and now Ballarat have it back in a tightly bunched mid-table pack.
INJURIES
LAKE WENDOUREE
Kynan Raven knee
BALLARAT
Jed Hill "bad" hamstring
Nick Weightman hamstring - recurrence after initially suffering injury in opening round and missing three games
Lake Wendouree 1.2 1.6 4.8 10.12 (72)
Ballarat 2.2 6.4 9.6 11.6 (72)
GOALS - Lake Wendouree: N. Pring 3, J. Bibby 2, W. Henderson, J. Coxall, L. Hepworth, B. Taylor, A. Simpson. Ballarat: S. James 3, C. Prendergast 2, J. Hill 2, J. Nicholls, J. Blackburn, A. Hooper, B. Fraser
BEST - Lake Wendouree: J. Elkington, C. Hepworth, W. Henderson, T. McKechnie, B. Edwards, J. Bibby. Ballarat: S. James, C. Prendergast, W. Garner, G. Baldwin, B. Van de Heuvel, T. Sutton
EAST POINT V MELTON SOUTH
EAST Point kept Melton South goalless in a 191-point victory at the Eastern Oval.
The winless Panthers missed early chances in front of the big sticks and then the further the match went the harder the relentless Kangaroos made it.
More than anything the outcome highlighted just how well East Point is going.
Melton South had its share of the football, particularly at stoppages.
The Panthers had their hands on the football much more than the scoreline might indicate, but they were hurt by repeated turnovers.
And the longer the game went, the harder it was for Melton South to keep hold of the ball.
East Point coach Jake Bridges again tested the versatility of his squad, with regular forward and goalkicker Bryson McDougall given a role across half back.
He did not look out of place and there was no shortage of opportunitists in attack despite his absence.
Brad Whittaker's vice-like hands meant he hardly missed a mark which went his way, enabling him to join Jordan Johnston in kicking five goals apiece.
Paul Bower gave his all for Melton South, with his strength and guise providing a few problems for the Kangaroos, but ultimately he was swamped by numbers.
East Point 5.3 12.8 23.15 29.22 (196)
Melton South 0.0 0.2 0.3 0.5 (5)
GOALS - East Point: B. Whittaker 5, J. Johnston 5, J. Ottavi 4, M. Johnston 2, A. Nestor 2, D. Tung 2, J. Mahar 2, J. McQueen 2, C. Bilney, L. Dahlenburg, M. Rotumah-Onus, L. Thornton, J. Brown
BEST - East Point: J. Johnston, M. Rotumah-Onus, B. Whittaker, A. Nestor, J. McQueen, J. Lench. Melton South: B. Cottam, A. Clarke, D. Vasjuta, P. Bower, D. Leggett, M. Sullivan
DARLEY V NORTH BALLARAT CITY
Darley took the points against North Ballarat City at Darley Park, but might be without star onballer Brian Graham for a few weeks after he was reported.
He has been offered a two-week suspension after an incident involving Josh Bromley-Lynch in the second quarter.
Graham was sidelined for 15 minutes after being shown a yellow card, but not even this was enough for North Ballarat to get back into contention after a slow start.
Darley opened up with six goals to City's nil.
Darley coach Heath Scotland said the Devils were okay in patches, but still had work to do.
He said they had fallen away a little and had regained control when it counted.
Jake Edwards again underlined his versatility by playing forward and kicking four goals.
North Ballarat coach Shane Skontra said City was again hurt by poor execution, with Darley in its ball use cleaner.
"We're getting opportunities, but not finishing off our work.
"It's a work in progress."
INJURIES
NORTH BALLARAT CITY
Josh Bromley-Lynch knee (patella)
Darley 6.1 8.2 11.4 13.9 (87)
North Ballarat City 0.5 3.6 5.9 9.12 (66)
GOALS - Darley: J. Edwards 4, L. Baker 2, M. Hanson, J. Ancrum, H. Inglis, J. Pattison, B. Colley, J. Cadman, B. Graham. North Ballarat City: C. McCallum 3, H. Loader 2, T. Speirs, W. Young, I. Johnson, R. O''Keefe
BEST- Darley: J. Edwards, S. Page, J. Carrick, L. Baker, N. Reynolds, J. Zeestraten. North Ballarat City: T. Speirs, D. Jones, C. McCallum, R. Luke, O. Nash, S. Bromley-Lynch
BACCHUS MARSH V SUNBURY
Four goals from limited opportunities into the wind in the opening quarter provided Bacchus Marsh with the springboard to a 38-point win over Sunbury at Maddingley Park on Saturday.
Cobras premiership coach Travis Hodgson was hoping to make a triumphant return to the Marsh with Sunbury, but the Lions again stumbled away from home.
Bacchus Marsh coach Peter Davey said the first term was the key to a second consecutive win.
He said matching Sunbury's four majors into what he described as three-goal win set up the day.
"We made the most of our chances and then followed up six (goals)."
This gave the Cobras a 35-point lead halfway - a margin which proved too much for Sunbury to make up.
Davey was particularly please some of his younger and less experienced players such as Jack Parente, who is still eligible for under-17s, Jack Lalor and Tom Wardell.
Wardell has grabbed the opportunity he has been given across half back and is one of the Cobras' big improvers.
Kane Dickson was another to catch the eye of the coach with his negating of VFL-listed Dylan Landt.
After straight losses, the Cobras now has some impetus going into a bye which offers another four premiership points.
Hodgson said with Sunbury unable to match Bacchus Marsh's effort into the wind, the damage was done on the scoreboard in the second term.
He said from there the task was just too much, meaning another loss away from home.
Hodgson said he remained confident that the club had the depth - their reserves top the reserves ladder - to achieve the objective of finishing in the top six, but losses such as this certainly added pressure.
INJURIES
BACCHUS MARSH
Billy Griffiths suspected concussion
Liam Mullen hamstring
Bacchus Marsh 4.2 10.9 13.11 17.12 (114)
Sunbury 4.3 5.4 8.8 11.10 (76)
GOALS - Bacchus Marsh: A. Willitts 4, J. Lalor 3, J. Owen 3, B. Griffiths 2, T. Shea, J. Parente, N. Stuhldreier, D. Phyland, D. Burton. Sunbury: J. Landt 3, L. Brennan 2, J. Eales 2, L. Bramble 2, A. Goodson, L. Berry
BEST - Bacchus Marsh: T. Wardell, D. Burton, J. Owen, N. Stuhldreier, A. Willitts, J. Parente. Sunbury: L. Bramble, A. Magin, L. Brennan, M. Conn, L. Berry
SEBASTOPOL V REDAN
Redan made relatively light work of Sebastopol at Marty Busch Reserve, finishing with a 35-point win.
While the Lions have had a dream start to be unbeaten, Sebastopol has just one win to its name.
Burra coach Leigh Hutchinson admits they are behind the eight-ball and need to lift.
He said everyone could beat everyone in the competition and on this occasion they had been beaten by the better side.
He believes with more continuity now that they most of its players back Sebastopol could turn things around.
Hutchinson said Sebastopol had opportunities to be closer, but had not delivered the required workrate.
Redan 3.4 7.7 12.10 14.11 (95)
Sebastopol 0.1 2.4 5.9 8.12 (60)
GOALS - Redan: D. Chester 4, G. Bell 4, B. Thomson 2, C. Craig-Peters, L. O''Brien, L. George, A. Harvey. Sebastopol: J. Keeble 3, D. Widgery, M. Cain, L. Cassidy, L. Kiel, T. Thoolen
BEST - Redan: O. Stephenson, L. Hoy, Z. Jenkins, L. George, G. Bell, K. Waterbury. Sebastopol: L. Cassidy, T. Lockyer, L. Kiel, T. Thoolen, J. Keeble