WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It was a weekend of celebrations for Carngham-Linton players and supporters after the senior side snapped a lengthy winning drought on Saturday afternoon.
The victory over Daylesford came at the end of a tough week for the club, which publicly announced the sudden departure of head coach Matt Beaston on Wednesday.
Tom Sarah stepped up to replace Beaston for the rest of the 2019 Central Highlands Football League season and started his journey with a bang.
Taking on the Bulldogs in Linton, the Saints got off to a flyer in the first term and from there were never headed.
In the end, the home side prevailed by 43 points.
It was the senior team's first win since way back in round three of the 2018 campaign.
Sarah said there was lots of tears and hugs from people within the club after the senior side prevailed.
"It meant a lot to a lot of the people - it was very good," he said.
"We had a fair crowd there and they were all happy after the game - all grades had wins."
Young gun Dean O'Brien was named best for the Saints ahead of Jayson Porter and Brodie Lewis. O'Brien booted three goals, as did Jake Pring and Ross Waters.
Ruckman Jake Tanner suffered a hand injury in the win.
The success lifts Carngham-Linton off the bottom of the ladder ahead of the break for the Queen's birthday long weekend.
After the break, the Saints have a bye in round nine before a tough battle with Waubra.
The Roos remain undefeated after the opening eight rounds and easily accounted for Learmonth on Saturday.
Daylesford's defeat was its fifth in 2019 and leaves the team 13th on the ladder.
CARNGHAM-LINTON v. DAYLESFORD
Carngham-Linton 5.3, 7.5, 8.7, 15.7 (97)
Daylesford 2.1, 5.1, 6.4, 8.6 (54)
GOALS, Carngham-Linton: Ross Waters 3, Jake Pring 3, Dean O'Brien 3, Jake Tanner 2, Dylan Pearson 2, Jackson Cranny 1, Lachlan Isbister 1
Daylesford: Dylan Muscat 2, Zac Tisdale 2, Thomas Hunt 1, Emlyn Nettleton 1, Eli Kinnell 1, Sam Winnard 1
BEST, Carngham-Linton: Dean O'Brien, Jayson Porter, Brodie Lewis, Lachlan Isbister, Jake Tanner, Wayne Bruty
Daylesford: Thomas Hunt, Cameron Ralph, Zac Tisdale, Christopher Whelan, Emlyn Nettleton
Adam Toohey was on fire as Gordon added to Beaufort's woes and delivered the reigning premiers a third-straight defeat.
Toohey booted eight goals for the Eagles, which won by 37 points.
Onballer Ethan Crackel was named best for Gordon, while Tye Murphy booted three majors in his return from injury.
Beaufort's Steven Lodge was charged with intentionally striking Bradley Horsham from Gordon and will fight the report at the tribunal.
Crows coach Rohan Brown said tall defender Jarrod Trigg went down with a knee injury on Saturday and rated the efforts of ruckman Josh McDermott, winger Joel Chester, defender Dean Kelly and onballer Michael Foster in the defeat.
GORDON v. BEAUFORT
Gordon 3.1, 6.4, 12.5, 16.10 (106)
Beaufort 1.3, 4.6, 8.8, 10.9 (69)
GOALS, Gordon: Adam Toohey 8, Tye Murphy 3, Brendan Sutcliffe 2, Rohan Clampit 1, Bradley Horsham 1, Benjamin Frazer 1
Beaufort: Jayden Orr 2, James Slater 2, Alexander Petrie 2, Mitchell Jenkins 1, Lachlan Murray 1, Dean Kelly 1, Steven Lodge 1
BEST, Gordon: Ethan Crackel, Adam Toohey, Scott Nippress, Bradley Hallam, Luke Gunnell, Mark Gunnell
Beaufort: Michael Foster, Dean Kelly, Josh McDermott, Joseph Mason, Alexander Petrie, Joel Chester
Buninyong was hungrier for the football and more physical as it put away Hepburn at home on Saturday.
The Bombers' 29-point victory was on the back of a fierce defence which held its nerve as the Burras threw everything into the contest.
Scoring opportunities were hard fought and it was Buninyong that persisted.
Bomber Derick Micallef had the home crowd on its feet when he booted two goals in a minute in the final term to put the icing on the cake.
Micallef kicked three majors in the clash, with singles coming from Caius Barrenger, Alex Bomitali, Jarrod Rodgers, Isaac Baker and Jarrod Morgan.
Morgan played both ends of the ground and was a key inclusion after being sidelined with injury.
Those among the best on ground were Bombers Joshua Lee, Fraser Hunt, Rodgers, Jack Robertson, Nick Shell and Jake Dunne.
It was Shell's 100th senior game and it was a smooth performance.
Hepburn's leading goal-scorer Sam Dunstan kicked three... the only majors on the Burras' scoresheet.
It was hard work for Dunstan, who found himself under fire whenever the football came his way.
If there was an award for courage it would go to Hepburn's Tommy Horne. Due to a horrendous facial injury, Horne wears a face mask while he recovers, but it did not stop him leaping into the fray.
Horne was in good company with Ned Johns, Tanner Wills, Ken Cummings, Alan Ware and Julian Lockwood.
Hepburn player Jordan Barnes cooled off on the sidelines when he was yellow-carded by the umpires in the third term.
Barnes was reported for carelessly striking Caius Barrenger and has accepted a one-week set penalty.
There was one injury concern in the Hepburn camp... Rhys Jenkins had to be helped from the field with a sore ankle.
Bombers coach Shaun O'Loughlin is chuffed with the improvement in his team.
"Our goal is to play better and better every week. And we're doing that at the moment. That's the most pleasing thing," he said.
"We're really proud of the boys today. Our method was fantastic. They're really keen to get the best out of themselves."
Burras coach Clive Raak was scratching his head and frustrated by another lacklustre performance.
"We just couldn't find our way. We were pretty poor in a couple of areas," Raak said.
"We can play footy. But we just can't get consistency. That's the bottom line."
The Bombers and Burras have now both won five games as the competition heads into the break for the Queen's birthday long weekend.
BUNINYONG v. HEPBURN
Buninyong 2.1, 3.2, 6.6, 8.8 (56)
Hepburn 1.2, 1.3, 3.6, 3.9 (27)
GOALS, Buninyong: Derick Micallef 3, Caius Barrenger 1, Jarrod Rodgers 1, Jarrod Morgan 1, Isaac Baker 1, Alex Bomitali 1
Hepburn: Samuel Dunstan 3
BEST, Buninyong: Joshua Lee, Fraser Hunt, Jarrod Rodgers, Jack Robertson, Nick Shell, Jake Dunne
Hepburn: Tommy Horne, Ned Johns, Tanner Wills, Ken Cummings, Alan Ware, Julian Lockwood
Rokewood-Corindhap joint-coach Damon Delaney has described Newlyn as a better team than the unbeaten Waubra after the Grasshoppers were outclassed by the Roos on Saturday.
"I believe they're a better unit than Waubra - a bit more polished," he said.
The home side thrashed the visitors by 108 points, with key forward Marcus Darmody booting an 11-goal haul.
Boe Bish was good down back for the Cats, while Myles Sewell racked up plenty of touches and kicked three goals.
It was also a good day for Fraser Hay and Marcus Tilley who made their senior debuts for Newlyn.
NEWLYN v. ROKEWOOD-CORINDHAP
Newlyn 6.5, 10.10, 17.15, 18.22 (130)
Rokewood-Corindhap 0.1, 2.4, 2.4, 3.4 (22)
GOALS, Newlyn: Marcus Darmody 11, Myles Sewell 3, Tristan May 1, Daniel Wehrung 1, Dylan Fishwick 1, Luke Prendergast 1
Rokewood-Corindhap: Brayden Ferguson 1, Samuel Chapman 1, Jake Carr 1
BEST, Newlyn: Marcus Darmody, Boe Bish, Myles Sewell, Scott Carey, Declan Lourey, Lou Campana
Rokewood-Corindhap: Tyler Mookhoek, Luke Philp, Samuel Chapman, Ben Reese, Jackson O'Neil, Jake Dowell
Springbank's powerful start proved a winning move in the 14-point success against Creswick.
The Tigers kicked six goals to one in the first term and then held off the visitors for the rest of the afternoon.
Tim Horan proved dangerous in attack and booted four goals, while onballers Todd Finco and Joel Maher were damaging.
For Creswick, a big five-goal final term was something to be proud of, but coach Ryan Knowles will be disappointed with the slow start.
Samuel Gibson, Liam Blake and Joel Antonio were among the best for the Wickers.
SPRINGBANK v. CRESWICK
Springbank 6.2, 7.6, 11.7, 11.8 (74)
Creswick 1.0, 2.0, 4.3, 9.6 (60)
GOALS, Springbank: Timothy Horan 4, Michael Otto 2, James Thompson 2, Samuel Cue 2, Ben Beasley 1
Creswick: Liam Blake 3, Samuel Gibson 2, Ricky Pearson 1, Pearce Antonio 1, Matt Miller 1, Aaron Sedgwick 1
BEST, Springbank: Todd Finco, Joel Maher, Kieran Maher, Samuel Cue, Sean McKenzie, Ben Beasley
Creswick: Samuel Gibson, Liam Blake, Joel Antonio, Alex Lovel, Clinton Robinson, Joshua Mitchell
Bungaree got the better of Ballan on Saturday, winning by 19 points.
The Demons had a couple of major injury concerns come out of the match with forward Shaun Finlayson taken to hospital with a lacerated finger and youngster Oscar Pryor suffering a serious concussion.
Cameron Jackson was a standout in attack for the winners, booting two goals.
For Ballan, Brodie Richie (back) and Zac Boland (collar bone) both went down before half time.
The Blues were certainly in the contest, but poor kicking at goal proved costly.
BUNGAREE v. BALLAN
Bungaree 2.1, 6.2, 9.3, 10.8 (68)
Ballan 1.4, 2.5, 4.10, 6.13 (49)
GOALS, Bungaree: Steven Butler 3, Charles Martin 2, Cameron Jackson 2, Joe Downey 1, Shaun Finlayson 1, Jack Walter 1
Ballan: Jaye Johnstone 2, Michael Snaith 1, Dylan Trickey 1, Ashley Mullane 1, Jack Gibbs 1
BEST, Bungaree: Cameron Jackson, Lachlan Prendergast, Steven Ryan, Andrew Milroy, Samuel Hammond, Jordan Crone
Ballan: Matthew Rollo, Alistair Hine, Lachlan Conlan, Harley Bongart, Bradie Thomas, Hayden Thompson
Curtis Townrow was in red-hot form in attack as Skipton beat Clunes on Saturday.
Townrow booted eight goals for the Emus, which beat the Magpies by 81 points.
Fraser Morcombe suffered a bad concussion in the victory, which was set up by Lachie Johns at half back and Brayden Draffin on a wing. Andrew Pitson was also in good form, as was Mitch Bruns.
The match was delayed for a significant period when Clunes' Tom Fenner was knocked unconscious.
SKIPTON v. CLUNES
Skipton 4.6, 9.7, 15.11, 21.13 (139)
Clunes 2.3, 3.8, 5.9, 8.10 (58)
GOALS, Skipton: Curtis Townrow 8, Jack Peeters 4, Kal Dubbeldam 3, James Cusack 2, Brayden Draffin 1, William Fay 1, Mitchell Bruns 1, Andrew Pitson 1
Clunes: Brad Dolan 2, Brody Lawford 1, Mitchell McDonald 1, Nicholas Wrigley 1, Jack Fenner 1, Barama Blow 1, Matthew Wrigley 1
BEST, Skipton: Curtis Townrow, Andrew Pitson, Lachie Johns, Cooper Henson, Joshua Draffin, Lakota Stranks
Clunes: Josh Thompson, Lachlan Wrigley, Matthew Wrigley, Brody Lawford, Barama Blow, Brad Dolan
Waubra has reached the mid-season break as the only unbeaten team in the competition.
The Roos were ruthless after quarter time on Saturday, beating a Learmonth side that finished the game with just 17 players on the ground.
Lakies president Matt Hines said 2018 club best and fairest Jason Rae (ankle), Jack Treweek (shoulder), Tom Martin (hamstring) and Nathan Beasley (hamstring) were among those to come off in the third term through injury.
Waubra has its own injury concerns with veteran John Coleman hurting his back in a contest.
Austin Murphy booted five goals for the winners and James Lukich four, while Ben Wilson and Andrew Wettenhall were among the stars.
Defenders Nicholas Martin and Conor Dickson were the standouts for Learmonth.
WAUBRA v. LEARMONTH
Waubra 1.4, 7.9, 13.15, 21.20 (146)
Learmonth 2.3, 3.4, 3.6, 3.7 (25)
GOALS, Waubra: Austin Murphy 5, James Lukich 4, Caleb McGrath 3, Jarred Crabtree 2, John Coleman 2, Darcy Jenkins 2, William Corbett 1, Andrew Wettenhall 1, Ben Wilson 1
Learmonth: Jack Treweek 1, Nick Willox 1, Matthew Harbour 1
BEST, Waubra: Ben Wilson, Andrew Wettenhall, Austin Murphy, James Lukich, William Booth, Ryan Head
Learmonth: Nicholas Martin, Conor Dickson, Nick Willox, Thomas Martin, Kyle Mackay, Michael Zelencich