A courageous effort has the Ballarat faithful quietly dreaming of a finals berth after their side joined the top four with a defining three-goal win against Sebastopol.
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The Swans put it all on, blowing the hosts out of the water with a 43-point opening quarter before showing steel in defence to survive the fightback and secure a 13.7 (85) to 9.13 (67) win.
"To win away from home and to beat a side like Sebastopol away from home it really means a lot," Ballarat coach Joe Carmody told The Courier.
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"It's certainly really important for what we want to do in the season as well."
From the opening bounce, Ballarat wrestled control, barely letting the hosts out of their half for the entirety of the first quarter.
Conceding three goals within the first 10 minutes only heightened the Burra's defensive errors, allowing the floodgates to open.
Andrew Hooper proved a menace playing as the deepest forward and kicked his first two majors of a six-goal day in the rampant 7.1 (43) to 0.2 (2) opening term.
Sebastopol fought back in the second quarter and found some attacking drive of its own.
Costly ill-discipline gifted the hosts an easy confidence-boosting goal, before three in as many minutes fully swung momentum in their favour.
James Keeble and Toby Hutt (two goals each) were tireless up front for the Burra, while Lachlan Cassidy was central to every good passage of play.
Trailing by 23 points at half-time, the Burra needed to find another gear.
A goal eachway punctured a guarded start to the quarter, before two late Swans blows set the stage for a dramatic final term.
GO INSIDE BALLARAT'S THREE-QUARTER TIME HUDDLE
For Ballarat, the mission was clear - defend.
Sebastopol coach Michael Searl threw big bodies up top in the knowledge quick goals would swing the game.
The chances did come for the hosts, but they failed to convert.
Three missed easy set shots within the first nine minutes only doused any confidence.
Five more behinds would follow, with a final quarter output of 1.8 costing the Burra a comeback.
"We definitely played the way we wanted to," Carmody said of his side's performance.
"Obviously, Sebastopol is a quality side so they were always going to come back and in the end we just deafened the lead really.
"They had their opportunities and they missed a few but we threw numbers behind the ball and just shut the game down."
The win sees Ballarat take fourth place heading into the bye next weekend. Sebastopol slips to seventh and with a couple more players under injury clouds the Burra face a nervous wait before welcoming Melton South.
Ballarat FNC 7.1, 10.2, 13.4, 13.7 (85)
Sebastopol FNC 0.2, 6.3, 8.5, 9.13 (67)
GOALS,
Ballarat FNC : Andrew Hooper 6, Tyler Constable 2, Sam James 2, Grant Baldwin 1, Jake Dunne 1, Austin McPherson 1
Sebastopol FNC : Lachlan Cassidy 2, James Keeble 2, Bailey Medwell 2, Toby Hutt 2, Jed Hill 1
BEST,
Ballarat FNC : Grant Baldwin, Andrew Hooper, Luke Wynd, Marcus Powling, Mitchell Martin, Nicholas Weightman
Sebastopol FNC : Lachlan Cassidy, Bailey Medwell, Riley O'Keefe, Daniel Widgery, James Keeble, Jacob Wilkinson
Redan re-joins the finals pack
Redan coach Jarrett Giampaolo still sees untapped potential in his young group after the Lions re-joined the top six with a convincing 17-point win against Darley.
Cooper Craig-Peters again bossed the midfield for the Lions, helping his side wrestle control early in the game.
Goalkicking woes and a despondent final quarter were the only blights on a day where the hosts asserted their case for finals football.
"In that first quarter we felt we had a fair bit of the play and again missed a couple of easy goals and probably let them get a couple of easy ones," Giampaolo said.
"We were just trying to win each quarter. So we won the first one which we were happy with and we won the second quarter to."
Up by 23 points at half-time, Redan took the foot of the gas enough to give the Devils a sniff.
The hosts were restricted to just 17 points in the second half - including a five-point final term - leaving areas for improvement heading into a big game against East Point next weekend.
"We were a bit disappointed with our use of the footy going forward. We were pushing the footy a bit," Giampaolo said.
"Before the game we did speak about the amount of good intercept defenders they had.
"We worked (on addressing that) during the week but we still kicked the footy a fair bit."
Lachie George (two goals) was back among the goals, but Giampaolo held high praise for his side's defensive effort.
"I thought we defended quite well and our pressure was really good," he said.
"We were able to turn it over a lot but then we just couldn't put it on the scoreboard. It's a good thing that we're able to put that pressure on but you've got to get reward for it."
The win sees Redan jump from seventh to sixth, one win clear of the chasing pack.
Redan FNC 4.5, 8.9, 9.13, 9.18 (72)
Darley FNC 3.1, 5.4, 6.7, 7.13 (55)
GOALS,
Redan FNC :Lachlan George 2, Alexander Harvey 2, Patrick Fitzgibbon 2, Tom Lamb 1, Daniel Bond 1, Lachlan McLean 1
Darley FNC : Will Johnson 2, Aaron Cadman 1, Joel Cadman 1, Brodie Coots-Majer 1, Andrew Azzopardi 1, Matthew Brett 1
BEST,
Redan FNC : Cooper Craig-Peters, Daniel Bond, Keenan Waterbury, Patrick Fitzgibbon, Cooper Atchison, Lachlan George
Darley FNC : Matthew Brett, Darren Leonard, Joel Cadman, Bailey Young, Shane Page, Will Johnson
Ottavi single-handedly beats Panthers
Spearhead Joel Ottavi's mammoth 17-goal haul saw him beat Melton South off his own boot in East Point's 84-point demolition job.
The reigning premiers entered the match with of the season's big curses hanging over their head.
No side has returned from a bye and won, but a seven-goal opening quarter ensured that hoodoo was one step closer to ending.
Melton South was able to fight back, narrowly losing the second quarter 33-31, but the might of Ottavi and East Point's
Ottavi's haul duly saw him named the Roos' best, though recruit Jack Ganley (four goals) played his best game yet while maestros Cameron Lovig and Matthew Johnston starred.
The Panthers' second loss by more than 80 points in as many weeks cements them in second-to-last, ahead of a trip to Sebastopol next weekend.
East Point jumps to third, eight points behind second-placed Melton and level on points with Ballarat, Bacchus Marsh and Redan.
East Point FNC 7.1, 12.4, 21.8, 26.10 (166)
Melton South FNC 2.1, 7.2, 9.3, 13.4 (82)
GOALS,
East Point FNC : Joel Ottavi 17, Jack Ganley 4, Matthew Johnston 1, Joshua Carlyle-Marks 1, Jake McQueen 1, Brad Whittaker 1, Liam Canny 1
Melton South FNC : Jacob Thornton-Gielen 5, Dylan Conway 4, Shaun White 2, shaun wyatt 1, Cody Chapman 1
BEST,
East Point FNC : Joel Ottavi, Jack Ganley, Cameron Lovig, Matthew Johnston, Mickitja Rotumah-Onus, Chris Carson
Melton South FNC : David Callus, Jacob Thornton-Gielen, shaun wyatt, Dylan Conway, Billy Lloyd, Isaac Conway
Lions fight back against wounded Cobras
Sunbury held its nerve in a see-sawing affair to edge past an injury-ravaged Bacchus Marsh, 11.10 (76) to 9.9 (63).
Rising star James Cree was the Lions' best on day defined by grit and character.
At home, Sunbury wrestled a two-point lead in the opening break, before the Cobras responded.
Thomas Wardell (three goals) again started in a new advanced role for the visitors, demanding the attention of defenders and allowing forward partner Ryley Stuhldreier (three goals) time to fire.
Sunbury managed to claw back a five-point half-time deficit, with Daniel Toman's influence in the middle a key reason the hosts wrestled back control.
Bacchus Marsh started the final quarter with no fit players on the interchange bench, giving their opponents the upper hand.
Sunbury needed no extra invitation and held on to move to a 2-1 record since the COVID-forced break.
Coach Travis Hodgson said it was an important result for his group.
"Across the game we transitioned the ball really well and that's probably where we had the ascendancy over Bacchus Mash," he said.
"Even though we were a few points down at half-time I felt we were in a good position with how the game was being played.
"It's a big four points because if we'd lost we could have been at risk of getting cut off (from the finals logjam)."
The loss drops Bacchus Marsh to fifth, and becomes one of four clubs sharing 20 points. The Cobras are seven per cent behind Ballarat and a fair 29 per cent off East Point.
Sunbury FNC 3.5, 5.7, 8.10, 11.10 (76)
Bacchus Marsh FNC 3.3, 6.6, 7.8, 9.9 (63)
GOALS,
Sunbury FNC : Alec Goodson 3, Luke Goater 3, Leigh Brennan 2, Thomas Werner 1, Mitchell McLean 1, Riley Miller 1
Bacchus Marsh FNC : Thomas Wardell 3, Ryley Stuhldreier 3, Jaidyn Owen 2, Alex Schwarzenberg 1
BEST,
Sunbury FNC : James Cree, Riley Miller, Haydn Ross, Nathan Wood, Daniel Toman, Tyson Lever
Bacchus Marsh FNC :Thomas Wardell, Nicholas Stuhldreier, Lachlan Christopher, Ryan Bartlett, Tyson Shea, Ryley Stuhldreier
Bloods get the job done yet again
Melton has moved to within four points of the top of the table after a dominant 56-point win against Lake Wendouree.
Electric small-forward Kevin Klix had his finest game yet for his new club, kicking four goals in a best-on-ground performance.
From the bounce, the hosts dominated game and ran out to a 31-point lead at half-time.
A 2.6 third-quarter hinted at some troubles in front of goal, but an elite defensive performance corrected any missteps.
Melton restricted the Lakers to just seven points in the third quarter, and 19 in the second half.
The loss starts a tough fortnight for Lake Wendouree, who has the unenviable task on taking on Sunbury at Clarke Oval next weekend.
The Bloods, meanwhile, travel to Bacchus Marsh. North Ballarat still sits four points clear at the top of the ladder and is unlikely to drop points against Darley in round 11.
Melton FNC 4.4, 8.5, 10.11, 14.13 (97)
Lake Wendouree FNC 1.2, 3.4, 4.5, 6.5 (41)
GOALS,
Melton FNC : Kevin Klix 4, Luke Heaney 3, Braedan Kight 2, Ryan Carter 2, Jaycob Hickey 1, Lachlan Phillips 1, Liam Carter 1
Lake Wendouree FNC : Nicholas Rippon 2, Ashley Simpson 1, Kye Edwards 1, Jacob Coxall 1, Joshua Canny 1
BEST,
Melton FNC : Kevin Klix, Bailey Mawson, Jack Walker, Ben Archard, Lachlan Phillips, Lachlan Hickey
Lake Wendouree FNC : Timothy Collins, Angus Gove, Joseph Mason, Joshua Canny, Caleb Hepworth, Nicholas Rippon
Ladder
North Ballarat, 8, 1, 32
Melton, 7, 2, 28
East Point, 5, 4, 20
Ballarat, 5, 4, 20
Bacchus Marsh, 5, 4, 20
Redan, 5, 4, 20
Sebastopol, 4, 5, 16
Sunbury, 4, 5, 16
Lake Wendouree 4, 5, 16
Melton South, 3, 6, 12
Darley 0, 9, 0