BFNL 2023: Redan avoids almighty upset, Burra forward boots 10 goals | Ballarat Football Netball League round four review

Catch up on all the round four action below.

LAKE WENDOUREE (0-3) v SUNBURY (3-1)

A dominant third quarter changed the game as Sunbury enjoyed a big win over Lake Wendouree on Saturday.

The full-strength Lions booted 10 unanswered goals in the third term to run away with a 124-point victory.

Sunbury coach Travis Hodgson said despite the full time margin, his side found itself up against a competitive Lakers outfit throughout the first half.

"Lake Wendouree brought plenty of heat early, their pressure was really manic in the second quarter," Hodgson said.

"We felt as though their pressure was so good it wasn't sustainable which is probably the way it turned out."

Star recruit Cody Brand followed up his six-goal haul against Melton South with five majors on Saturday.

Hodgson said it was "really tough" to pick best players after a true team performance.

Lake Wendouree was forced to mix up its ruck line-up on Saturday with Brayden Helyar missing the round four clash, but it led to a big performance from veteran Shaun Finlayson.

Lakers coach Jack Fitzpatrick said Finalyson, who had a game-high 40 hit-outs, played an "incredible" game.

"He (Finlayson) gave our midfielders first use of the football for pretty much 100 percent of the game, he was terrific," Fitzpatrick said.

"He played primarily as a forward in the reserves for the first couple of weeks and was in the mix, but he was really good on Saturday."

Fitzpatrick said he was reasonably happy with the 40-point margin at half time.

"I actually thought we were going okay and were just hurting ourselves a little bit," he said.

"Unfortunately we fell away quite drastically in the third quarter and Sunbury also were quite good and punished us."

Both senior sides walked away from C.E. Brown Reserve without injury, as the Lakers get set to welcome back Brayden Helyar against Melton South in round five.

GOALS - Lake Wendouree: F.Loader 2, B.Thompson, J.Coxall 1, B.Hayes, C.McKay; Sunbury: C.Brand 5, C.Mobilio 3, J.Sutton, J.Guthrie 2, R.Karpany, M.Lewis, H.Minton-Connell, J.Bygate, R.Miller, J.Muir, H.Power

BEST - Lake Wendouree: Jacob Coxall, Rory O'keefe, Shaun Finlayson, Angus Gove, Lachlan Fitzgerald, Joel O'Connell; Sunbury: Harrison Minton-Connell, Jack Newitt, Mitchell Lewis, Tyson Lever, Josiah Garisto, Joshua Guthrie

Melton recorded yet another come-from-behind victory on Saturday, overcoming a valiant North Ballarat to remain unbeaten through the opening four rounds.

The Bloods lost the clearance count by 14 but it did not matter, as Melton fought back to get the game on its terms in the second half and leave Mars Stadium with the four points.

Melton premiership coach Aaron Tymms said it was a "copy and paste" of last week's Sebastopol outing.

"We definitely do have that belief that we can come back from anywhere," Tymms said.

"Every time we play North it is a very contested contest but I felt that our boys weren't switched on in the first half.

"Their tackling pressure was massive, but I thought we were able to turn that on its head in the second half."

The Bloods, who were missing big man Johnathan O'Brien, ran James Taylor through the ruck alongside Brett McIntyre as they tried to combat Roosters star Cam McCallum.

Liam Carter booted a game-high four goals to take his season tally to 11, while Jordyn Cotter tallied up the touches in defence with 33 possessions.

Tymms said he was "very pleased" with his side's 4-0 start to 2023, in which the Bloods have taken down finalists from last year in North Ballarat and Sebastopol.

Brady Rowles copped a knock to his knee early in the fourth quarter, with Tymms expecting the winger to miss the round five clash with Redan.

GOALS - North Ballarat: J.Quick 2, J.Duffy 1, E.Lamb, D.McGuigan, T.McMillan, W.Quinlan; Melton: L.Carter 4, J.Kight 2, B.Sullivan 2, R.Carter 1, B.Kight, B.Rowles

BEST - North Ballarat: Simon McCartin, Riley Polkinghorne, Isaac Lovison, Joshua Sparkman, Tom Bromley-Lynch, Elliott Lamb; Melton: Liam Carter, Adrian Monitto, Lachlan Phillips, Lachlan Watkins, Brett Mcintyre, Jack Walker

Redan survived a final term surge from Bacchus Marsh to hold on for a thrilling four-point win at City Oval on Saturday.

The Lions were held goalless in the fourth quarter as the Cobras trimmed a 31-point deficit to just four points.

Redan coach Gary Learmonth said his side kept giving the ball back too easily, a theme from their opening games of the season.

"We were happy where we were at three quarter time, we were just disappointed with the way we fell away," Learmonth said.

"We know what we need to work on and that we need to improve if we want to compete against the good sides.

"We had a couple guys who were crook and couple others out so being able to hold on was a positive."

Learmonth acknowledged how far Bacchus Marsh had progressed already this season.

"I know they haven't had any success this year but Bacchus Marsh is certainly on the right path," Learmonth said.

"They played some good footy but just probably didn't take their chances in the end."

The Cobras fielded their most threatening side to date this season as VFL-listed Jake Long lined up alongside a handful of Talent League stars.

Bacchus Marsh coach Jason Williams could not have been prouder of his side's effort post-game on Saturday.

"We finished the game extremely well, we did a lot right in the contest," Williams said.

"Having Jake Long play and coach our boys throughout the game was a big difference maker because we saw gradual improvement as the game went on.

"When he's around the ball he is a class above, he has so much time and space which is a trait all the good footballers have.

"Most importantly though at every break he was very vocal with our boys about what to do and how to improve."

Williams said every week his side has had strong patches of form, but on Saturday those patches lasted a little longer which led to a nail-biting finish.

Both sides face the unbeaten Bloods next, with Bacchus Marsh dealt the bye in round five.

GOALS - Redan: M.Boyer 5, W.Madden 3, G.Bell 2, L.George 1, I.Grant, L.McLean; Bacchus Marsh: J.Owen 3, J.Freeman 2, J.McCreery, L.Goetz 1, J.Kovacevic, E.McKercher, K.Tyrell, J.Long

BEST - Redan: Marty Boyer, William Madden, Jacob Werts, Liam Farnsworth, Patrick Fitzgibbon, Lachlan George; Bacchus Marsh: Luke Goetz, Jake McCreery, Jake Owen, Tyson Shea, Jack Parente, Bryce Kerney

A 10-goal haul to Sebastopol forward Toby Hutt headlined a dominant day out for the Burra, who cruised to a 147-point win over Melton South on Saturday.

Sebastopol mixed up its midfield rotations on Saturday as playing co-coach Luke Kiel looked for more consistency through the middle.

"We ran a fair few players through the midfield, we had a good mix of about seven or eight," Kiel said.

"We learnt a lot the week before against Melton where we just ran out of steam in the end because we kept the same boys in there for too long.

"On Saturday we told our boys to be a little bit more flexible just so we could have fresher legs through the midfield."

Kiel said that the 10-goal hero in Toby Hutt was starting to stick his marks against Melton and looked destined for a big game against the Panthers.

"His best is great and he was back at his best on Saturday," Kiel said.

"It is good to have someone like him who we can just kick it in there and when he gets his hands to it first he isn't dropping it which is a good sign for us."

It will be a tough week at the selection table for the Burra ahead of Ballarat, with Sebastopol expected to bring back some key names in Lachlan Cassidy, Jordan Crone and Bailey Veale, while Arnold Kirby is also available.

GOALS - Sebastopol: T.Hutt 10, J.Harvey 3, H.Papst, A.Forbes 2, J.Keeble, T.Lockyer, D.Robertson, B.Hutt 1, B.Medwell, L.Stow; Melton South: M.Caddy 1, C.Chapman, K.Rameka, C.White

BEST - Sebastopol: Toby Hutt, Bailey Medwell, Riley O'Keefe, Tony Lockyer, Jack Bambury, Luke Kiel; Melton South: Jarrod Bibby, Jack Morrissey, Cody Chapman, Aydin Rielly, Cassius White, Ethan Sullivan

East Point's unstoppable second quarter against Ballarat led the Roos on their way to a crucial 45-point win at Alfredton.

The Roos piled on nine goals to one in the second term as a nine-point quarter time advantage escaped out to 58 points at the long break.

Ballarat fought back to within 26 points in the last quarter but failed to convert on some easy opportunities as the Roos recorded their second win for the season.

Swans coach Chris Maple said his young side lost its focus on all phases of the game in the second term.

"East Point put us under pressure and we kind of went away from how we want to play," Maple said.

"Our contested ball was poor and we've been pretty good with clearances but I didn't think we were as good at exiting clearances as what they were."

The Roos' stars proved too much for the Swans in the end as Matt Johnston had a game for the history books, finishing with 42 touches and nine tackles.

Greater Western Victoria Rebels product Alex Molan also starred in his second game for the season, booting two goals from his 25 possessions.

The win sees the Roos jump North Ballarat into the top six, with the two sides going head-to-head in a round five blockbuster, while Ballarat hosts Sebastopol which already has two 100-point wins to its name.

GOALS - East Point: B.Whittaker 4, M.Walsh 3, L.Canny 2, J.Jeffrey, J.Johnston, A.Molan 2, M.Johnston 1, A.Nestor, G.Slater; Ballarat: A.Hooper 4, R.Perry 3, T.Mooney 2, W.Liston 1, M.McGrath

BEST - Ballarat: Mitchell Bishop, Andrew Hooper, Tom Mooney, Angus Bade, Keegan Mellington, Marcus Powling; East Point: Jordan Johnston, Alex Molan, Jordan Taylor, Matthew Johnston, Bryson McDougall, Joel Van Meel