WODONGA Raiders moved back into the top-five with a 51-point victory against Wangaratta Rovers at W.J. Findlay Oval on Saturday.
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The Rovers took it right up to the visitors, closing the margin to just three points late in the third term, but it was Raiders who prevailed 16.15 (111) to 9.6 (60) on the back of a barnstorming seven-goal-to-one last quarter.
Speedy teenagers Brad St John and Matt Neagle were superb for the Raiders, with their ability to run, carry and deliver the ball too much for the Hawks to overcome.
While St John, Neagle and veteran Matt McDonald were four-quarter contributors for the victors, it was Steve Jolliffe and Tyler Cornish who responded to a blast from coach Daryn Cresswell to inspire the Raiders in the final term.
With the Raiders leading by just 10 points at three-quarter-time after seemingly having the game in their control, Cresswell called for a lift from his midfield leaders.
Jolliffe and Cornish delivered. The pair racked up clearance after clearance and skipper Jack Di Mizio reaped the rewards with two final-quarter goals capping an impressive performance up forward for the defender.
McDonald racked up plenty of the ball while quelling the influence of Rovers star Sean O’Keeffe and Ethan Boxall was a constant threat and finished with two goals.
Cresswell was delighted with the victory, which saw the Raiders leapfrog Wangaratta into fifth spot.
The Raiders’ ability to win possession across half-back and pump the ball into attack at speed was a highlight for the Sydney Swans Team of the Century member.
“I thought it was really positive, we’ve changed our style in the past couple of weeks and it’s really come to fruition,” he said.
“That reminded me of our style of footy from last year.
“Overall, it was a really positive performance on how we want to shift the ball, we just need to get a bit tighter on some of our structures behind the ball.
“We’ve still got some areas to work on, we obviously fell away in that third quarter but full credit to the Rovers, they came at us hard.”
Rovers co-coach Sam Carpenter, who led from the front all day, couldn’t fault the Hawks’ effort.
Skipper Shane Gaston had an engaging battle with Hayden Heta and defenders Coen Hennessy and James Smith played key roles in dragging the Hawks back into the game after trailing by 28 points at half-time.
“The game was played on their terms early and we were falling behind but in that third quarter, we got things back on our terms and we played some really good football,” Carpenter said.
“We were able to put them under pressure and we were able to hit the scoreboard so even though we ended up getting beaten by a fair bit, there was still some positives to take out of the game.
“I can’t question our effort.
“Although it’s disappointing to roll over late, our effort was pretty good.
“Our young players are learning and as they get another pre-season under their belt, they’re only going to improve.
“We’ve got something to build on.”