The Ovens and Murray has edged closer to AFL Victoria’s top mantle after smashing Western Region by 76 points at Yarrawonga’s JC Lowe Oval on Saturday.
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It’s now through to next year’s three v four playoff in the Community Championships following the 21.14 (140) to 9.10 (64) demolition.
It was realistically over at the nine-minute mark of the first term after the O and M banged on five unanswered goals.
As a contest it was a fizzer with the clearly outgunned Western Region incapable of matching the opposition, but the O and M played some spectacular football, moving the ball at a frenetic pace.
“We knew we had the ability to do that (play exciting football), we probably focused more on our contests and ability to defend,” co-coach Jon Henry said.
“Most of the players can attack quite well, it’s just trying to do that other stuff, like stopping the opposition from scoring and we probably did that, until the last five minutes, but they (the players) had clocked off by that stage.”
The margin was 95 points midway through the final quarter, but Western Region kicked the last three goals to keep the margin under triple figures.
“They had some classy footballers with a lot more experience than us,” coach and former AFL player Brodie Holland said.
“When you look through some of their names, they’ve played at the top level and obviously some who’ve played high quality at a local level too.
“We had some kids play and it would have been nice for us to do a little better, but I think our boys cracked in hard all day.”
The O and M had two players with AFL experience with Mark Whiley winning best on ground, while Michael Newton kicked five goals.
But, in truth, the league didn’t carry any passengers, which isn’t surprising given the gulf between the state’s fifth and sixth-ranked outfits.
Defender Dylan Van Berlo (Wangaratta) might have arrived as a star with his grand final performance against Albury, but he also showed his talent at the higher representative level, taking a series of strong marks in defence.
Whiley racked up more than 35 possessions, while Yarrawonga team-mate Harry Wheeler also excelled in the midfield.
Brayden O’Hara continued his outstanding club form, producing a bullocking effort late in the second term to win the disputed ball before showing his poise on that lethal left foot.