Osborne dominate Holbrook in a 49-point victory

Both sides were missing a number of key players for what had been billed as a potential grand final preview.

But the Tigers proved they remain the team to beat with a dominant 15.8 (98) to 7.7 (49) victory at Osborne.

Ryan Collins kicked five goals for the home side who were missing, among others, injured coach Joel Mackie.

"We knew we didn't recruit a lot of players because we had some young kids we wanted to keep developing and bring through," Mackie said.

"Today they got a really good chance and a taste of some tough footy.

"Holbrook are good opposition and they're going to get better throughout the year, no doubt, but it was really pleasing the way we competed and stuck to how we wanted to play."

Osborne's win was built on the back of insatiable pressure and as their tackle count grew, so did the number of Holbrook skill errors.

A powerful second quarter broke the game open for the Tigers, after the visitors had missed three set shots in the opening term, with the midfield quality of Matt Rava shining through.

Collins and Ryley Watson both had two goals by half-time, with debutant Bailey McAlister also on the scoreboard as Holbrook struggled to assert themselves.

The hard work Osborne had done early paid increasing dividends late in the game, with the margin steadily increasing.

Holbrook were missing 22 players across seniors and reserves but coach Matt Sharp pulled no punches in his post-match assessment.

"No excuses, I wasn't happy with what we produced," Sharp said.

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"We had an even spread across the board but we let ourselves down with execution.

"We kept fumbling, which allowed them to be clean, like they normally are, and play their Osborne brand of football.

"They hurt us every time we made a mistake.

"I saw this game as a real opportunity but I don't think we gave it our best shot at all."

There was a place in Osborne's forward line for veteran Hayden Gleeson, playing only his second game of senior Hume league football since 2019.

"Look, 'H' did it for us last year and he'd do it any time," Mackie said.

"He's probably the only one around country Australia who could do it.

"He was another bigger option for us, which allowed Collins and Watson to do their thing and took the pressure off a bit.

"He understands where he's at and what role he's got to play."

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