Gulls out-muscled
A physical Leongatha outgunned Warragul at Leongatha taking charge in the second half for a 18-14 to 10-5 victory.
Although trailing by 14 points at half time Warragul had taken the game right up to the Parrots and had control around the stoppages and took the ball into forward 50-metre area more often.
But it was Leongatha’s sharpness and system going into attack that was the difference.
Warragul play makers Nathan Paredes and Brad Scalzo were a particular focus for some hard Leongatha marking and across the ground the Gulls were put under strong physical pressure.
But they didn’t take any backward steps, their effort never waning.
Leongatha’s more seasoned line-up against a side with more than half of its number aged 22 or under was a noticeable difference.
The availability of Gippsland Power players Kim Drew and Jack Hudson was a bonus for Warragul and helped compensate for the loss of the experienced Leigh Sheehan who suffered a calf injury at training during the week.
Drew was arguably the Gulls best on the day playing up forward and on ball and Hudson was also one of the side’s better performers.
They had plenty of others alongside them that battled it out against the ladder leaders.
Matt Rennie did an excellent job in curbing Leongatha’s Aaron Hillberg when moved onto him in the second half after Hillberg had proved a headache in the first two quarters.
Ashley Di Ciero held a tight rein on Parrot goal sneak Chris Dunne when Dunne moved forward from a wing where he played most of the game.
Simon Fairbairn flew the flag strongly with hard work with his tackling and strong work at contests, Tom Kelly showed out especially in the second half when the game was slipping away and Jake Hughes was competitive at centre-half forward, a change from his usual role in defence.
Captain Brayden Fowler battled through with some soreness but finished the game with a creditable four goals to his name.
Warragul’s other goals came from Drew (two), Parades, Jedd Serong, Nic Mulqueen and Jared Lane.
The Leongatha ground is something of a fortress for the home club having rarely been beaten there in recent seasons.
It certainly hasn’t been a happy hunting ground for the Gulls, they haven’t won at Leongatha since 2008, but are on the improve.
Saturday’s 10 goals was another step up from the six kicked at Leongatha last year and two the season before.