Gulls win rollercoaster ride
Warragul’s reserves have ridden a wave of momentum to overcome Sale in a rollercoaster of a match.
In a game that saw both sides trade the lead for most of the game, the Gulls found themselves 10 points down going into the final quarter.
With the game being a low scoring affair, one or two goals the wrong way in the final term could easily have seen the Gulls come undone.
Instead, Warragul kicked three of their own while keeping the Magpies goalless to win 9.8 (62) to 7.14 (56).
Jamie Somers kicked three for the Gulls, while Lucas Monacella, Tim Davine and Lachlan Miller also performed strongly to will Warragul over the line for their second win of the year.
The win now has Warragul outside the top five by just two points and percentage, and will have the side feeling confident after being demolished by Leongatha the week before.
In other reserves results, Moe defeated a heavily depleted Drouin 9.13 (67) to 2.6 (18), Bairnsdale beat Traralgon 10.9 (69) to 8.4 (52), Leongatha handled Maffra 11.9 (75) to 7.6 (48) and Wonthaggi demolished Morwell 18.17 (125) to 2.3 (15).
Drouin’s thirds won an absolute thriller at home, overcoming Moe by just four points.
The game was a low scoring affair in which neither team was able to break away from the other at any point. In fact, Drouin found themselves down very late in the match.
However, a late goal saw them steal the lead back from the Lions, and some grim defending in the final stages of the match allowed the Hawks to hold on and win 6.9 (45) to 6.5 (41).
Aaron Mitchell, Thomas Young and Ethan Nalder all played well for the home side, while Brodie Atkins kicked two goals.
Thomas Blackshaw kicked three for the visitors, who were left devastated after the final siren.
The Hawks would be relieved to be on the winning side of a tight match this week, after having lost by one point in a heartbreaker last week.
In other thirds results, Warragul went down to Sale 7.9 (51) to 9.9 (63), Morwell overcame Wonthaggi 9.6 (60) to 6.4 (40), Traralgon beat Bairnsdale 12.9 (81) to 8.4 (52) and Maffra thrashed Leongatha 15.10 (100) to 4.3 (27).
Warragul’s fourths find themselves looking comfortable in third place on the ladder after easily accounting for Sale.
The Gulls boys were too big and ultimately too strong around the ball, keeping the ball locked in their forward for most of the 13.17 (95) to 3.2 (20) win.
The sheer difference in number of scoring shots told the tale of the game.
If the Gulls had been any more accurate, the final score could have been even uglier.
Jasper Alger kicked four goals and was ably supported by Alby Phillips with three, while Heath Jinks and Lucas Carter controlled the ball well for the visitors.
Warragul managed to hold their opponents to just one behind in the second half, showing the versatility the side has in all areas of the ground.
They will next play second-placed Maffra in what is sure to be a tense match.
In other fourths results, Drouin were dismantled by Moe 1.6 (12) to 8.17 (65), Maffra thumped Leongatha 10.13 (73) to 5.3 (33), Traralgon obliterated Bairnsdale 14.19 (103) to 0.1 (1) and Morwell had the bye.