Benalla Saints remain one of three teams to start the season undefeated, beating Seymour by 27 points in their Round 3 Good Friday clash at Benalla Showgrounds.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
Benalla built a strong 30-point lead over Seymour ahead of the second half, before the Lions challenged the Saints in what was a competitive third term. But the Saints lifted in what was a tribute match to past player Brett Cooper, running out the stronger of the two teams to take the four points.
Saints senior coach James Martiniello said it was really pleasing to see his side start the season 3-0.
‘‘I wouldn’t have expected that at the start of the year,’’ he said.
‘‘Early wins are vital. It sets your season up. It gets a bit tougher when the winter months come in and it gets a bit cold and the injuries come and it tests your depth.
‘‘So to have a couple of wins on the board, especially against sides like Seymour and Euroa, who we are probably going to be competing against for those final spots in the top six, it’s really important to get a win over them.
‘‘It gives us some breathing room.’’
With Benalla’s strong first half putting the Saints in a winning position, Martiniello said their form came down to the fact that everything the team had been working on clicked.
‘‘Our pressure … we attacked the footy, we had intensity around the contest. We were first in at the footy — and the umpires rewarded us for that,” Martiniello said.
‘‘We got our game going and we showed the sort of side we can be.
‘‘We’ve got pretty attacking weapons up forward, so if we can get it in there quickly we’re a dangerous side.’’
All up, Martiniello said it was a full team contribution that sealed the win.
‘‘Nick Warnock was fantastic up forward and in the ruck. He kicked a couple of goals,’’ Martiniello said.
‘‘I thought our back seven were fantastic as a defensive unit. And Moran and Webster running off were fantastic.
‘‘And I thought our midfield was really good as well against a strong (Seymour) midfield. It was a really good battle in there.’’
Benalla will now turn its attention to Round 4 when it hosts Mansfield at Benalla Showgrounds on Saturday.