Dogs had too much bite for Colbo

In an extremely physical and fiercely contested first term, it was the Bulldogs who were able to apply scoreboard pressure early, booting 1.4 to 0.1 to take a slight lead into the opening break.

The second quarter was more productive for the Grasshoppers as they were able to go inside 50 on a regular basis.

Unfortunately, they failed to capitalise on their entries, kicking a wayward 1.4 to the Dog’s 2.0 to reduce the half-time deficit to just five points.

The pressure around the contest lifted again in the third, with both sides battling to conjure clean entries into their forward half.

The pressure was reflected on the scoreboard with each of the Hoppers and Dogs kicking 2.5 for the term, leaving the margin at five points and setting up an enthralling final thirty minutes.

As North Bendigo sides have done in recent times, they stood up in the big moments and their stars hit the scoreboard when it counted.

They were able to add 4.3 to Colbo’s 3.1 to seal the 13-point victory and claim top spot on the HDFL ladder.

Matt Riordan was sensational at centre-half forward, consistently presenting up at the ball, taking a number of vital contested marks and hitting the scoreboard in big moments.

Hadleigh Sirett gave the mids first use all day and was enormous around the ground.

Damien Carmody has relished his return to defence, intercepting and rebounding all day.

Xavier Walsh was prolific through the middle of the ground and controlled the clearances.

Other better players were Geordie Mcmurtrie who was a busy on a wing and Sauce Ezard whose brilliant season continued.

Scores: Colbinabbin 6.11.47 lt North Bendigo 8.12.60.

Reserves: An undermanned side battled hard, but came up short against the plucky Bulldogs.

A slow start saw the Dogs skip out to an early lead as they booted 3.2 to Colbo’s 2.1 in the first quarter.

The second quarter saw the Hoppers completely outplayed, only managing a single behind as the Dogs controlled the play, booting 3.0 to extend their half-time lead to 24 points.

The third term was much of the same, the Dogs dominating all facets of the game, adding 3.2 to 1.1 to take a 37-point lead into the final change.

A stirring three quarter time address snapped the dozing Hoppers into gear as they ran rampant and mounted an exhilarating last quarter comeback.

They piled on 4.3 whilst restricting the dogs to just one behind, unfortunately running out of time and going down by only 11 points.

Hugh Barlow played an enormous coach’s game, winning plenty of contested ball and willing his charges on until the final siren.

Dean Rodger reminded us of how good a player he is, adding a touch of class and bringing his own football while Liam Vale worked tirelessly in the ruck all day.

Riley Wachter was electric on the wing, bringing plenty of dash and using the ball with precision.

Rounding out the better players were Braden Brown who was solid in defence and Joe Barlow who played beautifully through the middle of the ground.

Scores: Colbinabbin 7.6.48 lt North Bendigo 9.5.59.

Thirds: Against a much bigger North Bendigo side the boys played a terrific game, not taking a backwards step and matching it with them in most areas.

The Hoppers clearance work was spectacular; they controlled the majority of centre bounces but unfortunately were not able to make the most of their forays inside attacking 50.

The Dogs were very quick to transition the ball from defence to attack but to Colbo’s credit, they chased hard and applied plenty of pressure to the ball carrier.

In patches the young Hoppers were able to control the ball and move up the ground without risk using short passes which was very pleasing to see.

Sam Ryan was enormous in the ruck, his tapwork was outstanding as was his aerial work around the ground.

Nathan Brown was rock solid in defence, consistently beating his man one-on-one.

Jack Cairns was terrific again with run and creativity from deep in defence.

Harry Rathjen again showed why he is one of the premier defenders in the competition, shutting down a much bigger forward for the third week in a row.

Other better players were Noah ‘Truck’ Martin who lead the way with his contested work and Charlie Ryan who again had the ball on a string through the middle.

Scores: Colbinabbin 2.2.14 lt North Bendigo 17.12.114.

Netball

A grade: With only four of our A grade line-up taking the court this weekend, we drew on the depth in our club to came away with a tough win.

Zara Myers, Mardi Ryan and Ella Kerlin, in her first A grade game, showed their composure and skills playing with poise.

Kate Rankin played an outstanding game at WD, playing a total of seven quarters for the day.

The leadership of our experienced A graders, Jess Geary, Liv McEvoy, Lizzy Cobbledick and Lou Dupuy ensured the girls didn’t let the game get on top of them, fighting their way back to a four goal victory.

Scores: Colbo 50 def. North 46.

A reserve: Colbo 33 lt Nth Bendigo 56.

B grade: Colbo 35 lt Nth Bendigo 54.

B reserve: Colbo 25 lt Nth Bendigo 63.

U17: The Colbo girls remain undefeated after the completion the first half of the season.

They had a good win against North Bendigo while using different rotations throughout the game.

Lily McArdle was strong in WD with steady hands and effective passes before switching to an attacking role for the final quarter.

Laura Budge was imposing in defence and made goaling difficult for the opposition shooters.

Awards: Lily McArdle (Canteen) and Laura Budge (Subway).

Scores: Colbo 79 def. Nth Bendigo 10.

U15: The Colbo girls played a great game against North Bendigo at home this week.

The team stepped out of their comfort zone with girls playing in positions they’re not used to.

Ryllie, Jo and Dana worked well in defence, with Summer, Zoe, Monica and Mackenzie in attack.

Although behind in the first quarter they went from strength to strength to win the game by 19 points.

Awards: Monica and Dana.

Scores: Colbo 28 def. Nth Bendigo 9.