And not just the ones that flash on the electronic scoreboard.
Player points, a heavily contested topic in the realm of country Victorian football, has been a sticky subject for clubs under the AFL Goulburn Murray umbrella.
Teams that have built from the ground up and mastered the fine art of retaining talented juniors over the years often come up trumps, best displayed by Echuca’s vice-like grip on the GVL for the past three seasons.
Who could forget the iconic line from Murray Bombers co-coach Simon Maddox following the most recent grand final win?
“We’ve clocked the game, mate,” Maddox said in the rooms after Echuca’s demo job on Shepparton.
However, there’s another club in the GVL “clocking the game” right now.
Kyabram is conquering the points rubric, sitting well under the cap thanks to a strong pulse of home-grown heart donning the sash this season.
“I worked it out the other day; out of our senior players, our starting 22, there’s only three that haven’t played junior football with Kyabram and that’s Mick Mattingly, Jack Sheldon and Jack Russell,” Kyabram president John Guinan said.
“All the rest have played junior football for Ky in that starting 22.
“We’re just rapt to get some old players back. We didn’t go and heavily recruit which we haven’t really had to do over the last 10 years.
“We’ve got the local boys back; Tommy Holman, Coby McCarthy, Mitch Gugliotti, players like that.”
In one of the most significant results of the season, Kyabram toppled reigning three-time premier Echuca at the weekend, breaking a drought that stretched back to 2019.
The 17.17 (119) to 13.6 (84) result wasn’t just a win — it was a statement.
Against a side that had tormented it for more than a decade, Kyabram didn’t flinch in any of the three football grades as the Bombers completed a clean sweep over the Murray Bombers.
“We were pretty pumped — I think the thirds hadn’t won in about eight years, I think it’d been four years since the reserves had won and the last time we beat Echuca in the seniors was 2019 in the grand final,” Guinan said.
“We were really excited; we’re not getting ahead of ourselves — we celebrated it hard on Saturday, but now it’s back to the drawing board.”
Now sitting atop the ladder, the Bombers are flying.
What’s more, out of the 25-point squad that took on Echuca, a glut of local stars such as Anthony Depasquale, McCarthy, Angus Scoble and Nic Jephson weren’t on the park for the Bombers.
Sure, Echuca had its own share of wounded with the likes of Ben Reid, Liam Tenace and Riley Smith out and Jack McHale coming off during the clash, but Kyabram is pouring gas on the embers of a fire that could reach its hottest in finals.
Midfield hard nut McCarthy is hoped to return from a pelvic tear in a month’s time, while Kyabram’s 2024 best-and-fairest Liam Ogden will return from overseas for the final five weeks of the season.
They’ll be plunked into a side that is clearly not short on synergy.
Midfield duo Mattingly (averaging 37.5 disposals a game) and Kaine Herbert (29.7) are forming one of the league’s most damaging centre combinations.
Down back, Brad Whitford (7.7 intercept possessions a game) continues to be a general, reading the play with poise and leading a disciplined defensive unit.
Up forward, Charlie Barnett and Riley Ironside (41 goals combined) are becoming match-winners, their movement and finishing touch giving Kyabram a sharp edge inside 50.
The Bombers have built something sustainable — not flashy, not overly reliant on imports, but grounded in cohesion and belief.
With the Echuca scalp now claimed, they’re no longer just a good news story. They’re the benchmark.
Saturday's One FM GVL broadcast match is between Kyabram and Mooroopna, live from Kyabram from 1.30pm.
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