Tigers outscore Bombers after goalless first half

While producing its lowest score of the season against Kyabram on Saturday, the Tigers outscored its second-ranked opponent, which has lost only one match from 12 this season, in the second half by four goals to two.

Rochester’s pressure was at its best against Kyabram, laying an amazing 92 tackles for the game compared to Kyabram’s 41.

But its 4.5 (29) to 10.12 (72) loss came on the back of a quiet first half in which it did not manage a single goal as Kyabram kicked eight.

In the opening round of the season the Tigers also challenged its top-two opponent for half of the game. Rochester led by nine points at half-time before Kyabram kicked nine goals to two in the second half.

Rochester’s 29-point round 12 total was its lowest of the season, narrowly behind a 4.6 (30) total in a 50-point loss to Mansfield in round seven.

The Tigers won the overall pressure count against Kyabram 138 to 87, with defensive-minded midfielders Nathan McCarty and Grant Fuller (16 tackles among 25 pressure acts between them for the match) leading the way on that front.

While having 57 less disposals (mostly handballs) in the wet conditions, eerily similar to last year when the Tigers beat the Bombers on Moon Oval by a small margin, Rochester won the contested possession count by three.

Its victories in the hard ball and groundball gets categories was an indication of the determination coach Ash Watson will hope it takes into the next three matches — and beyond.

With Shepparton (seventh), Tatura (ninth) and Benalla (12th) in the next three weeks of home-and-away competition, the Tigers can improve on their two-win 10th ranking in the competition and could even be as high as eighth by the end of the month.

An 11-point win against Tatura, one of its two wins for the season, came in round five and the second of three disappointing finishes cost the Tigers a shot at beating Benalla in round eight.

Rochester kicked 1.7 in the final term of that match and lost by two points.

It makes all three games between rounds 13 and 15 of the season winnable propositions before the Tigers face the first and fourth-placed grand final teams of last season, Echuca and Euroa.

It’s final home-and-away season is on August 26 against second-bottom side Shepparton United. When the sides met in round 10, Rochester kicked 5.20 and lost by 13 points.

This week, however, the Tigers face a Bears team which has four wins, with three of those coming in a four-week stretch when it beat Shepparton Swans by 20 points, Benalla by 49 points and Tatura by two points.

In round four this year, a last quarter where the Tigers kicked five behinds cost it a potential win against Shepparton Bears. The 11-point loss came despite the Tigers having the better of its opponent on the stats sheet.

Rochester has focused very much on the off-ground health of the club this season, but there will still be an eye cast to the scoreboard for the next three weeks.

By the end of that period the Tigers could realistically find themselves sitting eighth on the ladder, above currently eighth-ranked Shepparton Swans and Tatura (ninth).

A repeat of Saturday’s second half against Kyabam will go a long way toward achieving that goal. The Tigers outpossessed its highly regarded opponent by 14 in the third term, all contested possessions, won the clearance count and laid 12 more tackles.

In the final term they took more marks inside 50, keeping the Bombers goalless and kicking two majors themselves, had seven more forward 50 entries and again had a dozen more tackles.

Saturday was star midfielder Joe Atley’s equal smallest disposal output of the season, 26 possessions considered a low in an extraordinary season where he has led the Tigers’ midfield.

Atley has topped 30 disposals in seven of his 12 games this season, but still contributed wholeheartedly at the weekend with a match-high 14 groundball gets, six clearances and five inside 50s, equal with Mitch Bright as a Tigers high.

Rochester lost the hit-outs 53-19, but had only two less clearances as it beat the usually combative Kyabram in the clinches.

Kyabram ruckman Zac Norris, who was near best-on-ground when the Bombers beat the Tigers by 38 points in round one, had 40 hit-outs and 18 disposals. He was the highest ranked player on the ground with 114 points, three ahead of Tigers recruit Dylan Gordon.

Gordon, who can play anywhere on the field, kicked two second-half goals and finished with 21 possessions and six rebound 50s from his defensive work in the opening half.

Rochester was again without key position players Jacob Atley and James McPhee, but did its best work at ground level as no less than seven players were credited with double-figure press act totals.

Alongside McCarty and Fuller, key back Hamish Hooppell had seven defensive 50s with his 10 pressure acts, while Will Hamilton, Mitch Cricelli and Kane Moroney matched his efforts on the pressure meter.

Reid Gordon (13 disposals and six clearances) continued a month-long stretch of quality football and together with Bailey Wileman (19 disposals, 10 pressure acts, four rebound 50s and two inside 50s) did work at both ends of the ground.

Angus Martin was another player who had an influence at both ends. Although having just 10 disposals, he sent the ball inside 50 on three occasions and was also credited with four rebound 50s.

Rochester’s Indigenous round home match against Shepparton Bears this weekend will hopefully be the launching pad for a deserved strong finish to the season.