Bendigo’s mid-season purple patch continued on Sunday with a sound 26-point win over North Ballarat at Eureka Stadium, as Adem Saricaoglu reports.
Both sides went into the game with good form, but it was the Gold who broke free from the arm wrestle late in the third quarter to claim the points at a ground that hasn’t been too kind to them in recent years.
Bendigo coach Hayden Skipworth said he was happy his side made better use of its opportunities throughout the game.
“I thought in three quarters of the game we played pretty well,” Skipworth said.
“In the second quarter they were right on top of us, there were a lot of scoring opportunities and to a certain degree we were a bit lucky they didn’t put some more scoreboard pressure on us.
“But I thought the boys thought it out well, we had a fair few guys on limited minutes that we had to manage and they all got through fine with no injuries, so it was a good result all round.”
Scoring was dictated by a distinct wind advantage, which Bendigo had first use of.
By quarter time the Gold established a 24-point lead, but in the second term they went goalless as North Ballarat clawed their way back to bring their deficit within a goal at the main break.
Both sides traded blows after halftime, but the Gold again managed to wrest control, piling on four unanswered goals close to the three-quarter time siren to go into the last term 39 points up.
The Roosters got within three goals in the final term but Bendigo proved too good, holding on for an important win.
Skipworth admitted after the game his side was let off the hook in the second quarter.
“We were lucky they did miss a few goals and missed a few inside-50 targets by foot, and we were able to hang on and still be up at halftime,” he said.
“The message (at halftime) was to get back to playing your role and sticking to the game plan because I felt that for the first time in five weeks that we had gone off our game style.
“We got back to contested footy, stoppages and clearances and getting some deeper entries.
“Once we got that going our way, we were hard to stop after that.”
Bendigo ruckman Tom Bellchambers kept his hopes alive for an Essendon recall with a best-on-ground performance that included a goal before a planned rest in the final term.
“Tommy was excellent. He came off at three-quarter time but he had a massive impact on the game and helped set up the win,” Skipworth said.
North Ballarat coach Gerard FitzGerald said Bendigo’s last eight minutes of the third quarter proved the difference at the end of the game.
“It meant that we had to do a lot right in the last quarter,” FitzGerald said.
“We got within about three goals, but with a lead like that you’ve got to do a lot right.
“We thought we handled out the game fairly well, but in the end that was the difference.”
FitzGerald concurred with Skipworth, citing his side’s poor ball use as critical to the end result.
“I think it came down to ball use, we an opposition that were at least seven per cent more efficient by foot than we were,” FitzGerald said.
“We went inside our 50 more times than Bendigo, but our last kick forward of centre wasn’t efficient enough, so we’ve got to continue to work on our ball use against the very good sides.
“We thought their ball use forward of centre was better than ours.”
The Roosters slipped to ninth on the ladder and have their work cut out for them next week when they travel to Trevor Barker Beach Oval to face a Sandringham team that beat them soundly earlier in the year.
“As far as we’re concerned now it’s full steam ahead this week, we need to have a really good week on the track and try and win next week,” FitzGerald said.
“We haven’t got much margin for error now, if we’re going to contest the finals this year, we’ve got to do a lot right.”
The Gold now finds themselves on the brink of the top four, with just percentage separating them from Werribee and Geelong, who sit third and fourth respectively.
They now face a potential top four blockbuster against second-placed Casey in the ABC TV game at Windy Hill on Saturday.
Skipworth said continuing the momentum is vital.
“It’s an enjoyable place to be around the club at the moment and hopefully we can keep riding this wave as long as we can,” he said.
“We’ve won six in a row now and who knows how far we can go with it.”
Last Modified on 10/07/2012 07:47