It was built as a David vs Goliath battle at the Q.E.O Bendigo when Collingwood hit town to take on the Bendigo Gold and unfortunately there was no fairytale ending as Collingwood ran out 116-point winners.
Kyle Martin led the charge for the Magpies with four goals in the 25.26.176 to 9.6 60 scoreline, as Darren Edmondston reports.
With the return of two Collingwood stars from injury Luke Ball and Darren Jolly, it was the Bendigo Gold who got the early jump with Comanche Walls kicking the first two goals of the match which gave the Gold great confidence and the home team fans some belief.
When Tom Hams kicked a nice running goal and Bendigo’s fourth for the quarter at the 20 minute mark Gold held a narrow lead but from that point on it was all Collingwood piling on five straight goals to take a 25 point lead at quarter time.
A major skill error from the Collingwood defense allowed the Gold to get scoring underway in the second quarter through Jackson Bolton but when Jolly answered in quick time it was the beginning of the end for Bendigo as the Pies went on to record an eight goal second term - with Jackson Paine kicking three in this quarter - and at half time Collingwood had a match winning lead of 71 points.
The third quarter was a much better contest from the Gold, and they were once again able to kick the first goal of the term through Billy McInnes. But as they did throughout the match Collingwood found the answers, this time it was a sharp handball by Krakouer to Jarrad Witts for the goal and moments later Martin took a strong pack mark to kick his fourth of the match. Bendigo battled on and Ricky Thomson kicked a late one but the margin at three quarter time was 93 points.
It’s safe to say the sting was out of the game at the start of the final quarter with both clubs showing less intensity at the contest. Lachlan Ferguson kicked his third of the match to cap off a best on ground performance, and he was joined by strong performances from Marley Williams and Andrew Krakouer. Best for Bendigo was their captain Steven Stroobants followed by Daniel Toman and Mathew Farrelly in the 116-point loss.
Both Jolly and Ball had successful returns from injury, with the big ruckmen finishing the game with three goals and Ball showed his love for the hard ball was still alive.
Bendigo this weekend host Box Hill Hawks on Saturday, whilst Collingwood head to Burbank Oval on Sunday to take on Williamstown.
Photo: Dave Savell
Last Modified on 29/04/2013 13:11