By DANIEL MOSCA - Division 2 Seniors
THE North Footscray Red Devils overcame a sluggish start to cruise to a 61-point victory on the road against the Caroline Springs Lakers on Saturday.
With Yarraville Seddon hot on their heels, it was a crucial win for the visitors as they not only beat one of their rivals, but also moved to 14-2 on the season to keep themselves them in first place by percentage.
Despite their strong finish, North Footscray started out slow, conceding three goals to Caroline Springs in the opening term and only managing one themselves.
With the home crowd behind them, the Lakers took it to the league leaders early, winning the majority of the clearances and making it a point to control the tempo when they had the ball.
They took a two goal lead into the first quarter break and looked primed to give the Red Devils a run for their money.
However, the tide would turn in the second quarter as North Footscray began to win the contested footy and impose their will on the game.
They turned out an impressive second term, booting 5.4 and suffocating the home side, who managed just one behind for the quarter. The Red Devils would take a comfortable 21-point lead into half-time.
This paved way to an action-packed third quarter where tempers would flare from both sides with the contested footy clearly being a priority coming out of the half.
North Footscray picked up right where they left off, kicking the first three goals of the half to extend their lead to 39-points.
The Lakers would respond by kicking the next two goals, with Brian Lake playing a part in both of them.
After Lake found Rodney Rich 20 metres out who goaled and cut the lead to 26-points, North Footscray defender Tyson Bock was reported for striking Caroline Springs forward Mathew Sutton away from the ball, in the Lakers forward line. Sutton immediately went to ground, where he stayed until he was helped off the pitch shortly after.
The altercation seemed to light a fire into Caroline Springs, particularly Lake, who booted the next two goals to cut the lead to 15-points.
Unfortunately for the home side, their emotions boiled over and they gave up a costly 50 metre penalty in the centre, which North Footscray goaled to extend their lead to 21-points at the last break.
The fourth quarter was all North Footscray, with the visitors kicking with the wind and keeping the ball in their half the rest of the way with relentless forward pressure. Amazingly, they kicked 10 straight behinds before kicking their first goal of the fourth.
By then, the flood gates were open and they banged on another four goals for good measure to run away 61-point victors.
Other winners included Glen Orden over Yarraville Seddon Eagles and Manor Lakes scored back-to-back wins for the first time this year with a win over West Footscray.
Last Modified on 02/08/2016 09:23