Gippsland Times | BOISDALE-Briagolong and Paynesville produced the first draw of the East Gippsland football season.
On paper Boisdale-Briagolong and Paynesville loomed as an intriguing clash. With both teams appearing to be evenly matched, it provided an ideal opportunity to gauge how much of an impact both sides would make on season 2015.
In their first match at home since joining the East Gippsland league, the Bombers were also looking to secure their first victory for the season having been beaten by Stratford in round one.
The evenness on paper translated to the scoreboard, as the match finished in a draw with both sides on 12.10 (82).
The Bombers got off to a flying start, kicking four goals in each of the first two quarters to take a 29-point lead into the main break. Whatever Paynesville did at half time paid immediate dividends, with a four-goal third term bringing it within two kicks at the final change.
The Gulls continued on with the momentum in the final term again outscoring the home side.
Sam Howden was damaging at one end for the Bombers, while Aaron Cameron was the only multiple goal scorer for the Gulls, both finishing with four majors.
When the final siren sounded nothing more could be gauged from the match other than the fact that these two teams are evenly matched and both still without a victory in 2015.
Strong Swans
STRATFORD solidified its position atop the ladder with a resounding 75-point win over Lindenow away from home.
After a tight first half, the reigning premier blew the game apart after the main break, kicking 12.6 to 3.1 to win 17.15 (117) to 6.6 (42).
Stratford had nine individual goal scorers, with Rodney O'Keefe, Jack Bacon and Jarryd Clohesy all finishing with three majors.
It was nothing short of a disappointing result for Lindenow, who, despite finishing second on the ladder last year, has failed to register a victory over the competition top dogs in its past five attempts.
Brett Hargreaves was best for the Cats, while Daniel Abbott kicked two goals, the only multiple goal scorer for the home side.
Lindenow will be looking to bounce back next week in a tough clash with Boisdale-Briagolong, while Stratford will take on Wy Yung at home.
Tough Tigers
THE tough start to the year continued for Orbost-Snowy Rovers, going down at the hands of Wy Yung by 20 goals, 23.12 (150) to 4.6 (30).
A strong first quarter showing from the Blues had them within seven points at quarter-time. Unfortunately, that was where it all ended for the away side with Wy Yung kicking 15 unanswered goals over the next two quarters.
Mark Sellings was dominant up forward for the Tigers, kicking eight goals, while James Young contributed three.
There wasn't much action for the Orbost forwards, but Aaron Hambling made the most of his opportunities to finish with two majors, while coach Dave Waddell was the Blues' best.
Magpies shine
A SEVEN-goal haul from Shaun Ryan helped Lucknow record its first win of the season, defeating Lakes Entrance by 65-points on Saturday night.
The Magpies were accurate in attack finishing with an impressive 21 goals from 30 scoring shots. The visitors won 21.9 (135) to 10.10 (70).
The visitors were hot from the outset, kicking 7.2 to 2.4 in the first quarter to put themselves well on the way to victory. Lakes Entrance picked up the pace after quarter-time but never came close to bridging the gap.
Aiden Fitzgerald was among six multiple goal scorers for the Magpies and was named best-on-ground.
It was a disappointing loss for Lakes who looked to have shown in round one that they were a side on the rise.