Shepparton News | Kyabram District Football League has broken its interleague drought in brilliant fashion with a thumping win against Mininera on Saturday.
It was a scoreline Kyabram District is all too familiar with.
Only this time, it was on the winning end of the result.
Kyabram District ended years of interleague pain by crushing Mininera District by 95 points at Deakin Reserve on Saturday.
The result was never in doubt as arguably the strongest representative side the league has ever put together was dominant from start to finish.
Mininera District won the first clearance in some promising signs early, but they soon faded as Kyabram District clicked into gear.
Whether it was nerves, or just taking time to settle, the first five minutes were a complete contrast to the rest of the game.
Kyabram District coach Christian Barnett said he was pleased with the effort of all involved.
''I'm really happy with the team effort across the board, it was fantastic and myself and the rest of the coaching staff in Linc Sullivan, Brenton Gray and Paul Burnett couldn't have asked for more,'' Barnett said.
''I think the most pleasing thing was everyone getting involved and putting their hand up to play and driving it up.
''We've had great support from the players, clubs and the coaching staff all driving it.''
The writing was on the wall at quarter-time with Kyabram District leading by 23 points.
Michael Morgan was lively up forward and kicked a crucial early goal, while best-on-ground Tim Ewart had it all his own way.
It was an almost new-look team to last year with Linc Wellington providing invaluable experience as captain after numerous campaigns with Goulburn Valley.
Murchison's Jamie Jones provided dash off a wing and drifted forward for two goals in the second quarter.
By the main break, the contest was all done as Kyabram District stretched the margin out to 66 points and Mininera was still goal-less.
Nagambie power forward Pat Rattray was a towering presence, catching defenders off guard to finish with six goals.
Kyabram District went on with the job in the second half, but Barnett said the memory of previous losses was never used as motivation.
''We never talked about that, we just wanted to go on with it a quarter at a time,'' Barnett said.
''It's just good for the league, to just say hey we can go now and start climbing the ladder and we can continue to build and be something we can all be proud of.''
Kyabram District avoided dropping to the bottom of the Country Championships and will play 29th-ranked Colac District next year.