Wimmera-Mail Times | BIRCHIP-WATCHEM came from behind to beat ladder leaders St Arnaud on Saturday.
The Bulls kept their finals chances alive with a 13.8 (86) to 11.11 (77) victory.
The team sits just outside the top four on percentage, behind Wycheproof-Narraport.
St Arnaud won the toss and elected to kick with a very strong wind.
The decision proved valuable as the team slammed on five first-quarter goals to take a 34-point lead into the first break.
Birchip-Watchem looked sluggish in the opening term and managed just two points.
The Saints looked like they were on a mission to sure up their top of the ladder position.
The Bulls knew they had to use their wind advantage in the second term to peg back the Saints.
Daniel Castellano produced a much-needed first goal for the Bulls within a few minutes, but from there the scoring virtually dried up for a lengthy period.
The game got scrappy, with many packs forming and the umpires calling for a ball-up on many occasions.
At the seventeen-minute mark of the quarter, the Bulls broke through for their second goal. They quickly added another through Matt Gilmour, and the game was on.
The Bulls added three more majors in time on to turn their quarter-time deficit into a four-point half-time lead.
Birchip-Watchem started the second half in a similar fashion, kicking the first major of the term.
Caleb Bloomer responded with the Saints’ first, but the Bulls had the answer through Castellano.
The Saints took the reins again and booted four more goals to open up a 10-point lead at the final change.
The Bulls’ hopes of a fast start were dashed when Gavin Vassallo extended the Saints’ lead to 16 points early in the quarter.
But Castellano struck back for the Bulls when they needed it most, as he had done all day, to narrow the margin.
Samuel O’Loughlin kicked a ripper goal on the run to put the Bulls back in the game.
Gilmour followed up with a strong mark to give the Bulls the lead.
With time running out, Paul Messer marked in the square and rolled his kick through for the final goal of the game to give the Bulls the win.
It gave the Saints their second loss on the trot for the first time this year.
Dale Hinkley was the Bulls’ best for the day, and gained great support from Joel Greaney, Jacob Noonan, O’Loughlin, Castellano and Joel Cussack.
Castellano finished the match with five goals.
Luke Wells was best for the Saints, with coach James McNamee, Ben Batters and Harley Durward adding support.
Despite the loss, St Arnaud remains a game clear on top of the ladder.
They have a strong chance at getting back on the winners’ list this week when they take on Boort.
The Bulls will need to keep their form going in their next clash with traditional rivals Donald.
The match between Wedderburn and Charlton was still in progress when the Mail-Times went to press.