Bendigo Advertiser | BRIDGEWATER showed it is still top dog in the Loddon Valley Football Netball League after it thrashed number one challenger Pyramid Hill by 67 points on Saturday.
The 15.20 (110) to 6.7 (43) victory all but guarantees Bridgewater the minor premiership.
“It was probably as well as we’ve played all season, it was a good four-quarter performance and if we had have kicked straighter it could have been better,’’ Bridgewater coach Andrew Collins said.
“It was a very pleasing team performance.
“Top spot was a huge motivation for us. We’ve still got to win our last three games, but we knew that the result of this game would have a huge bearing on who finishes top.
“We went into the game treating it like a final.”
Pyramid Hill stunned the Mean Machine by 13 points when they met in round five, but there was to be no repeat performance this time around.
The Mean Machine led by four goals at the first change and restricted the Bulldogs to just one goal in the first half.
“Our starts hadn’t been great, but we warmed up a bit differently this week and we were ready to go from the start this week,’’ Collins said.
“We used the ball really well in the slippery conditions. We thought our way through our ball movement and were patient with the ball. We maintained the ball in our front half a good percentage of the time.”
Daniel Connors kicked four goals in a best on ground performance for the Mean Machine, while Collins and Marc Lindsay also stood out.
“Connors was exceptional all game, particularly early in the game,’’ Collins said.
“His marking in the wet was outstanding.”
While Bridgewater had plenty to smile about, Pyramid Hill coach Paul Grayling was left to lament his side’s poor performance.
The Bulldogs never looked like troubling the reigning premiers.
“Bridgewater were very good and we were very ordinary… that’s always going to be a bad combination,’’ Grayling said.
"We were second to the footy all day and you’re never going to beat Bridgewater if you’re second to the footy.
“We just didn’t fire a shot all day. It just shows that when we don’t play our best footy we’re a fair way off the mark.
“I still think our best footy is good enough.”
Bryden and Dylan Morison were best for the Bulldogs on a bleak day for the club.
“We didn’t have enough winners on the day, while Bridgewater probably had 14 good players,’’ Grayling said.
“We’ve got plenty to work on before the finals.”
The result leaves Pyramid Hill destined to finish in second place on the ladder where it’s likely to meet Bears-Lagoon Serpentine in a qualifying final.
