Bendigo Advertiser | KANGAROO Flat’s slim hopes of snatching fifth spot and a finals spot were shredded by a dominant Strathfieldsaye on Saturday.
Top team Storm booted 24 majors, while the Roos managed just one goal in the opening three quarters and two in the last.
For the second consecutive week Strathfieldsaye’s Matt Smith and Kallen Geary dominated the midfield battles, Ash Trollop shut down Flat’s danger forward Cameron Rinaldi, while in attack Matthew Ferguson, Jake Hall and Tom Bartholomew ran rings around the Roos.
The one bright light in the back half for the Roos was Ross Turner, who restricted Stephen Milne to a solitary major in the Flat’s 3.6 (24) to 24.17 (161) drubbing.
After an early goal to Ryley Barrack the Roos just stuttered along. Meantime, the Storm bolted to a 61-point half-time lead as Hall (two of his match-high five majors in the first half), Ferguson and Shaun Everington drilled excellent second term goals.
Another eight goals in the third term had the Storm supporters in raptures. Big ruckman Michael Pilcher started the avalanche early on, while Sean Johns (after the three-quarter time siren) wound up the third term blitz.
Finally, the Roos added two more majors. Nick Lang marked and goaled for the Roos 15 minutes in, final term. Ash Benbow landed a 55 metre bomb with 46 seconds left on the clock.
But Matt Smith and Kallen Geary had kept driving the ball forward and with Bartholomew, Ferguson, Hall and Milne – finally, from a forward pocket shot - all nailing goals, the Storm bolted home by 137 points.
