The Courier |
NORTH Ballarat City fielded one of its youngest sides in recent memory on Saturday, not that the scoreboard showed it.
NORTH BALLARAT CITY 17.20 (122)
MELTON 8.7 (55)
From first to final siren, City was in total control at Eureka Stadium against Melton, running out 17.20 (122) to 8.7 (55) victors.
Having restricted the Bloods to just one goal at the main break, in reality there was never going to be any other result than a City win.
What ensued was an extremely scrappy affair, one of the ugliest games of football North has probably played in some time.
But it mattered little to coach Rob Waters, who was more than happy with an 11-goal win in testing circumstances.
Four players ran out in their first game for City, with a bevy of stars including Derick Micallef, Ayden George and Shaune Lyle all on the sidelines.
Nick Waldie stepped up from the reserves, with Geoff Lovett, Mitch Gilbert and Mitchell Johns all gaining an invaluable taste of senior football, fresh from the under-18.5s.
"It wasn't pretty. It was one of the scrappiest games we've played in a while but we are more than happy to come away with the win," Waters said.
"You look at the side we had in, four guys playing their first game and probably another five or six who have played 20 games between them. It's great to come away with wins on a day like that."
From the moment the first siren went, it was easy to tell North City was on the ball.
Michael Williams slotted his first of three goals in the third minute, followed by a major from
Tristan Cartledge soon after.
Melton was showing spirit, as it did all day, but a lack of class and ability to move the ball forward proved a major obstacle.
Jake Gleeson battled hard all day and Tate McCutcheon continually made his presence felt up forward, but mostly it was difficult to find many winners across the ground for the Bloods.
Both sides face the interleague bye next and for Melton in particular, it will be a chance to lick wounds and reassess.
For North, the attention now turns to Darley in two weeks.
