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BELL Post Hill coach Brent Grgic sent a stern message to the rest of the competition following the side’s 35-point win over Werribee — “we’re not going anywhere”.
The Panthers moved to the top of the ladder with their third straight victory and Grgic was quick to silence any thought his side would be dropping off the pace.
He was adamant the club’s off-season recruitment and proud culture was the catalyst for its continued success.
“We’re not going to drop off the face of the earth all of a sudden, there’s a lot of spirit in this club and a lot of pride.” Grgic said.
“We probably get a little bit upset when people write us off. We basically wanted to make a statement that we’re not going anywhere.
“I think a lot of people were hoping we’d drop off. We’ve probably lost a couple of really good players every year since 2010, we reckon we’ve probably covered it better this year than ever before with a couple of guys we picked up this year.”
That view was on full display as recruits Stephen Macleod, Ren Lovitt and Daniel Walve all had a big say on the contest as well as proven performers stepping up in the big moments in Dylan Witney and Travis Fursland.
“I think people outside the club probably don’t know what we’ve got here. We’ve got a pretty even list and we’ve got a fair bit of depth,” he said.
“We were rapt with the win but obviously it’s early in the year and we’ve got a fair bit to work on.”
Cam Addie was outstanding for the home side, quelling dangerous Centrals forward Tyren Montebruno as well as rebounding from defence with his usual class, as did former Tiger Macleod.
Lovitt was instrumental in the ruck, while Witney kicked two crucial final-quarter goals and set up plenty of forays forward.
On a sour note for the Panthers, Justin Tarr will face the tribunal for charging, while the umpires have requested footage of an alleged strike by Ash Witney.
It was an arm wrestle early between two of the league’s top sides, Bell Post Hill taking a seven-point lead into the first change courtesy of a late Tarr goal.
It was again Tarr who converted to kickstart a run of four majors for the home side as it made the most of its opportunities.
A six-goal-to-one term extended the lead to 35 at half-time.
Caleb Bacely slotted his first from the goal line and the game looked to be one-way traffic as the margin extended to seven goals. However, Centrals turned the momentum and owned the final stages of the quarter, drawing the margin back to 23 points at three-quarter time. Werribee booted the first of the final quarter and an unlikely comeback threatened the home side.
However, with the margin within three goals, the Bell Post Hill prime movers stood up and took charge.
Two goals from Witney put the game beyond doubt and answered the Werribee challenge.
