The 10th round of the Mallee Football League is now complete, and it appears that wet weather did not affect the quality of football played.
The undefeated Beulah were host to Walpeup-Underbool, and the Blues were quick to hit the scoreboard. Despite the slippery conditions, some good passages of play saw Beulah kick 4 goals to the Walpeup-Underbool 1 in a tight first quarter.
Players adjusted to the conditions in the second term and were able to score more freely as the Blues put on another 6 goals to the Roo's 3, extending the halftime lead out to 36 points. The Roo's came out strong in the third quarter and were dominant around the stoppages early, however the class and depth of the Beulah side saw them eventually break off the shackles and run out 80 point victors.
The Beulah forward line was a class act again, lead by Dennis Redden with 6 goals, while Lachlan Foott kicked 5 and Brock Orval kicked 3. Shaun Monohan picked up another best on ground trophy and was joined in the best by Callum Buchannan and Brock Orval. For the Roo's Kane Munro kicked 3 goals and Kyle Munro kicked 2. Matthew Palmer, Joab Mead and Luke Summerhayes were the better players for Walpeup-Underbool.
The second match of the round saw Jeparit-Rainbow head north to Ouyen in search of the first win of the season. Inaccurate kicking for goal was not going to help them though as they kicked 2 goals 5 in the first quarter, while the Demons were able to capitalise on their opportunities with a 6 goal 4 first term.
The second quarter was level pegging again as both teams put through 5 goals each, but it was the home side who took a slim 28 point lead into the long break. The Demons were able to pull away in the third term as they clamped down on the Lakers, restricting them to a solitary goal. A big final quarter saw Ouyen victorious by 59 points. Relton Roberts kicked 5 goals for the Demons and Bradley Vallence kicked 3. Better players for the Demons included Bradley Vallence, Relton Roberts, Ben Gregg, and Anthony Jardine. Brodie Grant kicked 4 goals for Jeparit-Rainbow, and got in the best with Ben Marra, Elliot Bath and Lucas Edelsten.
The final match of the round saw Hopetoun play Woomelang-Lascelles, and after both teams suffered disappointed losses in their previous matches, a tight tussle was on the cards. The Cats had a point to prove in the first quarter with 13 shots on goal, while Hopetoun managed a single behind. The Devils regrouped in the second quarter and brought the match back to a level playing field with both teams kicking 2 goals apiece. It was Woomelang-Lascelles howvever who still held the advantage at halftime, with a 34 point lead.
Hopetoun were unable to reduce the deficit in the third term as the Cats made the most of the wind advantage, kicking 7 goals to the Devils 3. The final quarter followed the theme of the match and saw Woomelang-Lascelles pull away from Hopetoun and push the final siren deficit out to 98 points. This win sees the Cats really cement themselves in the top 4 of the ladder as league moves into the second half of the season. Jayden Lonergan kicked 9 goals for the Cats along with Joshua Ratcliffe who kicked 6 and Jack Shannahan who slotted 3.
There were plenty of good players for Woomelang-Lascelles, but Jack Shannahan, Martin Jones, and Ryan Merritt were named in the best. Jackson Fisher and Hayden Drew kicked a couple of goals each for Hopetoun, while Hayden Drew and Adam Dufty were named in the best.
Sea Lake-Nandaly Tigers had the bye.
By Daniel Huttig
