Border Mail |
THE Alpine Eagles staged a thrilling come-from-behind victory against Lavington on Saturday to claim their first win of the season in the Ovens and Murray Football League under-18 competition.
The Eagles kicked the last goal of the game in the dying minutes from the boot of Ben Amery to beat the Panthers by one point.
They had trailed at every change, but surged late to leave the Panthers one of two clubs without a win after three rounds.
The Eagles were bolstered by the inclusion of Murray Bushrangers squad member James Taberner, who dragged down more than 10 marks playing at centre half-back and in the ruck.
Taberner is the younger brother of Matt, who got drafted to Fremantle from Myrtleford last year.
Lachlan Dale booted three goals for the Eagles, who also had other good players in Callum Crisp, Ryley Sharp and Luke Quirk.
Crisp is the younger brother of Brisbane Lions player Jack, who also started his career with the Saints.
The athletic Quirk was moved onto the ball with telling effect after half-time and is also shaping as a player of the future.
The Panthers were best served by Robert Stewart, Braydan Beesley and Brayden Grimmond.
Albury left Wodonga as the other team still searching for a win after the Tigers won convincingly by 91 points at John Flower Oval.
Will McGrath followed up his big bag of goals the previous round with another five against the Bulldogs.
Sam Crawshaw and Billy Higgins were other dominant players for the Tigers.
The Bulldogs were best served by key defender Ethan McIntosh and Tom Botter, who is still eligible for under-16s.
Wodonga kicked its only goal of the match in the final quarter.
Wangaratta fought off a determined North Albury to win by 30 points at Bunton Park.
The Magpies were wasteful in front of goal, but the inaccuracy kept the Hoppers in touch before sealing the win with a three-goal-to-two final term.
Louis Vescio was the Magpies’ most productive forward, with three goals.
Lindsay Musgrave and Mitch Mahady battled hard for the Hoppers.
Yarrawonga consolidated a spot in the top five with a 90-point win against Raiders.
The Pigeons are one of the big improvers this season with an injection of talent from its AWJFL under-16 premiership team last year including Jake Wild and Brady Pritchard.
Dylan Chung and Cam Tregenza, one of the best players on the ground in the under-16 grand final last year, also played starring roles.
The Pigeons restricted Raiders to just one goal for the first three quarters of the game.
Wangaratta Rovers remained undefeated with a 33-point win against Corowa-Rutherglen.
