THE Bendigo Football League made it through to the semi-finals of 2003's Division 1 WorkSafe country championships, but not before receiving a huge scare from the Murray League at the QEO.

Starting out as raging hot favourites, the Blue and Golds trailed by 16 points 10 minutes into the last stanza and looked set to lose its fifth, consecutive Division 1 clash.
However, shrewd coach Mick McGuane had conserved his midfield strength.

His plan of rotating these vital players throughout the first, three quarters paid dividends. Darren Walsh, Shannon Milward, Kieren Prowse and Cameron Carter took over in the QEO middle as the BFL overran a tiring Murray on-ball brigade in the concluding 15 minutes.

Bendigo kicked the final, four goals of the day to win a thriller: 16.17 (113) to 15.14 (104).

A relieved McGuane said his side needed to improve if it hoped to win the June semi-final, scheduled for the holiday long weekend on the MCG against the powerful Geelong F.L.
"I thought we controlled the ball for most of the day, but our execution was deplorable," the coach said.

"In the end, though, it was good to get away with the win considering how poorly we played."

The BFL went inside its forward 50m arc 64 times to Murray's 46.

However, Advertiser sports editor Adam Bourke noted a combination of the visitors' use of the ball, a lack of pressure from the home side's midfielders and a shortage of key Blue and Gold defenders enabled Murray to keep scoreboard pressure on its higher-rated opponent.

McGUANE started with Brendon Shepherd at full-back on David Liddell and Marcus Barham at centre half-back, matched up on Jason Rachele.

By the long break Shepherd had been moved to full-forward while Barham spent time on the pine. Murray's key forwards were controlling play.

Milward, Brad Eaton, Carter and Brent Dryden, best known as quality midfielders, at times throughout the match were forced to play across the half-back line on considerably taller opponents.

Leading by a goal at half-time, Bendigo could have put the game out of Murray's reach in the third quarter. But the poor execution which had plagued the side's performance in the first half continued on, Bourke noted in his Monday wrap-up.

The Blue and Golds booted 3.8 and led by a mere five points deep into time-on. Then Andrew Miller and Colin Sanbrook kicked consecutive majors for Murray to give the visitors the momentum and an eight-point lead three-quarter time lead.

When Robert Lamberti kicked the the opening goal of the final term to extend the lead to 16 points, Murray could sniff victory.

The six-pointer seemed to snap Bendigo from its slumber. Shepherd's move into the forward line started to pay dividends as he contested strongly and set up Michael "Mobbsy" O'Brien's third major.

One minute later full-forward Steven Reaper produced a brilliant snap from an acute angle to cut the margin to three points. Fourteen minutes had elapsed.

Murray's confidence was rocked and three minutes later a Bendigo coast-to-coast move from a kick-in resulted in a mark and goal to Reaper.

That gave the home side a narrow lead.

Bendigo's half-back line was equal to the task. Barham, who responded brilliantly to a spray from McGuane, led the defence.

At the 27-minute mark Bendigo iced victory when Cam Carter roved a pack in the goal square and soccered home the sealer.

"We deliberately held the likes of Carter and Milward back to release them in the last quarter. And it paid off," said McGuane.

"Shepherd gave us a sound target up forward and I thought Walsh was very important in the final quarter with his kicking depth."

Bourke wrote that Maryborough rover Troy Parker was brilliant for Bendigo, shutting down Murray playmaker Nathan Gemmill.

Golden Square's Ben Doherty (now a senior reporter based in India and S-E Asia for The Age) proved to be a nightmare match-up for Murray.

Doherty spent time on the wing, across half-forward and also at centre half-back where his athleticism and running ability caused havoc.

However Addy reporter Bourke noted that "on face value playing Reaper and Toby Cardew alongside of each other didn't work.

"But they weren't helped by poor and shoddy delivery. Cardew looked out of sorts, kicking one goal only, while Reaper finished with four goals from just four kicks," Bourke wrote.
BENDIGO 4.2 9.5 12.13 16.17 (113)
MURRAY 3.2 8.5 14.9 15.14 (104)

GOALS --- Bendigo: S. Reaper 4, M. O'Brien 3, B. Doherty 3, G. Campbell, Cam. Carter, D. Walsh, L. Saunders, B. Shepherd, T. Cardew. Murray: D. Liddell 4, C. Sanbrook 3, S. Dickinson 2, J. Rachele 2, R. Garner, A. Gemmill, R. Lamberti.

BEST --- Bendigo: T. Parker, B. Doherty, D. Walsh, K. Prowse, G. Campbell, M. O'Brien. Murray: J. Rachele, P. Bourke, D. Liddell, C. Sanbrook and L. Marshall.

But it wasn't to be the Blue and Golds' year. Geelong handed Bendigo a trouncing at the MCG in June, 2003. Big 'Bundy' Reaper kicked the lion's share of Bendigo's miserable goal tally in the Division 1 semi-final.

MEANWHILE, six years earlier the Blue and Gold's poor run in Nineties inter-league fixtures had continued at the QEO.
In a 1997 Round 1 country championships game against old rivals Ovens and Murray, the visitors unleashed an eight-goal last quarter to win by nine points.

Nine points seemed a magic number in the late 90s-early noughties.
Bendigo held a slender three point lead at half-time: 10.5 (65) to 9.8 (62).

And following a six-goal-to-two third term, the accurate Blue and Golds looked in a reasonably secure situation.
Then it all unravelled, as Lavington spearhead Chris Stuhldreier nailed four of his five goals in the last term. The Orange and Blacks steamrolled home to win: 19.16 (130) to Bendigo's 19.7 (121).

For the home side, coached jointly by Neville Massina and Tony Kelly, Eaglehawk's Paul Eyles, Kyneton's Derrick Filo and Maryborough's Matt Aston all booted three goals.
South's Simon McLean, Castlemaine's Steven Oliver and Maryborough's Jamie Bond chipped in with two apiece.
Former Golden Square rover Darren Harris (Wodonga Raiders, now prominent in AFL assistant coaching ranks) landed four majors for Ovens and Murray.

IN OTHER Rd. 1 matches Gippsland Latrobe 16.22 def. Murray 11.3, Geelong 17.17 def. Central Murray 11.10 and in a one-point thriller Hampden 13.12 (90) def. Goulburn Valley 13.11 (89).

Bendigo was relegated to Div. 2 for 1998.
The May, 1997 loss continued a worrying trend for the Blue and Golds. From 1991-97 inclusive the BFL had managed just three inter-league victories and racked up seven losses --- six of them on the supposed "fortress" QEO!

The resume read like this ---
1991: lost to Geelong (QEO). 1992: lost to O and M (QEO).
1993: def. Mid Murray (Swan Hill); def. Goulburn Valley (semi-final, QEO); lost to Geelong (grand final, QEO).
1994: def. Western Border (Hamilton); lost to Mid Murray (semi-final, QEO).
1995: lost to O and M (Wangaratta). 1996: lost to Gippsland-LaTrobe (QEO).

With the BFNL coming up against Ballarat next weekend, Richard's selections for Round 7, 2013: South by 19 points, Sandhurst by 9, Strath Storm by 23 and Golden Square by 30.
2013 season total: 19.

By Richard Jones