A brave senior Beechworth side was unable to cash in on a chance to make an early season statement, going down by 29 points at Thurgoona last weekend. Both teams have been tipped to be in the thick of a tight tussle for the lower half of finals positions this year, and not much separated the sides until a four-goal-to-two last quarter put the game beyond reach. Beechworth coach Jack Neil said his team played a quality three quarters of footy, but couldn’t translate their dominant patches on the scoreboard. “The group is continuing to train hard and buying into the style of play we are looking to develop,” he said. “We showed when we do the things we are training for, we are able to put together some dangerous play.” Momentum swayed back and forth between the two teams throughout the first half. Thurgoona broke out to a 17-point lead early in the second quarter before a rampant Beechworth fightback had the margin within three points at halftime. The Dogs threatened to kick away once again in the third quarter but the ‘Bushies wouldn’t lay down. A spread of goal kickers including Lukas Jakobsson and Liam Stephens hit the scoreboard to keep them in it. Despite having three more scoring shots heading into the final change of ends, the ‘Bushies trailed by two goals. The Dogs were again relentless to start the last quarter, and this time put the game out of reach for the brave Bushrangers, winning 15.9 (99) to 10.10 (70). “Thurgoona had some aggressive running and managed to get their key players around the ball more, which capitalised on our drop in intensity,” Neil said. Hagen Hopp was instrumental down back for Beechworth while Sam Johnson, Stephens and Jakobsson were solid through the midfield. Second gamer Ted Ritchie continued his fine start to the year up forward while the ever-consistent Kayde Surrey was exceptional across half-back. Neil said along with Ritchie, young stars Ollie Kavanagh and Rourke Warner have seen their big pre-seasons come to fruition while early signs indicate Stephens has taken the next step as a top player in the competition. “Connor Stone is also showing signs he will have a big impact across the season,” he said. The task this weekend won’t get any easier for the Bushrangers as they host reigning premiers and hot flag favourites Kiewa-Sandy Creek at Baarmutha Park this Saturday. The Hawks bounced back from a round one draw in the grand final rematch against Barnawartha with a big 79-point win against Chiltern. “We know they are loaded with talented players so we will be continuing to emphasise playing our individual roles and looking to continue to take the game on,” Neil said. “We will be working hard on consistent application of our plan.” Neil said Hunter North would be a likely out this week with a shoulder injury and more changes could be expected. “We will continue to make a few changes over the first few weeks as we find the combinations we feel give us the best chance of being competitive each week,” he said. “Some really strong performances from players in the reserves is also putting some pressure on positions which is very exciting.” Action gets underway at Baarmutha Park with the juniors from 9am.
