Bushrangers pinch one late

BEECHWORTH surged home in the final quarter to erase a 14-point three-quarter time deficit to win their season opener in Thurgoona. The Bushrangers kicked six goals to two in the last 30 minutes to leave the Bulldogs licking their wounds at the full-time siren, with scores reading 14.7 (91) to 12.12 (84). Beechworth coach Jack Neil said it was an exciting way to secure his first win at the helm. “It was probably reflective of our first real hit out of the season, there was a bit of rust in the first half, but the boys did a great job in the second half, fitness really came to the fore,” he said. “Most of our senior group have trained consistently and hard throughout the summer and it’s a nice reward for effort. “We made some adjustments at half time and as a group the guys stuck to that which was great.” Thurgoona jumped the Bushrangers in the first half to hold a three-goal lead at the main break with West Australian recruit Cody Howard living up to the hype. The Dogs held sway in the third quarter, but their dominance wasn’t reflected on the scoreboard, kicking 2.5 to Beechworth 3.1 to keep the door ajar. The Bushrangers would ultimately pounce on the opportunity, with former coach Tom Cartledge and Austen Fendyk kicking clutch goals in the last to secure the seven-point win. Neil said at half time the coaching group honed in on defensive weaknesses of the Dogs and tried to speed up their ball movement. “It was more being proactive with our gameplan, we were just a bit reactive so we changed things a little,” he said. The usual suspects stood out for Beechworth led by reigning best and fairest winner Degan Dolny, who was well supported at the other end of the ground by Lachie Armstrong who kicked five goals. Cam Fendyk was also at his best in the midfield with Cartledge’s fitness coming to the fore in the last quarter, kicking two critical goals. Beechworth will be faced with another massive task this weekend heading to Chiltern to take on the Swans. Chiltern made a big statement last weekend, crashing the party of Yackandandah’s 2024 senior premiership flag unfurling to win the grand final by 12 points. Neil said the Swans’ outside dominance would produce a whole new challenge to the inside dominant ‘Dogs. “We still have plenty of things to work on, this week’s training was still about building our game plan out,” he said. “Chiltern have a lot of runners and a big ground, it’ll be a completely different challenge going from a team like Thurgoona on a small ground to Chiltern on a big ground.” Connor Stone, who made a late commitment to continue playing with the side this year, injured his hand on the weekend and will miss the clash. On the court last Saturday, a new-look A grade Beechworth side were outclassed by Thurgoona 43-24. The team welcomed back Eidenne Surrey and Sarah Robinson from absences last year while newcomer Lainey Alexander impressed in the attacking third. Action will kick off in Chiltern with the juniors from 9am.

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