The win was set up with five unanswered goals either side of half-time to establish a 35-point lead.
The game was played in cloudy conditions with occasional drizzle and a light breeze blowing to the grandstand end. The surface was chopped up following recent rains.
Eltham rotated taggers on and off prolific Boro midfielder Conlan Gunn all day, including Brad Perry, Jackson Weatherald, Thomas Johnston and Gavan Connelly. Gunn still did some damage but was getting his possessions under pressure.
As indicated by the scores, the Panthers were well on top in defence all day. They were spoiling in the air and mopping up well on the ground.
Bradyn Taglieri and Leigh Catoggio led the way down back while Tom Richardson regularly cleared the ball from the last line of defence.
Their work was critical in the win because the inside 50m count was close on the day.
Greensborough’s path to goal was a difficult one. Josh Riddle kicked an opportunist major in the first quarter to give his team the lead for the only time in the entire match. He was also yellow carded in the second term.
Riddle also received a free on the siren for three-quarter time but his shot hit the post. It seemed to sum up Greensborough’s day. They didn’t capitalise when they had possession.
Josh Grubb converted in the second stanza after receiving a free for a great tackle. And the busy Samuel Parks delivered a pass to Luke Stanton for their third, and last, goal of the game in the third term. But Stanton was on a severe angle and did extremely well to kick it.
Stanton spent most of his time forward, but also played midfield for a while.
The Boro’s Scott Barnett was a contributor. He began in defence, but moved further up the ground in the second half. Drew Wilson also held up well in defence, while Lachlan McQuilken and Josh Griffiths worked hard further afield.
But the team didn’t have enough contributors on the day and coach Cole would have rued the numerous basic skill errors of his young team. Eltham handled the conditions much better.
In the final quarter, Greensborough spent much time chipping the ball to each other deep in defence – as if protecting a slender lead – unable to penetrate the Panther press.
The Mitchell Anderson versus Paul Currie battle was enthralling, with Boro’s Anderson taking the points.
Currie kicked three goals on the day. His first goal was the best – a set shot from 30m out on the boundary. It gave the Panthers the lead going into quarter-time after his team mates had previously booted two out on the full.
Matt Williamson didn’t get a lot of the ball, but was dangerous when in possession. His handpass out of heavy traffic to Gavan Connelly in the clear gave Eltham its first goal of the game.
Williamson was also on the end of a chain of handballs for a goal in the second term. And when he slotted two in as many minutes early in the last, the game was in the bag. The lead was then an unassailable 41 points.
The workload on the Eltham forward line was well spread. David Folino was another contributor, kicking two goals and giving another one away.
The Panthers had more winners than their opponents in the midfield, thanks largely to Steven Foster dominating in the ruck.
Ricky Jessop was excelling at the bottom of the packs while Gavan Connelly was getting his hands on the football and setting up play.
Eltham often transferred play to the fat side when coming out of defence and consistently found free targets further up the ground.
In the third quarter a wrestle involving several players took place right in front of the grandstand. While it ensued, Eltham moved the ball downfield for Brendan O’Sullivan to mark and goal.
Last week, the Panthers let a 31-point lead at three-quarter time slip away, ending in a disappointing draw. At the last break, coach Weatherald urged his team to win the contested ball.
He was pleased to see them pile on 4.2 to just one behind in the final term this week to give their percentage a much needed boost.
While Merv Hughes entertained the crowd at the president’s lunch, Eltham reserves won a thrilling reserves game over Greensborough by a goal.
Eltham hosts Bundoora next week in a bid to play finals, while Greensborough is at home to Macleod.
Final score: Eltham 12.5 (77) def Greensborough 3.6 (24)
