Whittlesea have returned to winning ways in thrilling fashion, defeating Northcote Park by three points in their Melbourne Greyhounds Division 1 clash at the Whittlesea Showgrounds.
With no side having looked better than the other, The Eagles were able to break from a tightly contested match by preventing the Cougars from converting any goals in the third term, allowing them to establish a lead they would hang on to for a 10.14 (74) to 10.11 (71) victory.
The backline trio of Jaron Murphy, Brody Bell and Max Dyson were named among the Eagles best, as they made quick work to recover the onslaught of the Cougars attack through intercepts and pressure acts that made the task to score all the more challenging.
Jarrad Waite stood in the absence of needed leadership, inspiring his team off the field and on by scoring a team high three majors.
For the visitors, Jordan Perry and Thomas Hallebone proved to be the force that pushed their side to multiple scoring opportunities through their riveting clearance work, while Matthew D’Angelo showed to be a mixture of composure and intensity up forward.
It was the Cougars who pounced out of the gates in the first, thanks Benjamin Augustus who dribbled one in for a major.
Though the Eagles responded in dominating fashion that led to them having 10 scoring shots but only converting on two.
Waite and Cameron Wild would be the only two to kick true, while goals from Jordan Schroder and D’Angelo would help them to trail by just one point at the first change.
Similarly, the second term kept both teams within an edge of each other. Daniel Tallariti and Lachlan King stepped up to be some of the Cougars best on the day, funnelling out forward 50’s that led to Schroder picking up where he started with his second goal of the game.
Christian Prestopino’s goal in response started the rejuvenation for the Eagles that lead to Waite once again slotting one through while Samuel Indian capped off his own electric game with a major of his own to put his side up by 11-points.
Alike most of the leads in the game it would not last long, the Cougars converting on two more majors that would give them a two-point lead heading into halftime.
Something seemed to click for the Eagles after the half, the while side, from the backline to the forward line, seemed more in sync as they went on to score four goals whilst shutting out any goals from the opposition.
Facing a 23-point deficit at three quarter time, the Cougars were more determined than ever to stage a comeback, with the final term showcasing their collective resilience that had kept them within reach all game.
Forward Ricky Fandrich snapped one through to open up the scoring that was followed a minute later by a set shot from Hallebone to reduce the margin within two goals.
The Cougars would continue to attack through Alex Boyse, who kicked two goals in quick succession to level the scores approaching time on.
Fatigue started to set in across the ground, fuelling a scoring drought that was broken by Blake Watson kicking a goal out of the contest to give the Eagles a lead they would maintain until the final siren sounded.
Both sides will look to play at their best against elite company next week, with Whittlesea going up against Heidelberg, while Northcote Park will return home to take on Montmorency.
