Thomastown turned around a goalless first term to claim a commanding 75-point win over Epping on Good Friday at Epping Recreation Reserve.
The Blues shot out to a 15-point lead at quarter time after kicking the opening three goals of the match, however the Bears would pile on 14 of the remaining 15 goals of the game to triumph 14.17 (101) to 4.2 (26).
With multiple new recruits debuting for the visitors, it was Bill Samie who stood out, kicking five majors and causing plenty of headaches for the Epping defenders.
Salvatore Mamone and Michael Tang were the other multiple goal scorers meanwhile 2022 Team of the Year members Jarryd Coulson and Lawrence Lopiccolo as well as defensive duo Mathew Morison and Aaron D’Angelo were also amongst the side’s best players.
The defensive efforts of Aaryn Gibson was particularly impressive for the Blues in the first term alongside Epping skipper Leigh Judd. While in his second senior game for the club Caleb Newport was solid for the home side.
New recruit Ethan Gorski also showed some poise, as the Blues looked to him when coming out of defence and as a result, was able to hit several targets in the forward half of the ground.
Epping were the first team to establish some clean possession in the early stages of the game as some hard running off half back resulted in a simple opening goal for Daniel Rakhlin three minutes in.
Thomastown had plenty of the ball throughout the first term, but they couldn’t translate that possession to scores on the board, thanks largely to the work of Gibson who was instrumental in taking intercept marks and bringing the ball to ground for the Blues.
When the Bears went forward, Epping were able to extinguish any threatening plays from their opposition but in what would be a sign of things to come, Samie was always in the thick of the action up forward, creating multiple opportunities.
The Blues’ Alec Buchan then kicked two goals in the space of four minutes to put the margin out to almost three goals, with the sides great forward pressure suggesting that this would be no easy victory for Thomastown.
But as the second quarter commenced, the visitors clicked into gear and started making the most of their chances on goals, with Michael Tang snapping truly six minutes in to kick his side’s first major of the game.
Thomastown then put an end to Epping’s hard running and pressure that was a highlight of their game in the first term and started to make it count on the scoreboard, kicking seven second quarter goals, led by two each from Samie and Tang.
A half time lead of 32 points put the Bears in the hot seat to run away with the game and thanks to the dominance of Jarryd Coulson in the ruck and the strong clearance work of the Thomastown midfielders, Epping couldn’t get their hands of the football throughout the third term.
Former Mernda captain Anthony Bradford intercepted an Epping defensive 50 kick and then converted from close range before Samie kicked his third goal for the match to extend the visitors’ advantage to 45 points at three quarter time, keeping the Blues to a second consecutive scoreless quarter.
Thomastown picked up where they left in the final term with Lopiccolo and West Preston-Lakeside premiership player Makhoul Zakkour kicking goals in the first seven minutes of the quarter to put the result beyond any doubt.
Against the flow, Epping were able to slot two majors of their own, which included the production of their best passage of play for the game, with a run off half back resulting in Rakhlin walking into an open goal for his second major of the game.
But to cap off a brilliant afternoon, Samie added his fourth and fifth goals to complete an emphatic three quarters and first round victory for Thomastown.
