Banyule returned to the winners list in great fashion, defeating Whittlesea by 53 points in their Melbourne Greyhounds Division 1 clash at Whittlesea Showgrounds.
The Bears led by eight points at the first break before extending their margin throughout the afternoon on their way to a comfortable 14.15 (99) to 6.10 (46) win.
Following their biggest loss of the season last week, Banyule turned things around from the outset, securing their fifth win of the season to jump back into eighth place.
Meanwhile Whittlesea’s losing streak extends and are still yet to taste victory in the 2023 season.
The visitors’ best efforts were led by Daniel Costanzo, who was a contested bull around stoppages and continuously broke through tackles. His hard running provided plenty of options going forward for his side.
Meanwhile up forward, Xavier Mitchell topped his side’s goal tally by kicking four majors for the second time this season. In his first match for Banyule in over a month, Mitchell was a real focal point inside 50.
Whittlesea captain Xavier Dimasi fought hard all day for his side and played one of his best games of the year. He was enormous in the midfield and even contributed to the scoreboard.
Caleb Newport kicked a season high of four goals for the Eagles, which included the opening major of the match.
Inaccuracy hurt the Bears to start the quarter, kicking 0.5, before a 50-metre penalty in favour of the Eagles helped Newport kick the first goal.
The opening term was a tight contest between both sides until some ill-discipline from the hosts allowed Mitchell to kick the Bears’ first goal of the match.
Banyule then took control for the rest of the term, with their ball winning ability and their composure in the back half giving them an eight-point advantage.
The visitors impact on the match continued to increase in the second quarter.
A goal from Thomas Hallebone early in the term sparked a run of four consecutive majors before Newport was able to stem the flow slightly, as he kicked his second major just before half time to make it a 26-point game.
The rain came hard at the start of the second half, but it didn’t stop Banyule continuing to find the scoreboard, with Adam Carafa receiving a contested gather from the hit out in a forward stoppage to kick a goal within the first minute of the third term.
As the rain made its presence known, it would be the Bears who maintained the rage, adjusting quickly to the wet weather, while the Eagles struggled to take marks and be clean by hand.
It allowed Banyule to really break the game open, kicking five of the next six goals to establish a comfortable 54-point lead at three quarter time.
But despite the heavy deficit, Whittlesea were determined to match it with their opponents throughout the final quarter.
The hosts’ pressure was impressive, and it led to Newport kicking two last quarter goals to take his game tally to four.
At the other end, the Eagles defence stood up, only allowing two further goals from the visitors while producing multiple rebound 50’s.
Whittlesea ended up winning the quarter by a point, but it was Banyule’s second and third quarter efforts that proved to be the difference in the 53-point result.
