North Heidelberg made a strong response to last week’s loss to the Fitzroy Stars, producing a commanding display to defeat Lower Plenty by 47 points.
The Bulldogs piled on thirteen goals to three after quarter time to run away with a 16.8 (104) to 7.15 (57) victory at Montmorency Park South Oval in Round 3.
The Harvey brothers put on a magical display for the visitors, kicking nine goals between them as well as providing run and carry that Lower Plenty simply couldn’t match. Liam Nunan and Nicholas Matthews also had dominant performances.
Tom Keys, Ciaran Porter and Cameron Elmore were the most impressive for the Bears, as they slipped to third place on the A Plus Labour Solutions ladder.
Looking to improve on their first quarter efforts from the previous rounds, North Heidelberg began the game strongly, pushing forward quickly early in the term.
Josh Doherty’s snap opened the scoring but a dominant 10 minutes for the Bulldogs was short lived as the Bears fired back, kicking the next three goals through Darcy Barden, Jack Fitzpatrick and Kallum Hinchcliffe to establish an early lead.
Bulldogs duo Jackson Jones and Shane Harvey both converted set shots to halt the Bears’ momentum, however the home side still went into the first break with a seven-point advantage.
It was all North Heidelberg in the second quarter as it began to take full control of the contest.
Making the most of Lower Plenty’s growing turnover count, the Bulldogs kicked the first five goals of the term, led by two from Shane Harvey and a spectacular one-handed grab in the goal square to nail his third major.
Keys kicked his second to reduce the pressure from the visitors but the Harvey brothers combined again as Shane kicked his fourth late in the quarter to give the Bulldogs a 22-point lead at the main break.
Lower Plenty was desperate to start strong in front of their home crowd as the second half commenced. However, it was the Bulldogs who again controlled the game early in the term.
Shane Harvey took his tally to six goals midway through the third term, while also establishing a comfortable lead on the A Plus Labour Solutions Division 2 goal kicking chart.
Matt Barden and Cameron Elmore were able to slot their set shots to reduce Lower Plenty’s deficit to keep their side in the contest.
However Brent Harvey broke the fight back with plenty of dangerous run and carry, even kicking a late major to increase the margin to 26 points at three quarter time.
Any hope of a Lower Plenty come-from-behind win was quickly extinguished early in the final term, as North Heidelberg continued its dominance.
The Bulldogs kicked four goals to none in the final quarter to run away 47-point victors and get themselves back on the winners’ list, moving into fourth place on the ladder in the process.
The Bulldogs return home in Round 4 to face Thomastown while Lower Plenty faces another tough challenge against ladder-leader Diamond Creek at Coventry Oval.
Final score: Lower Plenty 7.15 (57) def by North Heidelberg 16.8 (104)
