Montmorency have responded to back-to-back defeats in the Melbourne Greyhounds Division 1 competition by breaking away in the second half to defeat North Heidelberg by 38 points at Shelley Street Reserve.
After a tight battle in the opening half, the Magpies kicked eight goals to three in a clinical final two quarters to claim a 15.14 (104) to 9.12 (66) triumph.
The ruck and midfielder paring of Flynn Riley and Nash Holmes starred for visitors in the win.
Riley did plenty of damage around the ground, dominating in the contests and kicking the goal of the day in the final term to cap off a fantastic afternoon. Meanwhile, Holmes was great in the middle and lively inside forward 50, kicking two goals and acting as a playmaker, dishing the footy to his teammates for set shots.
In his Montmorency debut, former Collingwood player Callum Brown excelled and played a crucial role for the winning side around the ground.
For the hosts, Jesse Tardio did his best work in the middle and out of the centre clearances, also getting on the scoreboard to continue his excellent patch of form.
Brock Chircop proved to be the best Bulldog in the forward line, kicking four majors in a match for the first time since Round 15, 2023.
Immediately the tone was set for this intriguing matchup in the first quarter, as neither team could create any free-flowing football to start the term.
But as Ayhan Bajramov slotted through Montmorency’s first of the afternoon, his side starting to get on top in many facets of the game. They had five out of the first six opportunities at goal, however they were only able to capitalise on two of them.
North Heidelberg was able to hit back within a minute of the Magpies’ second, thanks to a messy goal from Zane Souleiman.
As the term wore on, the Bulldogs found more football around the ground, with the game opening up in the latter stages of the quarter.
It created a mini shootout, as both sides exchanged two majors apiece, highlighted by a beautiful checkside kick in the forward pocket from North Heidelberg’s Thomas Rivis to make it a seven-point deficit for his side.
Montmorency would be the team to continue to generate opportunities for the remainder of the quarter but would only manage four more behinds to lead by 11 at the first break.
Nick Rutley’s men would carry their momentum from the previous term into the second courtesy of Blake Murphy, who slotted through the opening two majors to put some scoreboard pressure on the home side.
Nash Holmes then kicked his second with another great goal from the pocket, as his side were making the most of North Heidelberg errors inside their defensive 50.
The Bulldogs didn’t allow the Magpies to run away with the game as they started to settle back into the match, first through a Brock Chircop major, and then Jesse Tardio, who converted a tough set shot on the boundary to cut the deficit back to 20 points.
It looked as though the tide was turning, despite Stefan Uzelac’s best efforts in defence for the Magpies, and it would prove to be the case as on the cusp of half time, Chircop would hit the scoreboard again, leaving a 13-point margin for Jason Heatley’s men to chase in the second half.
North Heidelberg’s charge would carry into the third quarter in what was a brilliant start for the hosts. Adam Giobbi found the big sticks before a third goal from Chircop suddenly saw the margin reduced to a single point as they closed in on their first lead of the afternoon.
But once Montmorency shook off the slow start to the term and started to get their hands on the football again, they didn’t look back.
They would generate multiple high-quality scoring opportunities, with Bajramov’s major putting an end to a five-goal run from the Bulldogs.
The Magpies would then slot the next three majors of the term, both through great play by the visitors as well as ill-discipline from a North Heidelberg side who could sense the game was slipping away from them.
Leading by 24 points at three quarter time, Montmorency looked determined to put the game to bed, as Flynn Riley produced a stellar goal on the run from the boundary inside the first 30 second of the last term.
Dylan Costantin put the final nail in the coffin with an excellent mark at the back of a pack, before converting truly for his second.
A fourth Chircop major ended the Magpies’ goalscoring run, but the away side were relentless in not allowing their opponents any room inside 50 to get good looks at goal, with North Heidelberg unable to find the big sticks in their next four scoring shots.
Montmorency rounded out an impressive second half with two further majors to solidify a 38-point victory.
