ST MARY’S continued its unbeaten start to the Division 3 season, defeating Banyule by two points in a tight game at R.J. Brockwell Oval.
With the result heading towards a draw, behinds from Matthew Patti and Nicholas Daisley late in the final quarter were enough to see the Burra finish with a 12.11 (83) to 11.15 (81) victory.
Without recruit Chris Tarrant, the Bears will rue their wastefulness in front of goal as they slumped to their third successive defeat by less than a goal.
The lead changed eight times throughout the game, with the margin never greater than 14 points – illustrating how close the game was for the entirety.
Players observed two-minutes silence before the opening bounce, honouring Lower Plenty player Patrick Cronin who died tragically last week, as well as paying respect to all those who have served in battle for Australia.
Banyule didn’t miss a beat in the opening minutes. Daniel Kelly, playing his first game since crossing from Heidelberg, produced an electric start, kicking two quick goals to put the Bears on the front foot early.
The Burra didn’t seem to worried about their poor start, responding perfectly. Jake Dambrauskas fired back with two majors, before Lachlan Potter and Patti also kicked truly to give the visitors an eight-point lead at quarter time.
Banyule coach Jason Plant was calm in the quarter time huddle, reminding his team to “expect hard tackles” as St Mary’s has become accustomed for in 2016.
The second term started in almost identical fashion to the first. The Bears took advantage of St Mary’s backline mistakes as Jake Hooper and Michael Italia booted majors to again build a strong start for the home side.
A scrappy contest followed throughout the second quarter as the Bears continued their poor kicking form, while a lack of cohesion from the visitors made it difficult for them to take clear possession.
A late goal from Nicholas Dean ensured that the Burra held the lead heading into half time.
In the third quarter, Banyule again started well with Ben Nethercote snapping his first for the afternoon, while Devin McDonald was very impressive around the ground, taking strong, contested marks and creating opportunities.
The Burra continued to keep pace however, with Potter continuing his wonderful game by kicking his second goal.
A goal-for-goal contest followed, but sloppy disposal and a lack of support from their talls saw the Bears still trailing by three points at three quarter time.
Burra coach Con Borg added some Anzac sprit into his three quarter time address telling his troops “to play their role” and to “sacrifice for their teammates”.
An exciting last term followed. Kelly added his fourth of the day for the hosts, before St Mary’s kicked four of the next five goals to open up a match-high 14-point lead at the 21-minute mark of the quarter.
McDonald almost became the saviour for Banyule, kicking two goals in two minutes to reduce the margin to a solitary point. Kelly kicked a behind to tie the scores, however it wasn’t to be for the Bears as the Patti and Daisley behinds were enough for the Burra to notch their fourth conseucitve win.
Potter and Dambrauskas were both important for the visitors, combining for six goals. For the home side, Kelly was a standout with four majors while McDonald was brilliant kicking three last quarter goals to give his side an opportunity to win the game.
St Mary’s next faces fellow undefeated side Mernda at Waterview Recreation Reserve, while Banyule will look to break its three-game losing streak when it takes on Kilmore at J.J.Clancy Reserve.
Final score: Banyule 11.15 (81) def by St Mary’s 12.11 (83)
