Greensborough has kept in touch of the top five with a strong 47-point win over Banyule at War Memorial Park in Round 11 action of Melbourne Greyhounds football.
A strong first half told the tale of the day, with the Borough leading 49 to 9 at the main break. The lead was achieved through better movement of the ball by the Greensborough players who were able to hit their targets going inside fifty.
Rayden Garrard was regularly a target up forward and finished with five goals for the home team, with four of these coming in the first half when the game was there to be won.
Brody Glenn was another dangerous forward for the Borough, booting three goals, one being a great snap from the pocket at the clubroom end of the ground. He was also responsible for several scoring assists while Harrison Andronaco was useful across half forward.
Down back, Jackson Davies was brilliant with lots of intercept marks. He regularly took advantage of errant Banyule kicks into the forward fifty. The Mitchells often combined well with Tom regularly hand balling out of heavy traffic to brother Will. Their efforts ensured that Greensborough won the inside battle.
The Bears lacked an avenue to goal early but kicked one thanks to Christian Ganino. His snap from close range was full of merit due to the intense pressure applied on him by the Borough defenders.
Down by 40 points at the main break, Banyule found a spark in the third term with Max Jones starring to boot three of his team’s four goals for the quarter. The Bears won the quarter by a goal, but the Borough kicked a disappointing 2.7 up the other end.
Despite their wayward kicking, the 34-point lead at the last break was enough and Banyule was unable to get sufficient momentum late in the game to make it a contest.
Several other battles on the side made it an interesting watch for the onlookers. Max Jones continued his hot form and slotted another two goals in the final term to take his tally to five for the day.
Up the other end, Rayden Garrard also nailed his fifth to ensure that head-to-head tussle ended in a draw.
Striving for all-important percentage, Greensborough aimed for a triple figure score but just fell short. The battle for a second half win was taken out narrowly by the Borough as they outscored the Bears by 7 points.
Greensborough coach Matt Hyde noted a couple of performances which pleased hm on the day. Ryan Commandeur kept a close watch on potential Bears match-winner in Jean-Luc Velissaris, while Jack Johnston was also praised for giving his team drive out of defence.
Banyule’s kicks inside 50 didn’t favour teammates, sometimes due to Greensborough’s pressure and at other times just missing a target.
Banyule coach Rohan Welsh named Max Jones as his best while also giving a big tick to under-19s player Jaxon Riley in defence.
Having six changes on the day made it difficult for the visiting team and they would need some reinforcements in Round 12 when they take on Heidelberg.
The Borough has a match-up at Ben Frilay Memorial Oval against Hurstbridge next week. The sixth place Bridges are a game ahead of Greensborough, but with a worse percentage, just one win separates fourth through to seventh and this game will be a crucial encounter.
