Ivanhoe strengthened its grip on the double chance with a runaway 63-point win over Epping in their Heidelberg Golf Club Division 3 match at Epping Recreational Reserve.
After a strong start, the Hoers booted the last seven goals of the game in the 15.17 (107) to 6.9 (45) win.
“I’m proud of the way we played today,” said Ivanhoe coach Wayne Schultz. “We adjusted our play with the breeze, applied great pressure and stuck our tackles. That gave us the opportunity to turn defence into offence.”
Schultz liked the work of Matthew Harte who prevented Liam Waldron from being a match-winner. He also praised the winning backline, led by Michael Doyle and Will Goodieson. Hamish Chapman did a good job on the dangerous Daniel Rakhlin and kept him goalless.
Small forward Josh Hogan owned his moments and slotted four for the Hoers as did marking target Tristan Stead.
In the middle, Kane Veliou impressed with his inside work. Classy mid Marcel Moran returned to the team in round 12 and has built nicely since then. He got plenty of it and finished off his work with two majors.
The Blues played Round 15 without player numbers 1 through 6. Three of those players returned this week in Seb Latina, Lucas Aquilina and captain Leigh Judd.
Epping had first use of the breeze and the pressure applied by both sides was intense early on. It led to numerous fumbles and skill errors, with both teams missing to capitalise of forays forward.
The Blues were doing well early, but a late goal to Ivanhoe gave them a one-point lead at quarter time.
The Hoers had two on the board in the first three minutes with the breeze and went to the main break with a handy 25-point buffer.
Epping had their best period of play in the third term and had reduced the deficit to 18-points just after halfway through the third term.
They went forward after that for three behinds when goals were desperately needed. Had they been able to snag another goal or two, they would have been within striking distance at three quarter time.
But Ivanhoe kicked two against the breeze late in the term to extend the lead to 27 points.
Brad Hollow did his best to rally the players in the Epping huddle. His message was to be ferocious at the ball, run hard and be smart with the footy.
But any thoughts of a great comeback where quashed when the Hoers had a goal within a minute. They slammed on a further four for the quarter while the Blues failed to get the ball through the big sticks.
“Poor decision-making cost us and we lacked skill in our execution”, said Epping coach Brad Hollow. Hollow liked the work of Sebastijan D’Arro deep in defence. He also gave a tick to Jake Perry who used the ball well as well as Dallyce Taylor who took numerous intercept marks.
Jordan Wilkins was among the best in defence for the Blues and was the beneficiary of a 50-metre penalty in the first quarter. It took him to the fifty where he nailed the long shot.
Matthew Williamson was the best of the Epping forwards with three majors, including one with a trademark move where he used his strength to grab a strong contested mark. James Tadd and Mitch Henwood worked hard in the midfield for the home team.
The Blues take on the Stars next week and then have a bye in the final round of the regular season. The bye may be beneficial as it will have the team fresh for finals and should allow them to get key players back into the team, with Brent Macaffer being a likely key inclusion.
The Hoers have their final two games at home against Reservoir and then Laurimar and will almost certainly go to the finals with the double chance.
