Australian Football

Match Report

On the first Friday of the split round, the lights of Coopers Stadium lit up for some night footy action between the Redlegs and the Bulldogs. No sooner had the Redlegs put one over the Magpies in the season opener, they were brought back to earth with a thud by the Bulldogs only a week later. That seven-goal loss at the Ponderosa stopped a six-pack streak from happening and gave the Bulldog fans some hope for their season ahead. Both sides have endured poor starts to the season, but the 'Legs have gotten back on track to take a spot inside the top five while the Dogs are just managing to stay out of the cellar. A sodden and muddy field greeted the fans and the teams and it was going to be an all out slog.

The first quarter was uneventful, both sides struggling to get going in the lousy conditions. The Dogs would bag the first and only goal of the term while the Redlegs managed two behinds, Centrals up by four points at the first change. But the Redlegs fortunes changed sharply in the second quarter, a couple of suspect free kicks allowing them to bag a couple of early goals before the inaccuracy bug lobbed, as well as a Dogs goal going begging due to an unnecessarily cautious approach. A further 2.6 to the Dogs' miserable two behinds would see the 'Legs take a four-goal lead going into the long break. The third term would prove to be just as horrid as the first on the scoreboard, the rain returned to wreak havoc on field as both sides took a goal each with three behinds to the home side stretching their advantage to 27 points. The Redlegs would put up with a late challenge from the visitors but the bug had changed camps by that time, Centrals kicked 2.5 while the Redlegs took three goals without a miss to run out 28-point winners.

The Redlegs named Matt Panos as their best in the wet, while the Dogs named Jarrod Schiller as their standout.