According to Euroa coach Scott Rowan this weekend’s semi-final clash against Echuca presents as a “free hit” for his troops.
After finishing the Goulburn Valley League season in third spot, the Magpies earned themselves a shot at punching their ticket to the grand final this weekend following a comprehensive 51-point win over Kyabram last week.
Now they find themselves in the envious position of having a second chance, with a win giving them an opportunity on the league’s biggest stage and a loss setting up a cut-throat preliminary final.
For all intents and purposes there is nothing to lose and everything to gain.
But standing in their way this Saturday is an imposing Echuca, which put them to the sword on two occasions in 2022, recording a 43-point win at Victoria Park in round two and a 62-point triumph in round 13.
Can third time be the charm for Rowan and the Magpies?
Through the power of GVL Data let’s delve into what plagued Euroa in those two losses and whether it can the turn the tide.
If you look closely at these two games, it was major lapses that dearly cost the Magpies.
In round two, it was the second and third quarters that decided the contest, as the Murray Bombers kicked eight goals to Euroa’s one to build an unassailable 45-point lead at the final change.
And it was on the outside of the contest where Echuca did its best damage, going plus-38 in the third quarter alone, while winning the marks count by 15 and handball receives by a whopping 20.
At a glance
Third quarter statistics Echuca v Euroa round two
Disposals
Echuca 107
Euroa 69
Uncontested possessions
Echuca 74
Euroa 36
Marks
Echuca 29
Euroa 14
Handball receives
Echuca 35
Euroa 15
Score
Echuca 5.3 (33)
Euroa 1.2 (8)
They truly ran the Magpies off the field.
When the teams met again at Euroa in round 13, it was the first quarter that brought about the home team’s downfall, as the Murray Bombers kicked the first five goals of the game to open up a crucial 23-point quarter-time advantage.
But this time around the key statistics didn’t make for such grim reading, with the Magpies actually winning the contested ball count by a whopping 13 in the first term and uncontested possessions by 19.
They were getting their hands on the ball, what was costing them, however, was their inability to defend Echuca’s forward 50 entries, as it scored 64 per cent of the time it went into attack compared to Euroa’s 44 per cent.
Key statistics
First quarter statistics Euroa v Echuca round 13
Disposals
Euroa 97
Echuca 67
Contested possessions
Euroa 39
Echuca 26
Uncontested possessions
Euroa 60
Echuca 41
Handball receives
Euroa 31
Echuca 17
Inside 50s
Euroa 9
Echuca 11
Scores per inside 50 percentage
Euroa 44 per cent
Echuca 64 per cent
Score
Echuca 5.2 (32)
Euroa 1.3 (9)
And while the Magpies worked their way back into the contest, the scoreboard pressure proved too much in the finish, as a dominant last quarter had the Murray Bombers take a 10-goal win.
So all in all, Euroa will need to bring four quarters of sustained effort to pull off this upset, something it will be confident in doing after its obliteration of Kyabram last week.