A bottom-of-the-table derby had everyone in Benalla on the edge of their seats on Saturday afternoon as the home team came from behind to steal a stunning two-point victory.
Ex-Carlton and North Melbourne forward Jarrad Waite was the standout performer for the Saints in the nail-biting 14.4 (88) to 12.14 (86) win thanks to his dominant eight-goal outing.
Waite made his presence felt in the forward line as his height and strength proved too much for Rochester’s defence and his accuracy in front of goal proved vital as he kicked the goal to surge the Saints back in front late in the fourth term.
The powerful forward, who played 244 games at the elite level, showcased why he was such a star talent for the Blues and Kangaroos in Benalla’s Goulburn Valley League round eight triumph.
Waite was everywhere and proved “unstoppable” according to Benalla football director Terry Blackburn.
“It was an exciting win; a real hard-fought come-from-behind win,” Blackburn said.
“Jarrad was unstoppable and he was able to do just about everything. He’s such a genuine bloke, it’s never about him he’s all about educating the younger guys and helping them become better players.”
If you had no context of where Benalla and Rochester were sitting on the ladder coming into this game, you would have thought these teams were playing in a final ― due to the level of intensity of the contest.
The game got off to a quick start as Rochester kicked two goals early.
Benalla, without star ruck Josh Marchbank, relied on under-18 debutant Tyler McGregor to fly the flag in the ruck.
The away side’s third goal came moments later when Sean Williams, who went on to boot six majors, slotted a goal after a period where every ground ball seemed to be met with a stoppage in play.
A lack of discipline from Rochester saw Benalla score its first goal after a 50m penalty.
Soon after the flood gates opened the goals started flowing.
Rochester’s James McPhee kicked the next major followed by back-to-back goals from Saint Tom O’Brien.
The vice-captain’s second goal was all his own making as he landed a crunching tackle on Joe Atley 5m out from goal.
Rochester led at the first break, but Benalla hit the front within the first five minutes of the second quarter as Waite added another to his tally.
A lapse in discipline from the Saints saw Rochester take the lead again after the visitor was essentially handed a 12-point goal when a free kick was called for dissent in the goal square.
The Saints narrowly won the third quarter to bring the scores back to 11 points and set up a barn-burner of a finish.
The Tigers’ poor accuracy in front of goal hurt as they kicked one goal and seven behinds to leave the door open for Benalla.
The Saints were able to boot four goals in the last term to overrun the visitors and seal a classic victory.
Atley was again the top performer for Rochester, along with Mitch Cricelli, while Waite found support through Jordan Wolff, Tom O’Brien and David Mennen.