There was a sense of deja vu among Murray Bushrangers players and coaches on Saturday afternoon as they found themselves on the wrong end of another NAB League thriller.
This time against the sixth placed Oakleigh Chargers, the Bushrangers just weren’t able to make the most of their opportunities when it counted, falling 11.4 (70) to 9.11 (65) at Wangaratta Showgrounds.
The result was the Bushies’ second successive loss by under a kick, and sees them fall to seventh spot on the NAB League ladder with three rounds remaining.
With senior coach Mark Brown still on Victoria Country duties, assistant Levi Power was given the opportunity to take the reins, and said it was disappointing to fall agonisingly short of victory.
“The boys were pretty flat after the game and rightly so after what has been a big month,” Power said.
“We’re making a bit of a habit out of making games close and unfortunately we haven’t been able to get over the line in our last two.
“We certainly had opportunities to win and just couldn’t get it done, so the challenge for us now is just to learn from it and improve in those tight game situations moving into the finals.”
A highly-skilled exhibition of under-18s football, both sides were able to transition the ball with relative ease, making for what turned out to be a see-sawing contest.
Power said his team’s inability to shut down the run-and-carry of the slick Chargers in the early stages was telling.
“Before the game we were very aware of the way they wanted to play — being a quick and skilful team on the outside,” he said.
“And that’s how it played out early, we struggled to slow them down and it probably took a while for us to adapt to that style of game and make it hard for them to move the footy.”
Trailing by eight points at the main change, the Bushies upped their intensity around the ball, but were made to rue missed opportunities, with a return of 3.3 to Oakleigh’s 4.1 pushing the deficit up to 12 points.
But with momentum on their side the Bushies pushed hard in the final term, closing the gap to five points before the siren brought their comeback to a halt.
“The intensity of the game was through the roof and there were big moments from both sides in that final term — they just took their moments better, it was as simple as that,” he said.
“I was really happy with the way our guys lifted their level and physicality, but I said to the boys after the game we probably left it a little too late.”
Midfield duo Nick Quigg (Seymour) and Max Clohesy (Shepparton Swans) continued their standout campaigns, registering 24 and 21 disposals respectively.
Shepparton Swans livewire Joeve Cooper provided a spark up forward with two goals and United young gun Oscar Ryan picked up 16 disposals to wrap up what was a solid day for the side’s Goulburn Valley exports.