It was a bad week to come up against the Shepparton Swans.
After the previous weekend’s disappointing loss to Benalla in the Goulburn Valley League (the Swans coughed up a 34-point lead) the Swans came out firing in their round 10 fixture against Tatura.
In Saturday afternoon’s match at Princess Park, the Swans got off to an electric start by booting 36 points to the Bulldogs’ 14 in the opening quarter.
There were no concerns about a repeat of the match against Benalla, as the Swans continued to put their foot down in the second quarter.
The Swans’ forwards were causing havoc for the Bulldogs’ under-siege defence, with the only flaw in the Bloods’ first half game being their accuracy in front of goal (kicked 8.11 for the half).
After a frustrating season for the Swans — which has featured five losses by under 10 points — Jedd Wright’s side was eager to flex its muscles against Tatura.
In the third quarter alone, the Swans outscored the Bulldogs’ final total (35), booting 47 points through six different goal-kickers.
The Swans’ match featured an even spread of contributors in front of goal, with the home side finishing with 12 separate goal-kickers — Christian Georgiou, Jett Bruton, Sam Bicknell and James Auld all finishing with two goals.
Wright was buoyed by how his side responded after last round’s loss, with the Swans coach particularly impressed with how his side kept its foot firmly on the Bulldogs’ throat.
“The boys could have easily taken the foot off the pedal,” he said.
“We kicked pretty poorly in the first couple of quarters and I reckon if we had of gotten over the line last week, we might have taken the foot off, but we have been on the rough end of a few, so the boys really wanted to cash in.
“I thought Mark Kovacevic was probably best-on-ground.
“Both the Clohesy boys (Zac and Max) played really well and Steele Simpson was great up forward as well.”
Gun forward Simpson continued his strong campaign for the Swans with a match-high three goals, tying him for fourth in the league goal-kicking with 24 from nine games.
The hosts’ pressure and intensity never wavered in arguably their best performance of the season, with the Swans claiming a 97-point victory.
The final score finished 19.18 (132) to 5.5 (35).
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Tatura’s Xavier Hutchison is tackled. Photo by Megan FisherImage 2 of 10
Shepparton Swans’ Will Dwyer on the run. Photo by Megan FisherImage 3 of 10
Shepparton Swans’ Jett Bruton celebrates with his teammates after kicking a goal. Photo by Megan FisherImage 4 of 10
Shepparton Swans’ Mark Kovacevic and Tatura’s Tim Wilson battle it out in the ruck. Photo by Megan FisherImage 5 of 10
Shepparton Swans’ Luke Davies evades a tackle. Photo by Megan FisherImage 6 of 10
Tatura’s James Nihill is brought to the ground. Photo by Megan FisherImage 7 of 10
Tatura’s Kitt McCamley scans for teammates. Photo by Megan FisherImage 8 of 10
Tatura’s Curtis Ryan feels the Swans’ heat. Photo by Megan FisherImage 9 of 10
Tatura’s Ethan Penrith on the fly. Photo by Megan FisherImage 10 of 10
Tatura’s Ethan Penrith and Shepparton Swans’ Mason Pedretti fight for the ball. Photo by Megan FisherEight games remain in the home and away season, with the Swans sitting three wins behind sixth-placed Kyabram on the ladder.
Wright’s side will need a lot of results to go its way if it is to see some September action, but the Swans coach doesn’t want to concern himself with results too far into the future.
“We were just happy to get a win in the end,” he said.
“We had a big focus on our pressure during the week and I thought we had that from the first moment of the game until the last moment.
“In an ideal world, that would be great (to make finals), but we are also pretty realistic with where we are at.
“We have got Rochy this week, who are probably one of the form teams in the competition, so we will just look forward to that.’’
The Swans will make the tough trip out to face third-placed Rochester in round 11, while Tatura will hope to get off the bottom of the ladder when it plays fellow cellar-dweller Benalla away.