Having come agonisingly close in their past two match-ups, Shepparton Swans returned to the Goulburn Valley League winners’ list on Saturday after a hard-fought 13.14 (92) to 6.12 (48) win over Shepparton United.
Boosted by a cameo appearance from former AFL star Michael Barlow, the Dees had every intention of chalking up their second win of the season at Deakin Reserve, only to be thwarted by the Andrew Riordan-led Swans, who notched their third win of the campaign.
After a relatively slow start, the Swans grew into the game steadily and managed to pile on four unanswered goals in the second term, reaching the main break with a healthy buffer.
“They outplayed us in that second period,” Dees coach Paul Serra said.
“We got ahead. Swans had a lot of chances and I think we were lucky to be in front when we were.
“We probably wasted a lot of opportunities in the second half. It didn’t allow us to apply scoreboard pressure.”
Swans onballer B.J. Squire again led from the middle on Saturday with a game-high 31 disposals, while Riordan earned best-on for his efforts down back, making life difficult for the Dees’ forwards with five intercept marks and four spoils.
The Demons were inaccurate after the break, with just five points to show for their attempted fightback.
Serra said his side was left to rue missed opportunities.
“They (Swans) played outstanding in the last 15 minutes of the second term and really had us on the back foot,” he said.
“We just didn’t take our chances and kicked five points straight after the break.“
“Swans were definitely the better team on the day and deserved the win.”
Sheldon Bogdan earned best-on for the Dees, registering 23 disposals and six clearances, while Serra’s usual performers in Edward Adams and Kyle Clarke also put in a shift.
Few would be surprised to see Demons graduate Barlow also leading the stat chart.
The former Fremantle and Gold Coast Suns midfielder collected 28 disposals and seven clearances in a strong return in the red and blue.
“It was fantastic to have him back. He came up for sponsors day and was pretty keen to pull boots on,” Serra said.
“He had his coaching duties with Werribee and the sponsors day so it was a pretty big day for him, but he had more than 20-odd possessions and really led our younger boys yesterday.
“Just the knowledge he gave to a young group in what’s been a challenging year is so important.”