If consistency is key, then Kyabram may well have dug out the master set it needs to return to premiership glory – a lustre which has avoided the side in the past few seasons.
The Bombers strung together four consistent quarters of football against Euroa to snatch a 13.8 (86) to 7.9 (51) victory on the road, and by doing so broke an unwanted curse according to coach Paul Newman.
“I was really happy with the result, I think it’s the first team we’ve beaten above us for a couple of years, so that was pleasing,” he said.
“(Euroa has) got some fantastic players, so anytime we can get a win against a good opposition on their home deck, it’s always pleasing.
“I was happy with the way we were able to apply the pressure in the heat all day, we’ve been able to do it at stages of the game through the first five rounds, but I thought yesterday was the first time we were able to put in a full four-quarter performance.”
In his first senior appearance for the season, Kyabram’s Brad Mangan rose to get his hands on a number of strong contested marks deep in the square within the first quarter.
His partnership with Tom Holman was easy on the eye, as the mid-sized forward pair helped Kyabram along to a 23-point lead at the first break after Euroa managed just two behinds.
The Magpies then flipped the switch and kicked 6.0 in the second term, with star midfielder Will Hayes beginning to run the show.
Newman noted Hayes’ expertise and engine was admirable, making a bold claim about what impact he’ll have on the league throughout the season.
“I would assume that Will’s probably going to win the Morrison by 10 votes, he’s a fantastic player and he’s got an incredible ability with his endurance to accumulate the ball,” he said.
“You’re never going to stop players like that, all that you can try and do is null their influence as much as possible.
“He had his moments, but I think Kaine Herbert did a really good job on him.”
Kyabram managed to rein in the plucky Magpies after half-time, posting another three-plus goal quarter as Kayne Pettifer began to show his dominance up forward.
Euroa was far from beaten heading into the last, but for the fourth time, Kyabram found the key labelled ‘‘consistent’’ and turned it to unlock the Magpies and run out 35-point winners.
Newman singled out a number of individual performers during what was a concerted effort from his whole side, also acknowledging Euroa’s fightback midway through in the top four clash.
“They threw everything at us and got it back pretty close to even halfway through the second quarter, we were able to wrestle a bit of momentum back just before half-time,” he said.
“Tom Holman was unbelievable, Aidan Robinson down back, we had to give him a job on big Erish (Uthayakumar) with Billy Barnes unavailable.
“For the first time this year we had contributors right across the board, Liam Ogden was fantastic, Zac Norris in the ruck was good, Kayne Pettifer had a really good third quarter and set us alight.”
Pettifer shone for Kyabram with four goals, while Holman and Mangan each finished with three.
For Euroa, Andrew Smith and Jett Trotter doubled up, while Lachie Hill was a clear standout for the host.