Sport
Kyabram keeps winning streak alive as it heads into finals off the back of Benalla beating
Kyabram is running full steam into finals with winning form beneath its belt.
The Bombers have snared four victories from their past four outings, the latest of which was a 31-point beating on the road away at Benalla on Saturday.
It may look convincing on paper, but the result was far from straight forward for Paul Newman’s boys in red and black in Goulburn Valley League action.
Despite having more than double Benalla’s shots on goal in the first quarter Kyabram trailed by a point after some shaky kicking to start the game.
The second quarter is where the Bombers truly came into their own.
Kyabram bossed it inside the arc with six marks inside 50 compared to Benalla’s one, converting off four attempts to rip back the ascendancy from an unassuming Saints side.
A glorious ruck showdown between Benalla’s Josh Marchbank and Kyabram’s Zac Norris took centre stage throughout the afternoon, both big men waging war on each other around the showgrounds.
After half-time Benalla sought to reclaim its earlier lead, but only faltered further in the third term.
The deficit sat at 15 points with one quarter to play ― certainly not out of reach for a Benalla outfit teeming with class.
However, as they’ve done time and time again this season the Bombers finished with a wet sail and dug the studs into the hosts with four more majors to secure a 12.16 (88) to 9.3 (57) win.
Marchbank was named Benalla’s best, while Tom Bennett slotted three goals in the Saints’ last dance of 2023.
For Kyabram, Aidan Robinson and Kaine Herbert put out eye-catching performances while Kaine Pettifer, Anthony DePasquale and Will Golds booted two goals apiece.