It may have taken until round six, but Barooga picked up its first senior Murray League victory on Saturday afternoon.
The win, over Echuca United, comes after some close calls in recent weeks, with the Hawks pushing Tongala and Moama all the way.
Saturday’s 15.8 (98) to 12.9 (81) victory at the Barooga Recreation Reserve was a thrilling one, with the Hawks coming from behind to collect the four points.
Echuca led by 23 points at the first change, with the Eagles holding a 15-point lead at the main break.
It was in the second half where the Hawks flipped the game on its head, turning a 15-point deficit into an 11-point lead in the third term.
This lead continued to grow in the final quarter and with the game called off due to a serious injury, the Hawks ran out 17-point winners.
Barooga coach Jackson Trengove said it was a really good win for the Hawks.
“We played some really consistent footy against Moama the week and it probably took us a quarter to really start believing in ourselves,” Trengove said.
“Obviously after the tough start to the year with the draw I think the second half of the Moama game we played some really strong footy and took some momentum into this week.”
Trengove said the side started Saturday’s game slow, with Echuca getting the jump on Barooga in the first term.
“But the boys after quarter time really put their minds to work and just worked on their contests and winning the ball and from there the game changed,” Trengove said.
“It’s good to get the four points and a little bit of confidence out of that game.”
It was an impressive performance from Trengove, with the Hawks’ mentor kicking six on the day.
He was joined by William Clarke, Riley Gox, Kris Bextream, Daniel Johnston and Samuel Macheda on the best players list and said it was nice to get on the board after suffering broken ribs in round one.
Unfortunately for both teams the game was called off early, with Barooga’s Tom McNeill breaking his leg.
“Credit to Echuca United for the sportsmanship that they showed, one of their players is a paramedic so he rushed straight over and we were really thankful with the way they handled it but it was a disappointing end to a really good day for the football club” Trengove said.
It was also a significant day for the Barooga reserves, with club legend and current vice president Zane Goodwin playing his 400th game for the club.
“Anyone that plays that amount of games it’s obviously a huge achievement for him, he’s been a terrific servant for the football club,” Trengove said.
“He’s just one of those guys you want to have around the footy club and it was obviously a big milestone so it was great to get two wins.”
Over in Nathalia, Cobram continued its undefeated start to the season with an impressive come from behind win.
The Tigers were behind early in the contest, before running away with an impressive 6.10 (46) to 13.14 (92) win.
This weekend the Tigers will play host to Numurkah at Scott Oval, while Barooga has a week off due to the split round.