A Brodie Meyers-led Tatura picked up its third win of the Goulburn Valley League campaign on Saturday thanks to a flashy opening-quarter rout.
Meyers booted four goals in a best-afield display as Tatura defended its early work late to hold off a wayward Shepparton Swans 13.7 (85) to 8.11 (59) to move within eight points of the top-six.
The Bulldogs got off to a ripping start following the first siren and booted four goals to zip halfway through the first term to stun the home crowd at Princess Park.
Meyers, one of the Dogs’ prized recruits in the off-season, was at the forefront of the charge and kicked three first-term goals while finishing the match with 10 score involvements.
The talented midfielder-forward had freedom to roam inside forward 50 as he became the main focus following the absence of key tall Harley McCarthy to injury.
The Swans, who handed debuts to three emerging under-18 talents in Mason Reeves, Mitch Grumley and Noah Smith, were able to peg one back, but it was the visitors who entered the main break with a commanding 5.3 to 1.2 advantage.
Goals continued to flow in the second with Blake Armstrong (two goals) getting on the end of a turnover to inflict more pain on the hosts as Tatura booted four majors to enter the main break with a match-winning 60 to 19 buffer.
The third term was a stalemate as both sides struggled to hit targets going forward, until things livened up in the last term.
Swans booted five unanswered goals to bridge the margin back to within a couple of straight kicks as Ty Collison jagged one from the pocket which gave the home crowd something to cheer about.
But it was a false hope for the Swans as moments later Tatura’s Will Russell managed to seal the game at the other end with a classy goal on the run.
Chris Ryan continued his superb year for the Bulldogs with another starring performance in the ruck ― notching 45 hit-outs to provide first-use to the on-ballers.
Swans boom recruit Nathan Hrovat was tireless in the midfield with 41 disposals and eight clearances to be his side’s top performer.
Saturday’s win has Tatura reach its total wins from the 2022 season after only eight rounds in 2023 in another positive sign for club.
“The first half was really solid. We moved the ball how we want to move it in accordance to our game plan, we minimised our turnovers and were creative off half-back,” Tatura coach Paul Barnard said.
“Swans really pushed us late and we had to rally together and hold on which is something I was really pleased to see.
“Brodie is one of the best one-on-one players and he’s so hard to match-up on ... so we gave him some isolation inside forward 50 and allowed him to go to work. He’s hit some really good form for us as have a lot of our other players.”