EDFL 2019: East Sunbury claims upset win over Burnside Heights

East Sunbury experienced a patchy start to 2019 after making last year’s EDFL Division 2 decider, but the Thunder claimed its best win of the season on Saturday.

East Sunbury skipper Lucas Shaw starred on Saturday. Picture: Hamish Blair

East Sunbury coach Glenn Hopkins had vowed last year’s runner-up would be a different team in the second half of the EDFL Division 2 season.

The Thunder responded to a patchy start to the campaign by inflicting Burnside Heights’ second defeat of 2019 on Saturday and sent a message to its rivals in the process.

East Sunbury ran the Bears ragged at John McMahon Reserve to score a 19-point win, 11.14 (80) to 9.7 (61).

The Thunder trailed by 21 points at quarter-time but restricted the visitors to just four goals for the remainder of the contest to improve its record to 3-4.

East Sunbury coach Glenn Hopkins. Picture: Hamish Blair

Diquan Williams limited sharpshooter Josh Covelli to three majors, while Bryce Whelan kept Anthony Fawcus goalless in a massive win for East Sunbury.

Skipper Lucas Shaw and reigning league best-and-fairest Kamen Ogilvie shone in the midfield, while recruit Liam Smith was prominent across half-forward.

“We started a bit slow, but in the second quarter we certainly got back to really using the ground and running the ground,” Hopkins said.

“We’re aiming to get back to our brand of footy for the rest of the season.

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“Our attack on the ball and attack on the opposition was way better.

“We caused a lot of turnovers. Burnside really like to have possession of the ball, they like to be able to kick the ball and use it, and we really put pressure on them.

“We just got back to that really strong, hard pressure, and when we transitioned the ball we did it quite quickly.”

The weekend’s match marked the first time East Sunbury had taken the field since May 18, a frustrating fixture quirk created after Jacana pulled the plug on the season. The reserves also took the points and Hopkins said the club’s increased numbers had left it in a strong position for the remainder of the season.

“We won’t be ringing up for players for the seconds and hoping for the best,” he said.

“Now we’re going to be able to promote or drop players on their form, which we haven’t been able to do all year. That’s important for us coming into the last part of the season.

“We hadn’t played footy for a while, but our message through the week was the same as always — just get back to the way we want to play footy.”

Elsewhere, Sunbury Kangaroos recorded a crushing 137-point win over Coburg Districts, with Josh Burgess bagging 11 goals.

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