Undefeated Heidelberg thumps Northcote Park in Northern Football League Division 1 clash
HEIDELBERG smashed Northcote Park to keep its grip firmly on the top rung of the Division 1 ladder.
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HEIDELBERG smashed Northcote Park to keep its grip firmly on the top rung of the Division 1 ladder.
The unbeaten Tigers restricted the visitors to just two goals for the first three quarters before running out 86-point winners, 18.10 (118) to 4.8 (32).
James Magner booted five for the ’Berg in a standout performance in the midfield, while big ruckman Sam Gilmore and clever deep forward Ben Kerton were also influential.
Heidelberg coach Charles Gaylard said it was still only early days and, given it seemed like it would be a very even competition this year, he would not be able to gauge where the Tigers were until after the halfway mark.
Also in Division 1, Macleod’s inconsistent start to the season continued with a 27-point loss to Greensborough.
The Borough gradually got on top in the last term after a tight contest, winning 12.11 (83) to 7.14 (56).
Hayden Seivers, Kane Shaw and Lucas Hobbs were excellent for the ’Roos.
Meanwhile, in Division 2, North Heidelberg always had the edge over Thomastown in their home clash at Shelley Reserve, opening up a handy break by halftime and going on to win, 11.14 (80) to 5.13 (43).
The second half saw a wayward 4.13 kicked between the two sides, but the damage had already been done by the Bulldogs.
Shane Harvey led the way with six goals while Dan Bramich, Zac Gleeson and Luke Villanti were all good.
Meanwhile, Heidelberg West and Banyule struggled in their respective Division 3 clashes on Saturday.
The Hawks scored their one and only goal late in the game against Epping and went down by 157 points, 24.24 (168) to 1.5 (11).
Josh Smith-Thompson, Dan Offer and Brad Moore battled bravely for the winless Hawks.
Banyule left its best footy until too late against Mernda, trailing by 51 points at the last change before showing plenty of fight.
The Bears kicked 5.3 to 2.5 in the final term to go down 16.12 (108) to 10.13 (73) with Jake Hooper’s five goals and the efforts of Riley Williams and Luke French the notable performances.
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