St Albans defeat Lara by 26 points in the Supersaints’ first win since 2019

St Albans’ head coach has praised his "resilient” squad after the Supersaints ended a four-year winless streak, beating Lara by 26 points.

The Supersaints have broken a four-year win drought, beating Lara by 26 points in an emotional day for the bottom-placed GFL club and its “resilient” playing group.

St Albans, who had trailed by nine points at the main break, eventually beat the home team

11.12 (78) to 7.10 (52) at Lara Recreation Reserve after kicking 9.5 to 3.6 in the second half.

After the game, a jubilant Supersaints coach Alex Tortora said it was “wonderful” to see so many supporters with smiles on their faces following their first win after three winless seasons.

“It’s probably just relief (at the moment) and a lot of raw emotion coming out,” Tortora said.

“They deserve it, we keep turning up and we keep working and today we got our just rewards.”

He said St Albans had the chance to score a bigger win but a “lack of composure cost us a little bit”.

“But a couple started to go through, and we just got on with it,” he said.

“It was a very good result.”

When asked for his best players on the day, Tortora said: “I could probably give you 10 names”.

St Albans coach Alex Tortora said he had to tweak plenty of aspects of training to spark a win. Picture: Mark Wilson

He said Sam Donegan was “unbelievable” with three goals from the midfield, while Nathan Cole in the ruck, captain Jacob Russell (two goals), Ben Davis (two goals) and Harley Cobb in defence also had days out.

“They’re the ones who come to mind straight away, they were phenomenal,” Tortora said.

“I’m just going to enjoy the moment for what it’s worth,

“I’m happy to see so many people with smiles on their faces at the club, it’s wonderful.

“That’s probably the most pleasing thing.”

Tortora said it would be a different feeling at training next week, with the coach often changing things up to try and find a spark.

“They’re quite resilient,” he said of his young group.

“It’s more about staying positive, and there’s a lot of ways to do that.

“That’s what you have to do when you’re not winning.

“This week will have a bit of a different feel.”

Originally published as St Albans defeat Lara by 26 points in the Supersaints’ first win since 2019