Picture: THOMAS MILES
ANOTHER victory went to West Gambier in round eight of Western Border football, after it brushed aside South Gambier at Blue Lake Sports Park on Saturday.
The 60-point win was the Roos’ seventh consecutive triumph as the side continues to leap towards finals.
The home team never appeared to threaten its fancied rivals on the scoreboard, with just two goals kicked by the Demons in a scrappy contest.
The match began at a sluggish pace with only one major scored in the entire opening term.
West then asserted its dominance on the fixture and controlled proceedings in the second quarter.
The Roos locked the ball inside their forward half and created continues scoring opportunities.
However, West was poor in front of goal with nine behinds kicked in a frustrating passages of play.
Those struggles created some rare entertainment for the fans on the hill, who became more vocal after a couple clumsy incidents on the field.
It was the boot of Josh Schapel which broke the deadlock and the Roos were away.
Two much-needed goals to Schapel and Sam Zeitz increased the margin, but with a total 15 scoring shots in the quarter, West should have enjoyed a much larger advantage than 33 points at the main break.
Despite the Roos struggles to kick straight, only Jake Tentye could find the big sticks at the other end of the ground for South in a forgetful quarter for the home side.
West’s midfield proved unbreakable as Lawry Bradley-Brown, Michael Minuzzo and Brad Wilson all found plenty of possession to rebound the ball inside-50 numerous times.
Jordan and Sam Zeitz offered strong support and were well backed up by brother Tom, who was immovable in the back-line again.
The Demons started positively in the third term, but failed to make any inroads and remained in single figures on the scoreboard.
Schapel made it a hat-rick of goals for the game to open the Roos’ account in the second half.
Minuzzo produced plenty of run on the wing and Bradley-Brown’s regular sleek skills continued to stand out, while Wilson’s hard work was rewarded after he converted a set-shot.
Tentye stepped up for the home side again to score his and South’s second and final goal for the fixture.
The final quarter played out in the same fashion as the third, as the Demons fought hard to show glimpses of promise, but were no match for West.
A strong contested mark and a major from Bradley-Brown opened the Roos’ account.
Garret Ha, Jett Attard and Jackson Lock also added their names on the goal-scoring list to put the finishing touches on a big win.
Bronson Saffin fought hard in defence all day and was named best-player for the home side, while Tentye, Alex Harkness and Brent Howard toiled away.
Tom Zeitz received top honour for the Roos, while Holmes, Minuzzo, Bradley-Brown and Jordan Zeitz were also mentioned for the victors.
West playing-coach Wilson said South’s pressure created a scrappy battle.
“It was a tough day for us,” he said.
“South play better at home and are definitely hard to beat there.
“They threw everything at us and there was certainly no easy passages of play.
“We really had to earn it.”
Wilson said he was happy with how his midfield performed.
“I thought our midfield come out of it well,” he said.
“South are pretty physical in the midfield and we were probably a little bit patchy.
“It was probably not our best four-quarter effort and we still have a lot to work on.”
Wilson said he is happy with where his side sits at the half way point of the season, but is wary of the threat North Gambier poses in a blockbuster clash next week at Vansittart Park.
“It is a good spot to be in,” he said.
“We will obviously try and win, but we are under no illusions – they (North) are going pretty well.
“We are not getting carried away and still appreciate every win we get.
“As long as we keep working hard, the results will keep coming, maybe not every week, but I am happy with the way the guys are working.”
