IT was straight from a book at Blue Lake Sports Park on Saturday and the result could not have been any better for South Gambier fans if the Demons had written the script themselves.
Up against North Gambier in front of a home crowd and celebrating Brett O’Neil’s 200th game, the Demons hit their straps in the second half to blow the Tigers away for an eventual 24-point victory.
The Demons found form at the right time of the season and Saturday’s success was their first consecutive win for the year.
North’s injury struggle continued with Jake Stafford and Jake Schutz both pulling hamstrings, while injury prevented Nick Morretti from seeing the game out as well.
South had some bad luck early on when coach Brett Exelby also did a hamstring in the opening minute of the match.
The first half of the game was relatively even, but North held the lead by two straight kicks heading into the main break, thanks to four first-half goals from coach Justin McConnell.
However, a reinvigorated South took to the park in the third term and banged through 5.5 to the Tigers’ 1.0 to claim the lead.
Young Demon Colby Munro opened the quarter with a goal, before Brayden Kain put South ahead when he took a solid mark in front about eight minutes into the term.
Kain was a focal point and he snapped another goal shortly after to extend the lead to nine points.
An impressive kick from Brent Howard into the goal square was favoured by the bounce and crossed the line, while Kain added to his total with a third for the term.
At that point the Demons held a healthy 23-point lead, but North star Nick McInerney was not about to let his team suffer a scoreless quarter.
He put boot to an airborne ball in the goal square to bang it through in an impressive athletic display and narrow the deficit to 17 at the final break.
The message from Exelby was clear in the huddle, as an upset win was within South’s grasp.
He said it was “team orientated” football which had put the side in this position and he simply asked for “one more” quarter from his Demons.
He picked out youngster Mason Hein – who had a rewarding day in the ruck – and asked him to keep it up for one more stint.
And that was what they did, holding North to another single goal quarter, while adding 2.1 to their score in a more even contest.
It was an arm wrestle to begin the term, but South’s Bronson Saffin eventually broke the deadlock with an impressive goal.
He scooped up the ball in the Demons’ forward pocket and banged it through to reignite the momentum.
North’s Nicholas Brown replied midway through the term with a goal of his own, but that would be the only score for the Tigers before the final siren blew.
Kain iced the game with his fifth goal late in the quarter when he took a mark right in front and drove it home.
Besides Kain’s haul, the Demons shared the goals around, with six players scoring singles.
It was a solid team performance, but it all started in the ruck, which saw Hein rewarded with the best-on-ground honours.
Kain was all class and he was named second best, while Luke Foran was rewarded for his hard work in his second game of the year.
O’Neil was in his usual form in his second game back from injury and celebrated his 200th game in style.
He remained modest post game and credited the team for the result, rather than speak about his personal achievement.
“North has been pretty much the benchmark all year,” O’Neil said.
“We know what they can produce at their best and I am just really proud of the boys’ efforts.
“It is always good to win at home and it was a really good team effort.”
Rounding out the best were Todd Reid and Jake Tentye, who have both been in impressive form this season.
Exelby was proud of his side’s performance and the way they played out the game.
“We have been building over the last couple of weeks and we have a few more experienced players back,” he said.
“We saw this as a good opportunity at home for Bretto’s 200th.
“The guys love him to bits so they just wanted to make every effort count and we got the win in the end.”
Exelby said the work rate around the ground and particularly in the midfield was first class.
“The team’s work rate was great and our on-ballers were fantastic,” he said.
“Big Mason Hein got his hands to everything and our midfield was able to get first touch and get it going forward.
“That gave Kainy an opportunity to find some one-on-one contests.
“Everyone played really well.”
Exelby said O’Neil was “pretty special” on the day, while he was also impressed with the way Foran presented himself at centre-half forward.
Also among those to receive a mention were the upcoming Demons.
“The likes of Kaleb Bowd, Nick Kourmouzis, Brock Keding and Alex Harkness – they were great,” Exelby said.
Reid was another to be praised and Exelby said he is impressed with how the young Demon has taken on the centre-half forward role this year.
He was a marking machine on Saturday and played a key role in South’s success.
“He has a high work ethic and a beautiful set of hands – he played a fantastic game,” Exelby said.
For North it was Brett Shepherdson who received the best-on-ground honours, as he backed up his performance from last week with another solid display.
Youngster Tom Bruhn also impressed, as did Mayson Ashby, while Jake Stafford was strong until injury shortened his day and Ciaran Buckley and Sam Stafford were also in good form.
Looking ahead, the Tigers face a big challenge against East Gambier this week, while South travels to West for an equalling intriguing clash.
