James Murphy
A 944-day drought was broken at Malseed Park on Saturday, when Casterton Sandford posted a 29-point win over West Gambier in the first round of Western Border football.
It had been two-and-a-half years since the Cats’ A Grade side last tasted victory, following a winless 2021 campaign and the Covid-disrupted 2020 competition.
However, you would not have expected that to be the case on Saturday, as the cross-border team was in impressive form against its hosts.
The Cats kept the pressure on for the full four quarters and showed their determination for the win with a five-goal opening term to set up an early 20-point buffer.
Neither team had much impact on the score in the second quarter, but the Cats held firm to then stretch out the lead after the main break.
Another four goals to West’s one put the guests in the box seat for the win heading into the final stanza.
The Roos rallied in the fourth and managed a team-best quarter of three goals, but it was too little, too late as the Cats added another two themselves to keep their nose in front.
Casterton Sanford ruckman Hamish McCrae received the best-on-ground honours for the match, as he squared up against West coach Daron McElroy in a strong display which also had him hit the scoreboard with a goal.
“I think his ruck work and presence around the ground was much needed for the boys and I thought he was by far our best player on the day,” Cats coach Kane Forbes said.
Dylan Ayton was also a vital link in moving the ball forward, while new recruit Ed Pritchard proved his worth with pace through the midfield and a goal to show for his efforts.
The returning Billy Galpin was also solid in what Forbes described as a team-first performance, while in front of goals it was Ricky Killey and Adam McKinnon who excelled with three and two majors respectively.
Youngster Zac Nash also found the scoreboard with a goal, which stirred up plenty of excitement from fellow Cats.
For West it was returning player Lewis Lean who impressed most to be named best-on-ground for the Roos, joined by the likes of youngster Mitchell Cornolo, Nathan Taylor and Kyle Giddings.
Cornolo’s goal in the third quarter was another celebrated moment of the game, while Taylor managed to find the big sticks on three occasions to lead his side on the scoreboard.
For the Cats, the win on Saturday was a promising sign for what is to come this season, as they attempt to bounce back from their winless 2021 campaign.
“I couldn’t be more proud of how the boys went about it on Saturday,” Forbes said.
“I thought it was a fantastic game.
“We got challenged in the second quarter, but we were able to absorb all of that pressure for the whole quarter and that set us up for the rest of the game.”
Forbes said it was a credit to the hard work put in both on and off the field and he was pleased to finally see those efforts start to bear fruit.
“It is massive for the club because a lot of work has gone in and I guess people start to have their doubts when you keep losing,” he said.
“It is nice to get a little bit of reward for the effort everybody is putting in.”
Casterton will face the ultimate test this week when it hosts reigning premier Millicent in Round 2, while the Roos will attempt to bounce back against North Gambier.
