James Murphy
WEST GAMBIER 15.17 (107) d SOUTH GAMBIER 3.4 (22)
THE Demons stepped into the fire at Malseed Park on Saturday for a meeting with the red-hot Roos.
It did not bode well for the visitors and at the end of the day West Gambier dealt its cross-town rivals a stinging 85-point defeat.
The hosts started well and had five goals on the board by quarter time, while South remained in touch with two of its own.
However, from there the Demons would not find the big sticks until the final quarter.
The Roos on the other hand faced no such difficulty and put the game to bed with a six-goal second term.
Suddenly they were up by 58 points and South was looking down the smoking barrel of its fourth loss on the trot.
The Demons were held scoreless during that time and were left with some heavy lifting if they were to turn the game around in the second half.
Scoring dried up in the third and some wayward kicking left West to a 1.7 return for the quarter, while South finally hit the scoreboard with a single behind.
But the damage had already been done and by this point the Roos were in cruise control.
They held possession for the majority of the fourth term and were quick to quell any opportunities from South in attack.
One chance was converted and the Demons put their final goal on the board, but with three-goals-four from West it did little to alter the end result.
Once again the Roos were well served in an impressive team effort and the new-look roster continues to improve each week.
On Saturday it was Andrew Stone who impressed coaching staff and he was named best-on-ground for his classy midfield efforts.
Tre Davis and Michael Minuzzo also featured highly, while Kyle Giddings, Brandon Newton and coach Daron McElroy continued to build on their impressive starts to the year.
Davis equal top scored with Luke Winterfield, as the pair both kicked three goals, while McElroy, Minuzzo and Callum Wagstaffe had two each in a well-rounded attack.
The Demons were best served by Rex Jones, who took on the mammoth task of rucking against McElroy with both hands, also pushing forward for a goal.
Hugh Winterfield was also solid, as was captain Taylor Saffin, while Bryce Whicker, Emerson Marks and Alex Harkness rounded out the Demons’ best.
South now sits 0-4 heading into the final match of the opening round, which is equal to the losses of its entire 2022 season.
The Demons will be eager to put a win on the board when they face a winless East Gambier next week.
However, after the effort the Bulldogs put in against North on Saturday, they will need to work hard for the points.
An important match up looms for West as well, as it heads to Millicent for a top-of-the-table clash against the also undefeated Saints.
