TERANG Mortlake turned the tables on North Warrnambool Eagles to breathe life back into its stuttering season on Saturday.
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Corey Rounds snapped a goal in the dying stages in wind and rain at Bushfield Recreation Reserve to give the Bloods a five-point win.
Rounds’ goal came with 25 seconds to play, helping Terang Mortlake to a grinding 3.9 (27) to 3.4 (22) victory against the third-placed Eagles.
It was a triumph to savour for the Bloods after Eagle Darcy Keast kicked a goal late in their round two fixture which gave his side a three-point win.
Terang Mortlake assistant coach Chris Bant said Rounds’ conversion capped off the Bloods’ strong second half, which came with little reward on the scoreboard. The Bloods were scoreless in the third term but 1.1 in the final quarter in the miserable conditions was enough to sneak home.
“Corey snapped from 15 metres out straight in front but it was still a tough kick in the conditions,” Bant said.
“I thought we dominated play for most of the second half but couldn’t put the score on the board.
“It was so hard to get clean possession out but it showed if you work hard for two-and-a-half hours (what can happen).”
Bant praised the Bloods’ teenage contingent for standing up in the conditions.
“We brought in four 18-year-olds and they all played well,” he said.
North Warrnambool Eagles coach Bernard Moloney said he couldn’t fault either sides’ commitment and hard work in the taxing conditions.
“You certainly couldn’t say it was a skilful game but gee it was dogged and there was hard commitment,” he said.
The Eagles finished without a bench, losing Tom Batten, Ben Mugavin and Jeremy Parkinson to injuries.