Merrivale held Russells Creek goalless in the first term and would never look back as it went on to record a thumping 107-point win.
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The contest was still alive at the main break before Merrivale kicked 56 points in the third term to effectively ice the game long before completing a 21.14 (140) to 4.9 (33) rout.
But Tigers coach Jason Rowan was quick to pour cold water on the result, highlighting that his side had a long way to go before finals.
"I thought Russells Creek's ability to come out and win the ball in the second quarter brought them back into it," he said.
"They're attack on the footy then had us panicking for a bit, but we managed to get back on top."
Rowan, who booted five goals for Merrivale, said he was impressed by new recruit Angus Campbell's best-on-ground performance, which saw the former Koroit player spend the whole game on the field.
"An in-and-under player who wins his own ball...Angus is very fit and will be a vital key to our midfield," he said.
Rowan said his side's ability to stick to its structure and provide a variety of avenues to goal in the forward line - with Josh Britton, Kyden Jarvis (4), Peter Makarona (3), Oliver Doukas and Jyron Neave (2) all hitting the scoreboard - set up the win.
"If you're relying on one or two goal-kickers, the other side can get on top of you," he said.
"But we had more than five on the weekend, which we haven't had over the past two years."
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