Lakes Entrance maintained its unbeaten run in the East Gippsland Football Netball League thirds competition with a 43-point victory over Stratford at the Boyd Reserve last Saturday.
As decisive as the victory looked on paper, the Seagulls didn’t have it all their own way, the fourth-ranked Swans taking the game up to their higher profiled opponents in
gutsy conditions.
Despite the conditions, Stratford was able to kick 7.1 for the match, which certainly kept them in the contest.
They led by 15 points at half time before the Seagulls found their mojo in the second term, kicking four goals to one, seizing the lead in the shadows of half time, but only by six points.
Playing at home in front of a healthy local crowd, the Swans still had some fight left in them, kicking three goals, whilst restricting Lakes’ to a couple.
Stratford led by a point with just 20 minutes to play, but with the breeze blowing and playing with plenty of confidence after early goals, the Seagulls kicked seven unanswered majors to run out easy winners.
Harrison Bennett, Harper Davis, Bill Prior, Charlie Graham (five goals), Riley Jenkins and Wil Daniel (two) led the way for the premiership favourite.
The Lakes Entrance reserves’ finals aspirations looked to be forlorn at best after they were outclassed by the second-rated Swans by 53 points.
The Seagulls remain in sixth place, two games adrift of the fourth-placed Lindenow with assignments against four sides above it on the ladder in the final five rounds.
The Swans led by 17 points at quarter time, increasing the margin to 31 points points at
half time.
Lakes Entrance’s most productive quarter was the final where it added two goals, doubling its output for the afternoon, but it made little impression on the Swans.
Best players for Lakes were Kaleb Day, Matthew Duggan, Tully Davis, Cameron Ferris, Tim Sinclair and Benjamin Purnell, who kicked two goals.
It’s another away fixture for the Seagulls this week when they venture to Bullumwaal Road in Wy Yung to take on the Tigers.
