Valiant Saints fall short against clinical Hawks

Myrtleford’s dream of reaching its first seniors O&M decider in more than 20 years will have to wait at least another year as Wangaratta Rovers repelled every Saints fightback to seal a 28-point preliminary final victory at Albury Sportsground last Sunday. Myrtleford threw everything at the two-time reigning champs in the second half in front of more than 3000 people but the clinical Rovers prevailed 11.12 (78) to 6.10 (46). Saints coach Craig Millar said while the disappointment among the group was still raw on Tuesday morning, the team had plenty to be proud of upon their second straight preliminary final appearance. "At the end of the day we just weren't good enough with our forward ball use in the first half, we made some costly errors in critical parts of the ground which led to scores," he said. "We gave ourselves a chance in the second half but errors cost us again. "I'm really proud of our efforts this year, we all want to be playing off for finals at the end of the day." Rovers appeared vulnerable going into the knockout clash, with a handful of their stars looking underdone in a 43-point loss to Wangaratta in the second semifinal. But those stars all had a final say in getting their team off the canvas and into a third straight grand final where they will face their cross-town foes in another Wangaratta derby decider. Myrtleford never led at any point in the preliminary final and despite going within 14 points on two occasions in the second half, the Rovers always seemed to have the answers. The Saints made all the running at the start and had six of the game’s first seven inside 50s, failing to register a score. Rovers made the most of their first look at goal with an opportune Noah Scholte sneaking one through at the goal square. Going into the first break down by 12 points, Cooper Thomason kickstarted Myrtleford’s day on the scoreboard with their first major. Xavier Allison snuck forward for the Rovers’ quick reply and when Dylan Wilson slotted another, it was ominous signs for the Saints. The two-time reigning premiers flexed their muscles to open up a five-goal lead in the second quarter and left the Myrtleford side reeling. But they didn’t lie down, a late goal from Lachie Murphy-Dale before halftime gave them some hope before Thomason goaled again on the other side of the break to give them a lift. It was met by a quick reply as Mitch Hardie, the most impactful player on the ground throughout the game pounced on a loose ball and steadied for the Hawks. Down nearly five goals again, Myrtleford were able to string another pair of goals together when ruckman Riley Smith came across the pack to take a mark in the goal square and it was a 14-point game. Jaxon East made the Rovers pay for poor ball use to start the last quarter and the Saints closed in again. But for every punch Myrtleford threw, the Rovers landed one back and as Dylan Wilson kicked a third goal halfway through the last quarter, the bridge would become too big to climb. Millar said having played Rovers three times in the past month, he felt his side had a good grasp on breaking down their team defence, but couldn't capitalise on their opportunities. "Most of the game was relatively even, we had about the same number of inside 50s and we definitely had out opportunities, but just didn't capitalise," he said. For the Saints Zac Pethybridge was a one-man wall in defence, taking several goal-saving intercept marks throughout the day. Josh Muraca and Jaxon East provided a spark through the midfield while the ruck battle between Smith and Ed Dayman was top shelf. "Zac was outstanding down back, he started a lot of our offence from intercepts," Millar said. "Simon [Curtis] and Riley [Smith] tried hard all day, and Mitch was solid again through the midfield." Thomason looked lively at times playing isolated at full forward as the only multiple goal kicker for the Saints while Smith gave Myrtleford an imposing presence when resting forward, but the stout and well drilled Hawks full ground defence seemed impenetrable. It’s the second year in a row Myrtleford have reached the penultimate game of the season and been defeated. For next year, the team have already been bolstered by the re-commitments of key players Kye Agosta, Jaxon East and Riley Smith who have all shown faith in the direction of the club. Millar, who will also be returning to coach in 2027, said the team were a proud group who would be hungry to finally go one further upon the first bounce next season.

Valiant Saints fall short against clinical Hawks

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