BFNL 2023: Evenness of competition finally on show | R9 review

Hear what the BFNL coaches had to say following the weekend.

The margin sat at just two goals at half time as Melton South gave Bacchus Marsh an almighty scare at Maddingley Park; before the Cobras ran away with a 98-point win.

Bacchus Marsh coach Jason Williams said his side's slow start was down to attitude coming out of the bye.

"It was an interesting game, even though we won by 98 points we only really played 30 minutes of consistent footy," Williams said.

"It would have been a really ugly game to watch but the positive for me was that our boys were able to get themselves out of that slump and play some good footy."

The young guns starred for the Cobras, with Joel Freeman (five goals), Riley Huxtable (two goals) and Ethan McKercher (two goals) all enjoying big days out.

"It is really great to have those young guys come in," Williams said.

"They're just really sound footballers with good goal senses.

"I'll just tell them 'this is the way we want to play' and 'this is where you need to be' and they get to those spots and add their own flair on top of it."

Williams said another young prospect in Jack Kovacevic stood up in the third quarter to help his side break away.

Bacchus Marsh piled on eight goals to Melton South's one in the third quarter as the Cobras' claimed their second win of the season.

The Cobras host East Point in round 10 while Melton South has the bye.

Bacchus Marsh Seniors 1.5 5.8 13.13 19.18 (132)

Melton South Seniors 3.2 4.2 5.4 5.4 (34)

GOALS: Bacchus Marsh: J.Freeman 5, J.Owen 4, R.Huxtable 2, E.McKercher 2, W.Lalor 1, J.McCreery 1, A.Porter 1, T.Shea 1, E.Ogden 1, J.Huxtable 1; Melton South: M.Fino 2, J.Morrissey 1, A.Rielly 1, C.White 1

BEST: Bacchus Marsh: J.Owen, S.Lafranchi, T.Shea, J.Kovacevic, J.Huxtable, X.Jenks; Melton South: R.Theo, C.Chapman, M.Fino, A.Rielly, R.Lee

Ballarat returned from a two-week bye with its best performance of the season to date, defeating Sunbury by 26 points at Alfredton.

It was only the third win of the year for Chris Maple's men as they executed their plan to perfection on Saturday.

"It was a good day, our boys were a lot better in all phases of the game and it helps when you can predominently play four quarters of football," Maple said.

"We were a little unsure about how we would come out of the two-week break but we thought we got the mix right between giving the boys time to recover and time away from the place.

"We knew that Sunbury hasn't travelled overly well to Alfredton in the past but you can't just talk about an opportunity, you've got to create it and we did just that."

Ballarat impressed early despite kicking into a strong wind in the opening term, but a minor fade-out late in the first quarter saw Sunbury escape out to a three-goal advantage.

The Swans made no mistakes when they next had to kick into the wind, winning the third quarter by two goals despite the conditions en route to a morale-boosting win.

"We didn't change much from our first quarter where we were kicking into the wind," Maple said.

"We did everything right we just cost ourselves three goals in the last few minutes whereas in the third quarter we really knuckled down and did what we wanted."

"It was a great result for the boys, they've worked hard and been on the wrong side of some big margins so it is good to bounce back and get a win against one of those higher ranked clubs," Maple said.

The margin sat at just seven points at the 20-minute mark of the final term before Swans stalwart Andrew Hooper nailed a gorgeous set shot from the pocket to seal the victory.

Hooper finished with an equal-high two goals alongside Jake Drever and Rhys Perry.

Ballarat, which now boasts a two-game winning streak, visits reigning premiers Melton next week as Sunbury heads to Marty Busch for a date with the Burra.

Ballarat 1.2 4.7 8.10 12.16 (88)

Sunbury 4.3 5.5 7.7 9.8 (62)

GOALS: Ballarat: A.Hooper 2, P.Simpson 2, R.Perry 2, J.Drever 2, W.Liston 1, W.Garner 1, T.Mooney 1, W.Squires 1; Sunbury: J.Sutton 2, L.Brennan 2, C.Mobilio 1, B.Caldone 1, C.Bramble 1, J.Muir 1, J.Bygate 1

BEST: Ballarat: W.Liston, P.Simpson, J.Drever, N.Drever, M.Powling, T.Constable; Sunbury: M.Trimboli, H.Power, P.Scanlon, J.Garisto, R.Miller

North Ballarat recorded its fourth-consecutive win with a clinical performance against the ladder-leading Darley on Saturday.

The Roosters led for the entirety of the Mars Stadium clash en route to a dominant 57-point triumph.

Jamie Quick kicked the only goal of the first term as North Ballarat's back six were up for the fight against a seemingly-endless barrage of Darley inside-50 entries.

Brendan McCartney was full of praise for his defenders' work early on.

"Our back six aren't flashy, but they are all competitive in one-on-ones and compliment each other nicely," McCartney said.

"The first quarter had the strongest wind of the day and we hung in there and scrapped which set the game up."

Ryan Hobbs returned to the Roosters' defensive structure alongside the likes of Harry Loader and Joshua Sparkman.

North Ballarat now solidifies itself as a premiership contender and perhaps the most in-form team in the competition.

"We feel like we've been in every game apart from one over the last three years," McCartney said.

"We're getting better at maximising our opportunities and toughing it out when things aren't going our way."

Jamie Quick followed up his eight-goal haul against Melton South with seven stunning majors in blustery conditions.

"Jamie is really passionate about growing his game and now he's reaping the rewards," McCartney said.

"He's always been capable of winning one-on-ones and getting the ball to bend and shape a certain way through the goals."

North Ballarat took home four points against Sebastopol at Mars Stadium in round seven, but the win against the formerly-undefeated Devils was even more impressive.

The Roosters have won five of their last six games at home, with that sole loss coming against reigning premiers Melton.

"We play some good footy away from home as well but we tend to get rolling here at home," McCartney said.

"In country footy having your own ground is always an advantage but it's the same when you go and play at Melton or at Sebastopol."

Darley came into the round nine match-up without some of its strongest contested players in Billy Myers and Luther Baker, with the Devils also losing Duncan Cadman (head knock) and Trae Van Leth midway through Saturday's clash.

North Ballarat 12.13 (85) d Darley 3.10 (28)

East Point snapped a three-game losing streak with a 45-point triumph against a valiant Lake Wendouree outfit.

Playing-coach Jackson Merrett led the way for his side with three goals in his first win since returning from injury in round six.

East Point made the most of the strong wind when it had the opportunity, while Lake Wendouree missed some crucial chances in front of goal.

It was the Lakers' first game under interim coach Tim Shearer this season, who took the reins following Jack Fitzpatrick's resignation.

East Point 1.3 6.7 6.7 14.20 (104)

Lake Wendouree 1.3 2.6 2.6 8.11 (59)

GOALS: East Point: J.Merrett 3, L.Canny 2, J.Jeffrey 2, S.Robinson 2, M.Johnston 1, M.Wilson 1, I.Hucker 1; Lake Wendouree: N.Pring 2, C.Mckay 2, T.Palmer 1, E.Preston 1, T.Zampatti 1, J.Butler 1

BEST: East Point: J.Johnston, M.Walsh, P.Hannaford, J.Van Meel, B.McDougall, C.Lovig; Lake Wendouree: B.Helyar, M.Foster, R.O'keefe, N.Pring, T.Zampatti, C.Helyar

Sebastopol and Redan played out a back-and-forth contest at City Oval on Saturday, with the Burra escaping with a five-point win.

Despite the slim margin, Sebastopol co-coach Luke Kiel said he felt confident throughout the round nine match-up.

"We felt in control pretty much the whole game but Redan kicked three really late ones to bring it back within a goal," Kiel said.

"Our first quarter was our best quarter and from then on it was kind of back-and-forth scoring.

"We were very happy with the win, we couldn't get much ball movement going with the wind so it was a pretty boring, basic game."

Sebastopol has been challenged consistently this season but still sits third on the ladder, boasting a 6-2 win-loss record.

"The most important thing is that we got the four points," Kiel said.

"I feel like every team turns up to play against us and they really want to belt us around so it is a good response."

Redan coach Gary Learmonth remained upbeat despite failing to claim a big scalp in Sebastopol.

"The frustrating thing is not getting the reward for effort but there were some great signs and good intent," Learmonth said.

"Sebastopol jumped us a bit at the start but our effort afterwards was amazing, I thought we looked like men rather than boys."

Lachlan George was a late out for Redan after being expected to return from a back injury in round nine.

Sebastopol hosts Sunbury next week while Redan prepares for a motivated Darley fresh off its first defeat.

Sebastopol 4.2 7.2 7.5 9.8 (62)

Redan 2.0 5.2 6.3 9.3 (57)

GOALS: Sebastopol: J.Keeble 2, H.Papst 2, J.Hill 2, A.Forbes 1, D.Widgery 1, C.Dummett 1; Redan: H.Lawson 2, I.Grant 2, N.Louw 2, C.Craig-Peters 1, M.Boyer 1, D.Phillips 1

BEST: Sebastopol: T.Hutt, L.Cassidy, A.Kirby, C.Dummett, J.Keeble; Redan: N.Dunstan, H.Lawson, D.Bond, J.Giampaolo, I.Grant, T.Lamb

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