A final-quarter flurry from Melton was enough to give it a scrappy win against Sebastopol in the Ballarat Football League on Saturday.
The Bloods trailed at the end of the first three quarters but kicked three goals in the final term to secure a four-point win.
The 11.16 (82) to 12.6 (78) away win was Melton’s fifth of the season.
Sebastopol remains winless and on the bottom of the BFL ladder.
Bloods coach Brad Murphy was disappointed with the mindset his side brought to the match.
“It wasn’t the best way to play against Sebastopol by giving them a sniff,” he said.
“We started poorly. They had the wind in the first quarter and we had it in the last, so that probably helped us a bit.
“The attitude wasn’t right from the first bounce. Blokes thought we were going to go down there and beat them convincingly.
‘‘We made a point of it all week not to treat them lightly, but unfortunately we did and nearly got rolled.”
Sebastopol made the running early in the match, kicking four goals to two in the opening quarter to hold a 12-point lead.
Despite a second quarter fightback from the Bloods, Sebastopol regrouped and kept its lead intact going into the final term.
Melton peppered the scoreboard in the last quarter to snatch the four points.
Matthew Notman was solid for the Bloods and was named his side’s best player. He was well supported by Jason Robinson and Ryan Davis.
Melton will take on Bacchus Marsh this Saturday, with a win likely to keep the club’s finals hopes alive. The Bloods are ninth on the ladder but are just a game and a half outside the top six.
“They [Bacchus Marsh] are in a similar spot to us,” Murphy said.
“If both clubs win their last two games, they will probably make finals.
“We got a hold of them last time and beat them by five or six goals.
‘‘This time, going down to their ground, we need to go with the right attitude.
‘‘If we want to make finals, we have to win this game.”
In other games, Darley proved no match for North Ballarat City, going down by 77 points, 18.10 (118) to 5.11 (41).
Darley was left to rue a goalless first half, with the Devils unable to kick their first major until the third term.
There were no such problems for North Ballarat, which had nine individual goalkickers.
