During a week off for interleague recently, reigning premier Darley sat down and reassessed where its Ballarat Football League season was at.
After winning only one of their first five matches, against bottom side Melton South, the Devils’ premiership defence was quickly heading in the wrong direction.
Coach Jarrod Edwards said it was clear his team wasn’t up to scratch in the first five matches and needed to work out what was going wrong.
“There was just a lack of effort from the group and a couple of weeks we didn’t turn up to play,” he said.
“We lost by only 10 points to [undefeated] Lake Wendouree so we played some good football. But, for whatever reason, we haven’t been consistent.
“We had some honest discussions with the midfield group and they’ve been brilliant the past couple of weeks.”
After beating North Ballarat City the previous week, the Devils made it two wins in a row with victory over Ballarat on Saturday.
The Devils controlled the game from the opening bounce to win 12.19 (91)-6.7 (43).
While pleased with the win, Edwards was disappointed it wasn’t by a bigger margin.
“Goalkicking was the disappointing aspect. We controlled the game and won a lot of possession,” he said. “We missed a lot of easy opportunities and have to get a lot better at it. We’ll focus on goalkicking during the week.”
One of the culprits in front of goal was off-season recruit Mitch Banner. While Banner, who played AFL with Port Adelaide and VFL with Williamstown, kicked a game-high six goals, Edwards wasn’t happy with his eight behinds.
“We’ve been trying to find the balance with him and the role that fits him and the side best,” Edwards said.
“We think the small forward role, and someone who has a licence to move up the ground, suits him.
“When inside 50 he’s a prolific goalscorer and he has an engine that can run all day.”
Steve Kennedy, who kicked two goals on Saturday, was best on ground, while Scott McAllester, Banner and Edwards also impressed.
The Devils this week face Sebastopol, which has just one win.
“Hopefully, we can win three straight, which we haven’t done for a while,” Edwards said.
Elsewhere, Bacchus Marsh returned to the top two with a massive win over North Ballarat City.
Jarrah Maksymow kicked five goals for the Cobras in their 19.8 (122)-10.11 (71) scoreline.
Melton had its biggest loss of the season, succumbing to Redan 18.12 (120)-5.8 (38).
Melton South had the bye.
