Melton Centrals’ match against Broadford in the Riddell District Football League on Saturday was about getting everyone back to playing their onfield roles.
While the scoreboard showed a massive win to Broadford, Centrals coach Glenn Hopkins said it was now more about focusing on the team element.
The Kangaroos ended up winning 24.17 (161)-8.8 (56).
“It was a good game, but the final score didn’t show how well we played,” Hopkins said. “We had to get back to playing as a team and we achieved what we wanted.”
Centrals began slowly before going goal for goal in the second quarter to stay in the game.
But injuries and restricted interchanges meant the Centrals couldn’t keep it up in the second half when the Kangaroos ran over their opponent.
“We lost our two ruckman in the first 20 minutes,” Hopkins said.
“We had to find someone who could ruck and be competitive, and Jonathan Ferri and Samuel Apineru had to go in there.
“Samuel and Junior Oneone had already played in the under-18s and were backing up.”
Levi Sands and new recruit Michael Egan were best for Centrals, while James Aquilina kicked three goals.
Getting on the field was a welcome distraction for the club as much of the interest at Centrals in the previous two weeks was about what was happening off the field.
Star forward Rex Hickman put in a clearance to move to Broadford and there were rumours about whether the other key forward, Matt Gilmore, would remain.
Neither played at the weekend.
“We’re not sure what’s happening,” Hopkins said.
“Rex has applied for a clearance to Broadford, which has been declined, and we haven’t heard what Matt’s doing.”
Hopkins said the focus for the next few weeks was to try and match it with teams for longer periods of time.
“We’ve matched it with teams for small parts,” he said. “We need to be consistent and focus on everyone playing their part.”
Centrals remain 11th on the ladder, ahead of winless Rockbank.
The Rams’ season hit a new low against ladder leader Diggers Rest on Saturday, the Burras winning 48.27 (315)-1.2 (8).
Diggers Rest scored at least 67 points in each quarter, including a massive 96 in the final quarter alone.
Brandon Kilty kicked 12 goals in a best-on- ground performance, while Christopher Lawson bagged seven and Brent Tuckey five.
