A workman like performance from the Sunbury Kangaroos was enough to take the points against Lancefield on Saturday.
In a Riddell District Football League game important for both teams, it was the Kangaroos who were able to find avenues to goal.
They led early at Boardman Reserve and never really looked like losing, although the Tigers refused to go away.
Lancefield wasn’t helped when star forward Jon Kent suffered a heavy knock in the third quarter and couldn’t play out the game.
The Kangaroos prevailed, 12.9 (81)- 6.8 (44).
Kangaroos coach Jarrod Dixon said it was good to get back on the winning list after two successive losses.
He said it was a better performance than the week before when they pushed then-unbeaten Macedon before going down by 20 points.
“Most of our stats last week indicated that we won the game, but we didn’t really,” Dixon said.
“So we worked on our contested ball and the stats will reflect that. We were a little bit cleaner and our pressure acts helped … that along with the pressure from the forward line was massive.
“It was a slow start and today was an unemotional game for both sides. It just turned into a workmanlike game. We got the win and the four points, and we’re happy with that.”
One area the Kangaroos have to work on is inside 50 as, for a second straight week, they were wasteful kicking to their forwards. “We got our key indicators and we got the [inside 50] entries we wanted,” Dixon said. “Sometimes we’ve just got to lower our eyes and look deep.”
Tom Ellard kicked four goals for the Kangaroos, while Kent kicked three for the Tigers.
The Kangaroos’ Matthew Wallace was adjudged best on ground, while small men Mitch Trimboli (two last-quarter goals) and Tierone Cuffe worked hard all day.
Jordan Baumgartner was another handy player for the Kangaroos, showing he’s just as capable in midfield and up forward as he is in his normal position in defence.
The win propelled the Kangaroos to fourth on the ladder, leading a pack of four teams on 20 points. The Tigers slipped to ninth spot.
The Kangaroos now face Riddell, who handed Macedon its first loss of the season, to leave Diggers Rest as the only undefeated team after a win over Wallan.
