Sunbury Kangaroos kept in touch with the Riddell District Football League top six with a strong win over Rockbank on Saturday.
The Kangaroos did what they had to against the winless Rams in just one of three RDFL matches in the second round of bye weeks.
The Kangaroos controlled the game from the first bounce but were left to rue poor kicking, and after 12 scoring shots in the first quarter they had only a 20-point lead to show for it.
Although it was a similar story for the rest of the match, the win was never in doubt and the Roos got home 12.24 (96)-3.5 (23).
Ryan Pretty kicked four goals and veteran Jamie Cuffe three for the winners.
Michael Greenwood, Mark Stevens and Jared Warwick kicked the goals for the Rams.
The Kangaroos’ Zane Williams continued his return to form and was named best on ground. Stevens was best for the Rams.
The win moves the Kangaroos to within a game of sixth-placed Wallan, after the Magpies lost to second-placed Macedon.
The Magpies pushed the Cats all the way in difficult scoring conditions but eventually went down 8.7 (55)-7.6 (48).
After trailing by 22 points at quarter-time, the Magpies kicked six goals in the second quarter to hold an eight-point lead starting the second half. But they were held to just five points for the rest of the match and that proved costly.
Riddell defeated Woodend-Hesket 10.16 (76)-7.2 (44) in the other match.
This weekend sees the league return to a full complement of matches.
