MELTON South hit its straps after half-time to kick away from Bacchus Marsh and win by 23 points in its Ballarat Football League season-opener under lights on Saturday.
Playing coach Matt Sutton led from the front with four goals as Melton South won 15.14 (104) to 11.15 (81) at home.
A wasteful Marsh team had fought its way into the second quarter but was left behind by a run of four unanswered goals between the 10-minute mark of the third term and two-minute mark of the last.
Joey Callus’s goal two minutes into the final quarter put Melton South up by 35 and in cruise control, with the margin chipped back to 21 by an exchange of goals in a free-flowing final term.
The Cobras really should have got the jump in the opening stages of the game but couldn’t convert in the fast-pace opening stages.
The season started in the worst possible fashion for Bacchus Marsh, with ruck/forward Adam Skrobolak straining his left hamstring at the opening centre bounce.
The tallest man on the park limped to the bench by the 30-second mark of the opening term, done for the night.
But the Cobras controlled the opening 10 minutes, only to post a string of four consecutive points.
Melton South punished the Marsh at the other end as Sutton bought the ball to ground in a marking contest and soccered through from close range. Rex Hickman then slotted a tough set shot from 40m wide and Colin Simpkin from a free kick in front to get the Panthers a three-goal jump.
Bacchus Marsh kept missing and went to the break with seven behinds, down by 21 points.
But the second term was a more accurate display, with Mike Suban and Daniel Bonnici leading the comeback.
When Declan Phyland ran through two tackles to kick the goal of the night from 50m, the Cobras were down 32-35 and seemingly on the march.
But Sutton, after a couple of set-shot misses, straightened up in time on to reopen the gap and when Josh Ryan kicked a running goal from 40m the margin was back to 18.
Melton South got on top in the middle in the third, with two goals to Sutton and one to Simpkin getting the margin out to 22 at the final change.
BALLARAT FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Melton South 15.14 (104) d Bacchus Marsh 11.15 (81)
Melton South – goals: M. Sutton, R. Hickman 4, C. Simpkin 2, L. Burke, J. Ryan, J. Callus, M. Callus, D. Thomas. Best: M. Callus, R. Hickman, D. Thomas, J. Doran, D. Lawson
Bacchus Marsh – goals: A. Kur, D. Bonnici, M. Suban 2, D. Phyland, L. Blundell, E. Tibbles, D. Velden, T. Delahey. Best: M. Suban, M. Denham, D. Phyland, C. Butt, D. Velden, T. Shea.
