Only a measley total of 10 points has separated Melton and its past three Ballarat Football League opponents.
But all the Bloods have to show for it are a win, a draw and a loss.
On Saturday, they left themselves too much to do in the final quarter and were unable to run down Sunbury’s 28-point three-quarter time lead.
Sunbury won 14.11 (95) – 14.6 (90).
In a seesawing match, it was the Lions who got the jump early and dominated most of the first quarter.
When the Bloods did get the ball, it was under pressure and in their defensive end.
In the second term, it was the Bloods’ turn to control the play, with the Lions having to work a lot harder to get their goals. The margin was just seven points at half-time.
The Lions set up their victory in the third quarter by kicking five goals to two.
Bloods coach Brad Murphy was left to rue missed opportunities in the final quarter that could have provided a winning lead.
“We know that we give ourselves the chance to chase down a three-quarter time deficit to come from behind,” he said.
“You could see the belief grow … and then Sunbury dropped three players behind the ball, into our defence.
“We just bombed it to the loose men. The composure needed was not there.
“We had our chances in the final term with 16 inside 50s.”
Murphy said slow starts to games were killing the Bloods.
“The poor starts are a problem – we might change our warm-up try to lift,” he said.
While Melton went down in a thriller, cross-town rival Melton South won its first match for the season with a one-point,
15.9 (99) to 14.14 (98) victory against Bacchus Marsh.
The Panthers were made to work for their win.
Their 20-point half-time lead turned into a 12-point deficit at three-quarter time.
Frank Holzer and Matthew Sutton both kicked four goals for the Panthers.
Benjamin Peters and Cameron Richardson kicked three for the Cobras.
Darley lost 24.20 (164) – 7.9 (51) to North Ballarat City. Shane Page was best-on-ground for Darley.
