Tara Murray
Werribee Districts has stamped itself as the early premiership favourites in the Western Region Football League division 1 after beating Altona in the grand final rematch.
The two sides entered Saturday’s game as the two undefeated teams left in the competition and it was the Tigers, who put on a show.
It took until the second half for the Tigers to get some reward for effort after some poor goal kicking early.
The Tigers kicked 10 goals to two in the second half to get a 13.15 (93)-6.5 (41) win.
Tigers coach Chris Gilham said it was a good solid performance.
“They beat us in the grand final last year and have been one of the top two teams for the last four to five years.
“They are one of the benchmarks of the competition and it’s a good indication of where we sit.
“We started really strong without putting that early dominance on the scoreboard as we kicked 2.7 for the first quarter.
“The second half we got more in control and we were able to get some more scoreboard pressure. It was a dominant performance in the second half.”
Gilham said one of the most pleasing things was being able to put out a strong four quarter performance.
He said it helps set them up for the next few games.
Daniel Schibeci and Christopher Molivas kicked three goals each for the Tigers.
As for the best, Gilham said that was a hard decision.
“The hallmark of our season so far has been the evenness,” he said. “We’ve relied on getting something from everyone and we got that yesterday [Saturday].
“We could have put 12 to 15 players in the best it was that even.”
Gilham highlighted the performances of Josh Kellett, Dillon Viojo-Rainbow, Alexander Alabakis and James Allan, who came in and played his first game in a different position.
The win cements the Tigers spot at the top of the ladder.
Gilham said they were pretty happy with how they are placed.
“Six and zero is a great start to the season, but the biggest challenges are to come this year,” he said.
“Altona had a few players out, but we had to look after it from our end. Our first quarters have been really dominant and it sets us up as it’s much easier to play from in front.”
The Tigers have another challenge this Saturday, facing Caroline Springs. The Lakers suffered a shock loss to Spotswood on Saturday.
Gilham said it would be another strong test for them.
In other results, Point Cook Centrals fell just short against Yarraville Seddon Eagles.
The Eagles got their first win of the season in a 12.9 (81)-11.9 (75) win.
Point Cook and Hoppers Crossing both had byes.
In division 2, Wyndhamvale was too good for Braybrook, while in division 3 the Suns beat Laverton, while Tarneit lost to Sunshine Heights.
