By Marcus Uhe
Rowville held-off a plucky and resilient Berwick outfit on Saturday to record their third victory of the Eastern Football League campaign in a 35-point triumph at Edwin Flack Reserve.
The Hawks battled momentum swings, including a five-goal run from the Wickers during the middle of the contest, on their way to a 10.15 75 to 6.4 40 victory to level their win-loss ledger at three wins and three losses.
It took 13 minutes for either side to break the deadlock on the scoreboard and to the surprise of few, it was Lachlan Wynd who opened the account for the Hawks.
In his first hit-out of the 2023 campaign, prized recruit Lachlan Stapleton, who divided his time between the Hawks and Williamstown’s VFL program in 2022, won the ball halfback before switching the play, where the ball found Wynd close to the Hawks’ interchange bench in the forward pocket.
Kicking on the desired side for a right footer, his set shot drifted back perfectly over the goal umpires cap, and the contest was underway.
The ball took up residency in the Hawks’ half of the ground as their defensive group stayed disciplined and won the support of the midfield, who often drifted back in numbers to support.
When Berwick did have the chance to go, they often kicked to an outnumber as they moved the ball too quickly from halfback and before their forwards were in-position to anticipate an entry.
Their best ball movement of the quarter, a slow play from a stoppage at half back, resulted in Anthony Vella’s first of the day, the recipient of a kick-mark passage down the scoreboard-side wing.
A free-kick on the quarter-time siren to Wynd, close to goal, would have infuriated the Berwick coaching staff, but thankfully for them he was off-target with the resulting kick.
Despite their inaccuracy, Rowville began to flex their muscle in the second term to apply some scoreboard pressure to the home side.
They guarded the corridor expertly, forcing their opponents to the wings and the flanks, and won repeat entries inside 50 to maximise their dominance.
Their second goal of the game came similarly to the first, with Stapleton winning the ball at halfback again and opening the field of play with a switch.
This time it was Josh Clarke who was the beneficiary, after Matthew Davey found him alone in the forward 50.
An unlucky free-kick against Jayden Graham, in a ruck contest against Wynd, saw him kick his second, and the key forward then played distributor as he found Jake Arundell after taking an intercept mark.
The three goal run from the Hawks was broken late in the term by Charlie Muley after Berwick took the ball the length of the ground after a kick-out without leather touching grass.
Berwick picked their way through the unsuspecting Rowville back six before Muley kicked his 11th goal of the year from the goal-line to stem the tide of Hawks momentum.
For all their dominance in the first two periods, they would have entered the rooms disappointed to only possess a 12-point lead, having let their opponents off the hook by allowing the goal late in the quarter.
The momentum from the conclusion of the first half carried into the second, where Berwick kicked the opening four goals to snatch the lead.
Vella snagged his second immediately after his side won the first centre clearance and kicked long into the forward line, before Ashton Williamson was the beneficiary of an off-ball free kick just a few minutes later.
Not only were the Wickers able to score but their defence across the ground was tremendous as they found an answer for everything the Hawks threw at them.
Repeat efforts from Jonty Andrew at ground level resulted in Vella’s third, before a true team effort saw them take the lead in the fifteenth minute.
From half back, the Wickers won a series of contests by fighting and scrapping the ball forward on the grandstand side, before Caleb Van Oostveen capped the endeavours with a check-side in front of the canteen that brought the forward line together in celebration.
The Hawks, who have conceded goals in runs on many occasions already in 2023, appeared shell-shocked, and fears of another late-game fade-out would have reared their ugly head.
In need of a reply, it was Wynd who answered the call.
His third of the contest shortly before three-quarter-time broke the run of five consecutive majors in Berwick’s favour, and tied the scores at the final break.
It was anyone’s game with a quarter to play, but Rowville showed why they fell just short of a premiership in 2022, kicking five goals and holding Berwick scoreless.
Wynd’s fourth of the afternoon early in the term set the tone, before he moved into the ruck and influenced a further two to put the game out of reach for Berwick.
The tall forward now has 24 goals in his five appearances for the Hawks, a model of consistency having never kicked less than four in a contest this year.
For Berwick, a fourth consecutive score in the 40’s has them still languishing at the bottom end of the ladder, having lost their last five contests.
They’ll have a second consecutive home game next week, against South Croydon, while Rowville will tackle the high-flying Doncaster East.
Elsewhere, Noble Park recovered from a slow start in their contest against Doncaster to snap their two-game losing skid.
They hit the first break with a 10-point deficit against a struggling Sharks outfit but held them to just five goals in the remaining three quarters as they rediscovered their defensive identity.
For their part, the Bulls kicked 12 after quarter time to finish 14.13 97 to 9.3 57 winners.
Liam Scott kicked four for the Bulls as the primary target inside 50.
They’ll put out the welcome mat for Vermont at home next week, in what will be an evenly matched contest between fourth and fifth on the ladder.
