Hampton Park has bounced back from a slow start to defeat Frankston Dolphins by 66 points in Southern Division 2.
The ‘Luke Bull spray’ has become somewhat of a common occurrence this season, but it has been delivered with incredible effectiveness.
After being completely outplayed in the first term, the Redbacks were lucky they were still in the game after the Dolphins blew some chances to kick 3.7 in front of goal – the margin was 16 points at the first break.
Hampton Park coach Bull gave the boys an almighty rev-up, prompting them to come out and kick 10 goals in the second quarter, taking the game away from the home side in a matter of minutes.
It was a 57-point turnaround in just one quarter as the Redbacks won the term 64-7 to go into half-time break with plenty of confidence and a huge lead.
They continued in the second half to add a further eight goals and maintain their spot on top of the ladder, two wins clear of Chelsea Heights.
The Redbacks had 12 individual goal scorers in the victory, led by Myles Wareham (four goals) and young gun Ben Buller (three goals), who continues to impress.
Makaio Haywood was best on ground for Hampton Park, while Mason Hawkins and Dylan Morris also impressed; Taylor and Kain Stratton were both standout performers for Frankston in the loss.
East Malvern snapped a three-game losing streak with a hard-fought victory over Caulfield Bears, winning by just 15 points.
Without Isaac Morrisby putting the side on his back and carrying it to the finish line, the Panthers could’ve been looking at four straight losses.
But Morrisby showed exactly why he is the best goalkicker in the league, booting seven majors to see his side home, while Max Sutton was East Malvern’s best – Brett Crane (three goals) was good for the Bears.
Keysborough only sits outside the top five by percentage after a crucial nine-point win over Mordialloc as young guns Ethan Bakes and Max Corbyn fired with three goals each.
After trailing by six points at three-quarter time, Keysborough came out strong in the fourth term to kick three early goals and hold on to win despite some late missed chances from the Bloods – William Avery kicked two majors and was Mordialloc’s best.
Chelsea Heights restricted Endeavour Hills to just two goals for the game as the Demons cruised to a percentage-boosting victory, to the tune of 128 points.
Luke Tapscott and Erishmiilan Uthayakumar (five goals each) were the stars for Chelsea Heights, while Baron Grant (one goal) battled hard for the Falcons.
A 50-1 first quarter saw Highett pump Doveton Doves by 129 points as Rhys Wilkinson (five goals) ran rampant in the forward line.
In a great scoring spread, the Bulldogs had six players who kicked two or more goals – Doveton’s Max Sheppard and Jake Ingaliso were shining lights on a dark day.
SOUTHERN DIVISION 2
Results R16: East Malvern 10.16 (76) def Caulfield Bears 9.7 (61), Chelsea Heights 21.17 (143) def Endeavour Hills 2.3 (15), Hampton Park 19.13 (127) def Frankston Dolphins 8.13 (61), Highett 21.14 (140) def Doveton Doves 1.5 (11), Keysborough 11.8 (74) def 9.11 (65).
Ladder: Hampton Park 52, Chelsea Heights 44, Highett, East Malvern 40, Mordialloc, Keysborough 32, Frankston Dolphins 28, Caulfield Bears 24, Doveton Doves 20, Endeavour Hills 8.
Fixture R17: Caulfield Bears (8) v Doveton Doves (9), Hampton Park (1) v Chelsea Heights (2), Highett (3) v Keysborough (6), East Malvern (4) v Mordialloc (5), Endeavour Hills (10) v Frankston Dolphins (7).
