A 10-goal haul from Mitch Martin has seen the Horsham Saints defeat Southern Mallee in round 13 of the WFNL on Saturday, June 15.
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The full-time score at Coughlin Park was 17.4 (106)-7.8 (50).
It was the Giants who field position as they patiently chipped the football around the half-forward line; the Saints' defence held firm.
Southern Mallee generated the first goal of the game from transition.
Rupert Sangster led up to centre half-forward, where he quickly played on.
A long kick allowed Declan Brown to run into an open goal.
The home side answered almost immediately through Jarrod Garth's 38th goal of the season.
Mitch Martin kicked two goals in three minutes to give the Saints a 13-point lead at the first change.
Giants coach Kieran Delahunty wanted his side to use shorter options.
"We don't want to kick long down the line today. We need to have that runner coming past, particularly into the breeze," Delahunty said.
Liam Nelson kicked his first goal in part to Heath Smith's effort in the back half.
Smith followed his defensive effort by splitting Saints defenders with a kick into the corridor.
Fisher found space on the far side of the ground and kicked on the run.
Martin kicked back-to-back goals and had three with seven minutes gone in the second term.
Will Taylor kicked the Saints' sixth before Mickitja Rotumah-Onus split the contest and found Josh Webster, who reduced the margin to three goals.
The Giants lifted its intensity around the contest on the back of Webster's goal.
However, the Saints extended its lead in the first half's final seconds.
From a stoppage inside the forward 50, Gage Wright found space and slammed home the seventh goal.
The margin at half-time was four goals.
It took seven minutes to open the scoring, and it was Martin once again.
After the Saints had repelled early entries from Southern Mallee, Martin found space from a forward 50 stoppage and kicked on the run.
Nelson kicked his second at the other end after chain handballs gave him space to run out of the front of a stoppage.
Southern Mallee had another surge of momentum as Tyler Lehmann took strong marks inside the forward 50 but could not impact the scoreboard.
Taylor's second major came off the back of unselfish play from Gage Wright.
Wright lowered his eyes with a pass, and Taylor converted from close range.
A Judd Wright pack mark and goal on the three-quarter-time siren gave the Saints a 35-point lead.
Senior coach Ben Knott implored his side to play out the four quarters.
"Leads like this in the past, we've let sides back in. A game like this is one where we'll see how far we've come," Knott said.
The Giants wasted little time in an attempt to mount a comeback.
Kai Sheers received a handball from a front and centre to kick the first major 90 seconds in.
Gut running from Cody Bryan played a large role in Martin's sixth before his seventh came two minutes later.
Rotumah-Onus added his name to the scorecard before the Saints put their feet down.
Martin kicked two of the last four goals as the home side claimed a 56-point win.
Martin's 10 goals sees him overtake teammate Jarrod Garth atop the league's goal kicking.
Jordy Keyte and Gage Wright joined Martin atop the best.
Nelson's two goals for the Giants came from the half-back line.
Billy Lloyd impacted the game with and without the ball in hand, and Rotumah-Onus joined Lloyd in the best.
In the Reserves, Robert Walker kicked 10 goals and James Lang kicked five in the Saints win over the Giants.
Dimboola Roos v Stawell Warriors
The Warriors have caused an upset at Dimboola Recreation Reserve.
With only four points the margin at the main break, Stawell kicked six goals to three in the second half.
The full-time score was 9.6 (60)-13.15 (93).
Sam Godden and Hayden Walters kicked three goals for the Roos.
Will Griffiths joined Walters atop the best.
Warriors captain Jack Walker booted five goals.
Sean Mantell and Tom Walker featured in the best for Stawell.
Shane Field kicked seven goals for the Warriors in the Reserves' 57-point win over the Roos.
Nhill Tigers v Warrack Eagles
Nhill has claimed its second win over the season with a five-goal win over the Eagles.
A five-goal third term set up the 8.18 (66)-4.12 (36) victory.
Drew Schneider's seven goals takes him to 16 goals in 2023.
He has kicked a goal in six of the last seven matches.
Schneider was joined by fellow forward Thomas Driscoll atop the best.
Kyle Cheney was one of four individual goal kickers for Warrack.
Cheney featured in the best for the seventh time this season, and Dylan Watts joined him.
Ararat Rats v Horsham Demons
A six-goal third term from the Rats has seen them take a 79-point win over Horsham.
The full-time score at Alexandra Oval was 13.13 (91)-1.6 (12).
Jack Ganley kicked six goals for Ararat, and ruck Cody Lindsay added three.
Ganley and Lindsay finished atop the best.
Lindsay has been one of the most consistent Rats in 2023, having finished in the best on six occasions.
With the Demons' loss and Nhill's win over Warrack, the Tigers finish the round in seventh position.
The round 14 clash between the two sides could decide its final ladder positions.
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Lucas Holmes
Lucas is a sports journalist with the Wimmera Mail-Times, Stawell Times-News and Ararat Advertiser. He completed his Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree through Charles Sturt University. Lucas is originally from Newcastle, New South Wales.
Lucas is a sports journalist with the Wimmera Mail-Times, Stawell Times-News and Ararat Advertiser. He completed his Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree through Charles Sturt University. Lucas is originally from Newcastle, New South Wales.
