TYRENDARRA has opened their account in the 2023 South West District Football League season with an emphatic round one win over Westerns, taking home the points 16.10 (106) to 5.8 (38), at Hanlon Park on Saturday.

The Darras had a stranglehold over the contest right from the word ‘go,’ as they raced to a 38-point lead at quarter time after Westerns was able to register just one behind for the quarter.

They kept the pedal to the metal for the ensuing two quarters to take care of business, before slowing down in the final term.

New recruit Mitch Arnold was named best on ground in his first game of senior footy, while coach Sam Anson, along with Jordi Withers and Christian Marshman, shared the spoils with four goals apiece.

Nicholas McKindley and Jack Cocks were the other players mentioned in the Darras’ best.

Anson said it was a really positive start for his club as they look to contend for a premiership, adding that they got strong efforts at both ends of the ground.

“We got a good spread of goal scorers, between Christian and Jordi both kicking four… that’s what we want to see,” he said.

“We don’t want to put too much emphasis on any one of our players kicking goals, getting a number of different guys hitting the scoreboard is key.”

Anson went on to praise the performance of his newer recruits, particularly best on ground performer Arnold.

“We’ve got a lot of new faces around the club, and in many ways, we’re still finding our feet,” he said.

“Mitch was fantastic, he’s a good kid who is very coachable and I think he’ll be a real asset for the season ahead.”

While it was undoubtedly a disappointing loss for Westerns, they’ll take some positives away from it, with the club registering a higher score than they managed in all but one of their matches in 2022.

With the side able to almost match their opponents in the fourth quarter, they’ll look to Noah Knight, Scott Lindsay, Stephen O’Brien, Daniel Lynch, Joseph Saunders and Ashley Clements were best amongst Westerns’ contingent.

Giants hold off Lions in thriller

Dartmoor narrowly avoided a first-round upset against Heywood at home on Saturday, eventually running out victors 15.6 (96) to 14.7 (91).

The Lions dominated the early going, racing to a 15-point lead at quarter time, but the Giants replied with an even more impressive second term which saw them take a nine-point lead into the main break.

The Giants built on this lead in the third term, earning themselves a 14-point buffer heading into the final term, however Heywood were certainly not ready to give up.

The Lions were able to muster four fourth-quarter goals and had a number of other opportunities as they registered three behinds.

The Giants held their nerve though, kicking three goals themselves to hang on to a five-point victory.

Dartmoor owed a lot of their success in front of goal to Dale Bachmann and Jordan Murphy (four goals apiece) while Dylan Ryan added three.

Leon Davis booted six for the Lions, while Jarod Donovan added four.

Lachie Polaski, Alex O’Connell, Sam Hayes, Rhys Malseed, Jordan Murphy and Jay Ropitini were best for Dartmoor, while Heywood got their strongest performances from Brad Martin, Donovan, Jack Fadersen, Aaron Johnstone, Nyawi Moore and Stephen Harris.

Saints shut down Heathmere

Branxholme-Wallacedale earned themselves a tough 42-point win over Heathmere at Heathmere, thanks in large part to the efforts of the defence.

The final scoreline of 9.15 (69) to 3.9 (27) demonstrated that this was a grinded-out effort from the Saints, who were able to hold the Meres to just three behinds in the entire second half.

The Saints kept chugging along, managing to find the goals often enough to ensure a comfortable victory, with Travis Scott, Damian Monaghan, Ashley Kelly, Lachlan Holcombe, Jack Goodman and Thomas Scott named their best afield.

The Meres will take some confidence from remaining competitive throughout the match, as they held the Saints to just three goals in the second half.

With seeing his side put in a strong four-quarter effort week in, week out being the key for senior coach Adrian Hann ahead of the season, there’s plenty of positives to build upon.  

Cody Driscoll, Zac Deane, Luke Fidge, Samuel Fidge, Jamie West and Cooper Anson were strongest for Heathmere.