COMING off a good win over East and playing at home on Island Park, the Casterton Sandford Cats would have been brimming with confidence.

There had been a couple of changes in the line up with the exciting duo of Bay McKinnon and Zac Nash coming into the side for the Pritchard brothers and Gabe Parsons out with injury.

South Gambier on the other hand were hungry for their first win, having suffered two close losses to North and then Millicent.

South were runners-up in the premiership in 2022 and had walloped the Cats in their three games last year, including a 90-point thrashing when last they met.

None of those games were under lights!

The lights are back on in Cat Town; now I'm no great historian and I've copped a few whacks to the head, but I don't remember the Cats losing too many games under lights at Island Park - if any - and South had come to Island Park to get their first win against a Cats team on the up, a Cats crowd fired up for a frosty night and some brand new lights that were so bright, Cats’ captain, Diarmid Cleary, had put sunscreen on before he ran out!

The skipper actually got the Cats off to a flyer, running the ball out of the middle from the first bounce and hitting lead-up forward Hamish McCrae lace-out; McCrae then went back and kicked the Cats’ first major.

Cleary then followed up with a goal of his own less than two minutes later, after a nice tap from a ball-up by Alastair McCrae.

South then started to apply some forward pressure of their own but were thwarted by some timely intercepts by Dylan Ayton and Kai Schembri, until just a bit past the seven-minute mark when they kicked over the Cats’ defenders to an open goal square, the ball barely making it over the line - but it did - for South’s first goal.

The Cats quickly returned the favour though, when Cory Wombwell showed strength and dash and passed to Hamish McCrae, who again took a strong mark and kicked truly.

The ball was played between the flanks for a long period; Sully Gibbs was tenacious on his attack on the ball and the player with the ball, grinding to a halt many Demon attacks.

Justin Carlin and Damian Wombwell were in and under everything while Michael Krieger and Elwood Geary made every contest their own.

Adam McKinnon had been gathering a few possessions and was able to get clear and pass to Sam Craig, who took a fine mark and quickly saw the opportunity to pass to Hamish McCrae, who took his third mark and kicked his third goal - the Cats fourth.

Casterton-Sandford soon had a fifth goal on the board after Tom Foster busted open a pack and kicked long in the direction of Krieger, who gathered and snapped the Sherrin through the big sticks.

The backs continued to hold firm for the Cats, running the ball out with skill and precision.

One South player decided he had seen enough and hit Josh Cottier hard after Cottier had taken the mark.

The crowd went ballistic; Cottier jumped up with the ball, the crowd cheered and the ump gave him a 50-metre penalty.

Cottier used the 50 to his full advantage, running the ball quickly through the middle and kicking long to the lead of Hamish McCrae, who took his fourth mark and kicked his fourth goal.

South made a late run forward but Ayton, Schembri and Co. proved too hard to get past.

Quarter-time: Casterton Sandford 6.0 (36) to South Gambier 1.4 (10)

Both teams came out to play in the second quarter but neither could gain the early ascendancy, as the ball went from one end to the other.

Adam McKinnon, Jarrod O'Brien and Diarmid Cleary were getting a lot of the ball and clearing it through Foster and Carlin, but it was South who made the first impact on the scoreboard with a goal to Nelson Forbes, no relative to our Coach Kane.

The Hairy Cats were having an impact around the ground, Nick Schembri taking several overhead marks, Josh Cottier getting everything at ground level and Adam McKinnon finding space, McKinnon running past several Demons to get the ball to Alastair McCrae who took a strong contested mark and kicked the Cats’ seventh goal.

The Cats continued to move the ball forward, but South were getting numbers back and bottling up the Cats’ 50, until Al McCrae kicked long and returned the favour to McKinnon, who scooped up the ball and snapped the Cats’ eighth goal, just after the 14-minute mark of the quarter.

South continued to bottle up the play, hoping for a drop in the Cats’ intensity, but it was to their own detriment as they would get the ball clear but it was Matt Killey or Ayton who would be ready to send the ball back forward.

A strong tackle by Al McCrae saw him rewarded with a free and he was able to put through the Cats’ ninth goal.

South were able to finish off the quarter with a goal to reduce the Cats’ lead at half-time to 34 points.

Half-time:  Casterton-Sandford 9.5 (59) to South Gambier 3.7 (25).

Casterton Sandford Coach Kane Forbes gave a thorough and well considered speech to his men at half time, encouraging them to take the game on with the discipline they had shown in the first half and reminded the Cats that the job was only half way done.

From the first bounce it was apparent that the Demons had upped their intensity, forcing the Cats to handball quickly to get themselves out of trouble and with that, causing turnovers, eventually kicking their fourth goal at the five-minute mark.

The Cat soon got the goal back when Cleary and Krieger combined to get the ball to Justin Carlin who kicked the Cats 10th from 45 metres out.

South Gambier were able to add another two goals before the halfway mark of the quarter, but that was where the majors stopped as both teams took every opportunity to bring ball to ground and hold up play.

Zac Nash and Bay McKinnon did their best to make space while Sully Gibbs and Elwood Geary were more than willing to give a shepherd or make the next contest, which was pleasing to see from the young Cats, however it was not resulting in scores on the board as the Cats’ forwards couldn't get clean possession.

Three-quarter-time:  Casterton-Sandford 10.6 (66) to South Gambier 6.7 (43)

Coach Forbes was measured in his speech at the break, pointing out that their tackling and uncontested possession had dropped off and asked his men to lift in those areas.

The quarter began very scrappy, with a lot of the play on the scoreboard wing but in the Cats’ half for the most part.

Adam McKinnon was in everything and he was able to make a bit of space and get the ball to Hamish McCrae, who handballed to Krieger on the run and Krieger was able to kick the 11th goal for Casterton Sandford.

The Cats continued to move the ball swiftly out of their defence through Ayton, Gibbs and Carlin while another young Cat came into his own in the last quarter.

With quick hands and great spatial awareness, Casey Jones, set-up or continued several strong attacks, including the one that led to the Cats 12th goal by Adam McKinnon.

The Cats talls in the Schembri Brothers, the McCrae brothers and Elwood Geary were impressive overhead for the Cats while Diarmid Cleary, Justin Carlin, Josh Cottier and Dylan Ayton did not let up on their attack on the loose ball, a late goal to the Demons reducing the Cats’ final winning score to 35 points, another win at home and another win under lights for the mighty Cats!

Final scores:  Casterton-Sandford 12.12 (84) defeated South Gambier 7.7 (49)

Better Players: Hamish McCrae, Diarmid Cleary, Adam McKinnon, Jarrod O'Brien, Dylan Ayton and Elwood Geary

The Casterton Sandford Cats will this week be at home again at Island Park this week, this time against  last year’s premiers, Millicent.

The Saints are so-far unbeaten this season, so I urge all Cats supporters to get down to Island Park on Saturday and cheer our Cats to victory.

 CARN THE CATS!