Roos rebound strongly; tough Swans test awaits

EAST Point coach Joe Carmody has said he was pleased with the Kangaroos’ emphatic response to a 45-point loss to Sunbury, after inflicting reigning premier Melton’s first loss in 12 months last Saturday.

The Kangaroos exacted a small measure of revenge for their 2024 grand final loss to the Bloods with an 11.13 (77) to 10.10 (70) victory at Eastern Oval.

It was Melton’s first loss since May 18 last year, when they were beaten by East Point by five points at MacPherson Park.

Overrun in a disappointing final quarter the previous week against Sunbury after leading by three points at three-quarter-time, the Kangaroos showed they had learned their lesson well by converting a two-point lead at the final break against the Bloods into a gutsy nine-point win.

In an intriguing battle at the top of the BFNL ladder, the Bloods and Kangaroos sit third and fourth on the ladder behind top-placed Darley and Sunbury, with all four teams on five wins after six rounds.

Carmody said the win was built on solid contributions from all 22 players.

“We were really good in the midfield – Matt Johnson was fantastic with 40 touches for the game and our backline really held up well,” he said.

Carmody said he was definitely more pleased with the response to the previous week’s poor ending than he was in getting one back over Melton.

“We were pretty disappointed in that last quarter,” he said.

“We really analysed it during the week and pinpointed a few areas we wanted to improve on and that’s what we did. We were able to tick them off.

“They (Sunbury) got hold of us in the midfield, which is something that hasn’t happened to us much.

“They won seven centre clearances and were able to score off that.

“Our centre clearance work this week was really good against a really good quality midfield.”

As injuries and the odd suspension have intervened, East Point has not shied away from blooding some promising young talent.

Aptly in BFNL Indigenous round, Teshaun Wright made an exciting debut and earned plenty of praise from his coach.

“He played as a small forward and had 11 touches and kicked a goal and was pretty good,” Carmody said of Wright, a boarder at St Patrick’s College.

“We were looking to debut him earlier, but he was up in Darwin with family – it just happened to work out that this week was Indigenous round.

“It was pretty special that we were wearing the Indigenous jumpers.

“We had Mickitja (Rotumah-Onus), Issac Hucker and Teshaun as our Indigenous boys playing seniors.

“The club has a rich history with Indigenous players, so for us it’s a really meaningful round.”

Another of the Kangaroos’ talented juniors, Dylan Hiscock, caught the eye in his second senior game after debuting the previous week against Sunbury.

Despite the odd hiccup, Carmody said the Kangaroos were tracking well, albeit with plenty of challenges still ahead.

“We’ve been a little bit inconsistent in games, whilst we have still been winning,” he said.

“I thought that was the best four-quarter effort we have had.

“Hopefully, that sets the standard for the rest of the year.”

The Kangaroos will be wary of a letdown against fifth-placed Ballarat this Saturday.

The Swans, who notched up an important and confidence-boosting six-point win over Bacchus Marsh at Maddingley Park, beat East Point last season at Alfredton Recreation Reserve.

The Kangaroos will regain Jacob Brown from suspension and will have Joe Fraser available, while Carmody said the injured Joe Dodd and Jordy Slater were still a few weeks away from a return.