BALLARAT coach Ash Baker is expecting Melton to be heavily fired-up for its BFNL clash this Saturday against the Swans following a heavy loss to North Ballarat.<\/p>\n
A week after producing a stirring win over reigning premier Darley \u2013 the Devils’ first loss since round one of last season \u2013 an undermanned and injury-riddled Bloods slumped to a 77-point defeat.<\/p>\n
The turnaround in fortunes has the Swans, currently 4-1 and in fourth spot on the ladder following a win over East Point, on high alert.<\/p>\n
“They are a quality side. We are just going to have to try and challenge that with the way we move the ball and try to put on a heap of pressure,” Baker said.<\/p>\n
“We pride ourselves in the way we go about tackling and putting on pressure \u2013 hopefully we can bring that to the table.<\/p>\n
“They had been playing some really good football prior to North Ballarat, having knocked off Darley, and are a really good outfit.<\/p>\n
“They were obviously hampered with a few injuries, with not much of a bench after half time. That hurts at this level.”<\/p>\n
Already missing key personnel against the Roosters, Brody Sullivan (soft tissue), Austin Thorneycroft (cork) and Alex Robinson (ankle) all succumbed to injuries, further testing the Bloods depth.<\/p>\n
Ryan Davis, Ryan Carter, Lachlan and Riley Walker, Oscar Greenshields, Lachie Watkins and Josh Stewart were among those who did not play.<\/p>\n
The Swans will enter the showdown at MacPherson Park in solid form following a 55-point win over East Point, in which they were a bit wasteful early, but as has been the trend this season, they finished strongly.<\/p>\n
A seven-point lead at quarter time could easily have been a lot bigger had the Swans not squandered several chances on their way to kicking 3.7.<\/p>\n
Baker insisted the Swans would again need to be on their game early against the Bloods.<\/p>\n
“I’ll take the same start as last week; I’ll take 10 scoring shots from 15 inside 50s,” he said.<\/p>\n
“But I don’t think Melton well give us that.<\/p>\n
“Realistically you’d take 10 scoring shots every day of the week, but you’d like more than 3.7. 7.3 would be nice.<\/p>\n
“We kicked 1.6 in the first quarter against Redan the previous week, so we have been starting well, but the key metric that dictates that hasn’t been going our way.”<\/p>\n
Baker expressed satisfaction with most aspects of the win over the Kangaroos, who despite still looking for their first win, provided stern resistance and were within 17 points of the Swans at the final change.<\/p>\n
“Joey (East Point coach Joe Carmody) has got a good young group that he is developing well; they put on plenty of pressure,” he said.<\/p>\n
“But I thought we moved the ball really well and we were good in contests and our clearance count was good, particularly early.<\/p>\n
“We were good at getting the ball inside 50, but it would have been better to convert a little bit better.<\/p>\n
“It was more the first quarter. We did everything well. We were plus 10 in clearances, plus 20 in uncontested marks and double the inside 50s for 3.7 and they kicked three straight.”<\/p>\n
What cannot be questioned is the Swans’ fitness, allowing them to run out games strongly.<\/p>\n
“The boys had a good pre-season and have put themselves in good stead there,” Baker said.<\/p>\n
“It’s good, as you can just keep playing your brand of footy for the entire day, and hopefully at some stage you can wear down the opposition.”<\/p>\n
Back from VFL duties with Footscray, Tristan Maple was a standout for Ballarat with 40 possessions, while Tom Simpson accumulated over 30.<\/p>\n
Riley Constable excelled in defence, while former AFL midfielder Brad Crouch, Fraser Perkins and ruck Patrick Graham all found plenty of the ball as well.<\/p>\n
Paddy Simpson was the Swans’ leading goalkicker with three.<\/p>\n
Jackson Merrett, Brodie Willems, Joe Dodd, Liam Canny and Cooper Glenwright-McGuane were the official best for East Point, while Jacob Brown made the most of his opportunities to kick four goals.<\/p>\n
The Kangaroos’ search for their first win leads them to C.E. Brown reserve this weekend for a clash with Lake Wendouree.<\/p>\n
In other games, Sebastopol hosts Darley, Redan clashes with North Ballarat, and Bacchus Marsh plays Sunbury on the Cobras’ home deck.<\/p>\n
Sebastopol will be looking to respond after suffering its first loss of the season last weekend against a rebounding Sunbury.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BALLARAT coach Ash Baker is expecting Melton to be heavily fired-up for its BFNL clash this Saturday against the Swans following a heavy loss to North Ballarat. A week after producing a stirring win over reigning premier Darley \u2013 the Devils’ first loss since round one of last season \u2013 an undermanned and injury-riddled Bloods […]<\/p>\n