Buoyed after beating Woodend-Hesket by 53 points on Good Friday, Kyneton senior footballers received a reality jolt at Riddell on Saturday.
The Tigers were restricted to a paltry three goals by the Bombers in a low-scoring encounter, not outscoring the home side in any of the four quarters.
“We’re not playing our best football ….. it seems it may be a season where anyone can beat anyone,” Kyneton playing coach Ethan Foreman said after the match.
Foreman, who played for Riddell at one stage, will be trying to get his side back on track for the clash at the Showgrounds with unbeaten Romsey this Saturday.
Assistant coach Ryan Pretty also expressed concern the Tigers were not producing “their brand of football”.
Several other Riddell League clubs were awaiting the outcome of this match with considerable interest, in the light of varying opinions about how strong Kyneton may be in the RDFNL after crossing from the Bendigo League.
The winning margin was 29 points, with both sides squandering chances for goals on quite a number of occasions.
Riddell coach Aaron ‘Skip’ Bray was pleased with his side’s workrate but suggested his players should not get carried away.
Bray said the side’s intent was a lot better than the week before at Macedon, and structures had been much improved.
The Bombers have not played a lot of football together, and were without prime mover Dylan Tarczon and Bowen Medal winner Brent Swallow (hamstring injuries).
Kyneton was also not at full strength, and supporters will be hoping star Cameron Manuel returns in the not too distant future.
A very large crowd turned out at the Riddell Recreation Reserve, and (again) some spectators grumbled about the scarcity of the RDFNL Record publication.
Scoring was scarce until Matt Pannuccio finally put Riddell on the board. The game became a stalemate for much of the first half.
RUCKMAN INJURED
At times there were scuffles and pushing and shoving, and Kyneton received a major setback in the second term when experienced ruckman Jayden Eales fell awkwardly at a ball up in the second term.
Play was held up for several minutes until Eales was assisted from the ground. It was feared he may have a season-ending ACL injury.
Kyneton key defender Harrison repelled plenty of forward thrusts in a busy day at the office.
In the third quarter, all 36 players were in one half of the ground for periods of time.
Riddell held a winning lead at the final break, and did not relent. The 7.13 (55) to 3.8 (26) outcome was unexpected by many.
Kyneton’s key defender Harrison Huntley repelled plenty of Riddell forward thrusts in a busy day at the office.
Some onlookers felt Riddell could have easily won by more except for poor finishing.
Recruit Dylan Podolczak was named as the Bombers’ best, and Huntley, along with Alex Mahoney and Cody Young, were the top three for the Tigers.
In the first tribunal case for the season, Kyneton’s James O’Sullivan was suspended for two weeks on a striking charge arising from the match against Woodend-Hesket.
Earlier, Kyneton Under 19.5s scored a morale-boosting victory by two points after having been outclassed by Macedon on Good Friday; the Tiger Reserves finished well in a low-scoring affair to go down by five points.
PREMIERS DOWN
Thanks to a dynamic third quarter, Wallan bounced back from an embarrassing opening round loss to dethrone 2023 premiers Diggers Rest by almost five goals. This sets up a big test for Riddell.
At the same time Romsey struggled at home to Melton Centrals, and trailed for much of the match until three goals straight in the last term secured an important four points.
Talented Darcy Lockens was a match winner with four goals for the Redbacks.
Romsey coach Justin Sherman said the club is unsure of star forward Jack Jedwab’s VFL commitments and when he will be available to play, hence the Redbacks have to find other avenues to goal.
Macedon pleased coach Al Meldrum with a very consistent effort against Woodend-Hesket at Gilbert Gordon Oval.
In the second half the Cats confined the Hawks to just three scoring shots, and deserved to take home the Bill Tunn Shield.
