A vastly more experienced Coburg scored a comfortable 51-point win over Bendigo this afternoon but not before the underdogs gave them a fright. Bendigo dominated the latter half of the second quarter to take an eight-point lead into the half-time break and an upset looked on the cards.

However Coburg took control of the game midway through the third quarter and ran all over Bendigo in the final quarter to win 22.13 (145) to Bendigo 13.16 (94). Some costly Bendigo misses in front of goal early in the match didn’t help the final score-line but ultimately it was Coburg’s, Richmond-listed players that made the difference.

Bendigo went into the game minus Jason Johnson (calf) and Courtney Johns (thigh soreness) which did not help their cause. They were also without Jay Nash who was added to the senior side after Ricky Dyson withdrew because of appendicitis. Dyson was operated on last night and is expected to miss the next two to three weeks.

Among the good players for Bendigo were Hayden Skipworth who was outstanding in the midfield. Tayte Pears had a good battle with the more experienced Graham Polak while Tom Bellchambers (three goals) again showed he will be worth persisting with as a ruckman / forward. Grant Weekes also performed well up forward as did Jason Laycock who finished with three goals.