A lackadaisical performance by the Bendigo Bombers saw them soundly beaten by the Northern Bullants yesterday. Right from the first bounce it was obvious that only one team had come to play. The Northern Bullants, rumored to have been given a blast by Carlton coach Dennis Pagan, had come fired up and it was clear that some of their players were playing for their futures.

The Bendigo Bombers were the exact opposite to the Bullants, the players seemed complacent and thought the win would come easily against the bottom side.

In blustery conditions Bendigo won the toss and kicked with a very strong wind. The Northern Bullants started the better of the two teams and seemed to have adapted to the conditions much better than their rivals. The Bullants goaled twice early on with midfielders Kane Simpson and James Davies both snapping home from sharp angles. Soon Bendigo started to get more involved in the game but squandered easy chances.

The hard running Northern Bullants continued to looked dangerous but the Bendigo Bombers backline, led by Jordan Doering, stood firm. The Bombers soon posted their first goal when Marc Bullen capitalised on a Bullant mistake. Despite having had the wind the Bendigo Bombers went into quarter time with a four point deficit.

The Northern Bullants started the second quarter the stronger of the two and scored the first two goals through Luke Livingstone and Blake Campbell. Ricky Dyson broke the momentum with a snap shot from a tight angle. The pendulum soon swung back the Bullants way as they scored through Sam Pleming. Bullant captain Brett Zorzi scored a fabulous running goal from the boundary and his team was in full flight. Andrew Walker lived up to his number two draft pick tag as he took a brilliant 'specky' and then scored the goal of the match when spun out of a tackle and goaled from 55 metres out.

The Bendigo Bombers had no way to counter the Bullants band of small running players. A ruthless display by the Bullants saw them score eight consecutive goals and the Bendigo Bombers looked dejected and out of sorts. The Bombers lack of discipline and control was evident as on several occasions they gave away easy goals to their opposition.

As the pressure increased for the Bombers their players began to overuse the ball and their skills deserted them. As the margin stretched out to 64 points there was little respite for the Bombers as Joel Reynolds fresh from injury copped a heavy kick in the ankle and was out for the rest of the game.

The Bombers did manage to pull two late goals back through Carter and Richards, except it was a matter of too little too late. As the Bombers went in at half time their were on a select few Bombers players, Jordan Doering, Ted Richards and Jason Laycock, who could walk with their heads held high and their reputations intact. The Northern Bullants were leading by 52 points going into the long break.

Both teams came out at half time very subdued as they sensed the result of the match was already decided. Despite the prospect of senior selection for many of the Bomber boys, few of them will have demanded selection. It seemed it couldn't get any worse for the Bombers but it could and not surprisingly it did as both their captain and vice-captain went of injured.

Ted Richards kept on battling his 'guts out' and was rewarded with the first goal of the quarter. The Bullants were still in total control and continued to dominate with Simpson, Mott and Zorzi ending the quarter with two goals to their name. Mark Alvey and Gary Moorcroft both goaled late and the Bendigo Bombers managed to break even with the Bullants for the third quarter.

The fourth quarter was much like the second with the Northern Bullants in total control as they scored seven goals for the quarter. The Bombers looked down and out and most of them had resigned to a walk. Once again it seemed that Richards was the only Bomber interested in the match and he added two goals for the quarter to take his match tally to four. At the end of the match the Bendigo Bombers went down by 79 points in a disgraceful performance.

Northern Bullants 2.2 12.10 15.12 22.14 (146)
Bendigo Bombers 1.4 4.6 7.10 9.13 (67)

GOALS
Northern Bullants: J. Davies 3, B. Campbell 3, R. Mott 3, B. Zorzi 2, A. Betick 2, K. Simpson 2, L. Livingstone, S. Pleming, A. Walker, D. Clarke, J. McCormick, D. Harford, J. Vansittart
Bendigo Bombers: T. Richards 4, M. Bullen, R. Dyson, N. Carter, M. Alvey, G. Moorcroft

BEST
Northern Bullants: J. Davies, K. Simpson, B. Campbell, R. Mott, J. McCormick, A. Walker, C. Beasy
Bendigo Bombers: T. Richards, J. Laycock, J. Doering, E. Bowen

At Cramer Street Oval, Preston

Match report courtesy of Michael Loughran.