It was never going to be for long, but Millicent has marched back into the winner’s circle in some style by giving Casterton Sandford a touch-up at Island Park on Saturday.

Although the panic button was not in sight, the Saints needed to bounce back after getting knocked around by South Gambier in just its second loss of the year last week and did so in grand style by 73 points.

It was just the response Millicent coach Clint Gallio was looking for after going down to title rival the Demons.

“It is always nice to bounce back,” he said.

“We still have a few players missing but that was no excuse, last week we were down in a few areas and we fixed that.

“Our effort and energy were pretty flat and we brought that, our pressure was back to acceptable levels and our skill execution was better which always makes it a lot easier to win games of football.”

It was not all easy going initially, with the Cats fighting hard in the first term with Ethan Currie and Justin Carlin digging deep.

With both sides registering six scoring shots, only inaccuracy split the pair with Millicent edging ahead thanks to the reliable boot of Dylan Bromley who kicked off another solid day in front of the big sticks.

But the Saints found their stride after the first break and claimed control of the game.

Youngsters Colby O’Connor, Kade Bradley, Zac McGuinness and Eli Redman all enjoyed the limelight alongside captain Jacob Carger.

They provided fine delivery to the forward line which enjoyed a feast and gradually kicked away.

By half time Millicent was already on its way and any signs of a Cats’ comeback were quelled quickly.

The second half became a procession with the Saints transitioning the ball into their forward line brilliantly to build a huge advantage.

The hero of the day was Bromley, who after many weeks of being a consistent force inside 50 had his first day out.

Bromley had become one of the most consistent goal scorers in the competition with regular handy contributions of three or four, but this time he broke the shackles booting a big bag of eight.

“The first quarter was a bit slow, but I felt like we had control of the game and we then executed really well,” Gallio said.

“We got the ball on the outside, ran hard and used the footy quite well with our feet.

“Dylan has been dominant all year and no defender could stop the good delivery to him.

“He had plenty of space to work with and was at the end of some great work further up the field.”