It may not be enough to mend the pain from last year, but South Gambier scored first blood in the 2022 Bendigo Bank Western Border Football League season by outgunning the reigning premiers behind enemy lines.
With the 2021 premiership flag being unfurled and the comeback of one of the town’s greatest players, the stage was set for the Saints to enjoy a dream afternoon of celebration on and off the field.
However, the Demons were still smarting from September and silenced the celebrations almost instantly in the grand final rematch.
South made full use of the favourable breeze by bombarding the scoreboard in the opening term.
The side moved the ball aggressively and were not afraid to blast the Sherrin deep into the 50-metre arch with long kicks.
Returning player Hamish Stevens produced the perfect example by firing a pinpoint pass from the wing to the chest of coach Brayden Kain in the opposite pocket, who calmly completed the set shot.
By the time Brodie Foster kicked a bomb through the big sticks from outside 50, the Demons were looking unstoppable kicking five goals to one in the opening term.
Although the hosts enjoyed the chance of kicking down breeze in the second term, South still found ways to score and maintain the lead.
This meant the game turned into an arm wrestle through the midfield with Tom Hutchesson showing off his AFL skills alongside the daring Jacob Carger, while youngsters Noah and Mitch Sims displayed plenty of tenacity.
Having struggled to make an impact with the wind, the Saints turned to their coach who pounced on a turnover and slotted a vital goal to keep his team interested.
Sam Willis then started to get his hands on the ball and with the Demons only leading by 22 points at the main break, both teams were in the fight.
The game shifted up a notch in the third term as both sides went on the attack.
Carger and Hutchesson showed plenty of class and kicked three goals each to help make up the loss of Gene Robinson.
Kicking four goals against the wind was an impressive effort from the hosts, but they did not have it all their own way with Kain still being a dominant force at the other end to ensure the lead hovered around the five-goal shot.
Enjoying the wind in the last term, Millicent had to launch an assault in the final term, but the Demons would not disappear.
Kain kicked the last of his four goals, while young guns Mitch Sims and Liam Delaney all chipped in to seal the 102-77 win.
With the battle for possession heated and both sides producing 22 scoring shots, efficiency was the key with South kicking 16.6 to 11.11.
Kain admitted the win was a big objective ticked for his team.
“It has been a massive build up with that fire in the belly and we really wanted to send a message and kick the season off in style,” he said.
“So, it is really pleasing to get the monkey off the back and we felt in control most of the day.
“We gave ourselves enough space to enjoy some freedom in the forward line and be dangerous.
“Our backline and midfield worked hard in a physical encounter to break even with them when they had the wind, so everyone contributed which shows we are heading in the right direction.”
