High five bro: Jake and Tomas Rennie have kicked 20 goals between them this season for Stanhope and combined for five on Saturday in the team’s 64-point victory against Undera.
Stanhope took its third Kyabram district league scalp of the season on Saturday when it kicked 10 second-half goals to run away with a 64-point win against Undera.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
It is the Lions third win against a team lower than it on the ladder, but in a fortnight it will have an opportunity to claim its first top-four scalp when it faces Tallygaroopna on June 3.
Prior to that match-up Stanhope has an appointment with perennial finalist, Avenel, which has had several close calls this season.
The Swans lost by seven points to fourth-ranked Tallygaroopna in round three and then won by just seven points against the much-improved Longwood the following week.
It signalled an ability to score big in round two when it had a 147-point win against second-bottom Violet Town, when key goalkicker Dylan Hoysted bagged nine of his 20 goals for the season.
Stanhope’s Undera win came as its twin towers, brothers Tomas and Jake Rennie, kicked five goals and had support from a fleet of goalkicking mid-fielders and high half forwards.
Key defender, and assistant coach, Adam Lovison stood tall in the round-five win as the Lions struggled early before breaking the game open with a four-goal-to-one second term.
Undera, 10th on the ladder with just one win, trailed by just three points at quarter time before the Lions responded to coach Mark Adamson’s encouragement and ended up winning 16.11 (107) to Undera’s 6.7 (43).
Winger Jonathon Pearson pushed forward to kick three goals, while Jye Adamson and Darcy Keck interchanged between forward and the midfield to kick four between them.
Goalsneak Rhys Smith took his tally of goals to nine with three for the afternoon to round off a plethora of multiple goalkickers.
Stanhope now sits sixth on the ladder, but is one of four teams with a 3-2 win/loss record — the others being reigning premier Lancaster (fifth), Avenel and Dookie United.
The Lions face seventh-ranked Avenel this weekend at Stanhope after the Swans were beaten by 51 points by one of the league’s two unbeaten teams this season, Shepparton East.
Shepparton East and Nagambie are unbeaten on top of the ladder and are not due to play until round 13 on July 29.
Stanhope’s opponent this weekend, Tallygaroopna, has had the most comfortable draw of any team in the top half dozen. It had an opening-round bye, due to the withdrawal of Rushworth from senior competition, and since then has faced Undera (a seven-point loss), Avenel (a seven-point win), Violet Town (a 77-point win) and Longwood (a two-point win).
Stanhope has Longwood immediately after the general bye on June 10 before confronting the top team (Shepparton East) on June 24.
SCOREBOARD
STANHOPE v UNDERA
Undera 2.1, 3.3, 4.7, 6.7 (43)
Stanhope 2.4, 6.6, 10.8, 16.11 (107)
GOALS, Undera: D. Brewster 3, R. Moon 2, D. Carmody 1, Stanhope: J. Rennie 3, J. Pearson 3, R. Smith 3, D. Keck 2, J. Adamson 2, T. Rennie 2, B. Wileman 1.
BEST, Undera: D. Carmody, C. Proctor, N. Frizzell, K. Mitchell, C. Miller, R. Moon, Stanhope: A. Lovison, J. Pearson, N. Hanneysee, J. Nesci, N. O’reilly, J. Rennie.
Kick for Keck: Darcy Keck is a Kyabram underage player who has returned to Kyabram district league ranks with Stanhope from Picola district team Stathmerton. He played the 2021 season with Lancaster after being a star with the Wombats at Under-18 level in 2019.
Escape artist: Jye Adamson is hotly pursued by three Undera players as he emerges from a centre bounce with the ball. Adamson has been a goalkicking mid-fielder for the Lions this season.
19°C