There were more tightly contested matches in the latest round of the Kybram District League as local sides performed relatively well across the board.

Rushworth notched its first win of the season by beating Merrigum, Stanhope claimed a major scalp in defeating Shepparton East and Lancaster continued its perfect start against Avenel, while Undera and Girgarre both lost again.

Merrigum and Rushworth faced off in a local clash at Merrigum Recreation Reserve, both sides entering the match-up without a win this season.

That slow start was particularly surprising for last year’s preliminary finalist Rushworth, who no doubt saw a meeting with the Bulldogs as an opportunity to get on the board in 2026, and the Tigers had the better of the first quarter by booting eight goals to four and taking a 25-point lead into quarter-time.

The match could certainly be described as a shootout, with another seven majors kicked in the second term. Rushy added four to Merrigum’s three straight, with the two sides exchanging a total of 19 first-half goals that saw the Tigers lead 12.5 (77) to 7.1 (43) at the main break.

The overall scoring would slow slightly in the second half, but not for Rushworth, who did not rest on its five-goal lead, tightening the screws in the third quarter with another eight-goal term. Merrigum only mustered three in response and trailed by 67 entering the fourth.

Defeat was almost certain for the Bulldogs as the final quarter began, with another six majors for Rushworth helping it boost a low percentage and regain some confidence from last season.

Merrigum was able to kick another two goals in the fourth — the final score being 12.3 (75) to 26.12 (168) — which was significant as the Bulldogs struck 10 or more total majors for the third time in 2026, a feat it only managed once last year.

Aidan Carroll was responsible for five of the home side’s 12 goals, while Nicolas Collins and Kieran Malone both booted the same number for Rushy, which also had Daniel Brock and Jackson McRae contribute four majors each.

McRae, Brock and Collins were all named in the Tigers’ best alongside Ryan Beale, Ethan Arnold and Jac Barrett, while Merrigum’s list included Carroll, Riley Williams, Reeve Verhoeven, Falcon Taurua, Lucas Roberts and Brady Wileman.

Rushworth’s win means it is sitting ninth on the ladder ahead of a meeting with Avenel. The Bulldogs are now only joined by Undera at the foot of the table and looking for a change of fortunes against Nagambie this weekend.

Shepparton East v Stanhope

Stanhope had made a solid if unspectacular start to the season, the Lions rectifying a heavy loss to Nagambie with a win against Girgarre last time out, but it tested itself against a potential contender again with a trip to Shepparton East in round five.

Fears of a repeat of the Nagambie result lingered early on when the Eagles dominated the first quarter at Central Park Recreation Reserve, the Lions conceding five majors while only kicking one themselves to trail by 24 points at the first change.

Stanhope seemingly found its feet in the second term, curbing the Eagles’ early momentum by winning the quarter with three goals to two and only trailing by 20 points at half-time, 7.4 (46) to 4.2 (26).

Player-coach Matt Butler’s words at the main break must have struck a chord with the Stanhope players, who came out and dominated Shepparton in the third quarter, the Lions booting six majors to one in their best period of the afternoon, suddenly leading by 11 with a quarter to play.

The Eagles rallied in the final term, kicking three goals, but two more for Stanhope was enough to hold off the hosts and secure a significant win with the Lions prevailing 12.6 (78) to 11.6 (72) in a thriller.

The performance was built off four goals from Amir Meyerowitz and three from Butler, while Lior Smart, Tyler Norman, Nathan O’Reilly, Oliver Silk, Jack Lefroy and Brett Smith were all named in the best players.

It was the first time since July 2022 the Lions had beaten Shepparton East, with Stanhope now up to fifth on the ladder ahead of another huge clash this weekend against fourth-placed Longwood.

Avenel v Lancaster

Lancaster had made a stunning start to 2026, answering all questions posed to it so far with huge wins over the likes of Shepparton East and Longwood, and a round six trip to Avenel represented another early season test.

The Wombats found out early that this clash would likely be their toughest so far, with Avenel holding Lancaster to only five behinds in the first quarter, the Swans kicking one major themselves as the two sides were locked in an early arm wrestle.

That trend continued in the second term, as goals were rare and not helped by Lancaster’s inaccuracy, the Wombats finding their first major but kicking another four behinds while Avenel added two goals to lead 3.6 (24) to 1.9 (15) at half-time.

Creating opportunities was clearly not an issue for Lancaster, which just had to convert properly. The Wombats found a more accurate touch in the third quarter, booting four majors while restricting Avenel to only one to hold a two-goal buffer entering the fourth.

Nick Ryan’s side saved its best for the final quarter, as Lancaster stormed home with five goals to Avenel’s two, completing a 38-point second-half turnaround to win 10.15 (75) to 6.10 (46).

The Wombats had an impressive nine different goal-kickers on the day, led by two for Zac Cerrone, while Charlie Mclay, Billy Mclay, Shannon Fleming, Ricky Thomson, Luke Davies and Thomas Davies were all named as best players.

Despite a fourth straight win to open the season, Lancaster still sits second behind Nagambie, which has a much superior percentage, and the Wombats’ schedule doesn’t let up this weekend when they host reigning premier Murchison-Toolamba.

Undera v Tallygaroopna

Undera had been thoroughly outmatched in each of its three losses to start the season, but also faced two finals sides from last year, with a home clash against inconsistent Tallygaroopna representing a likely more competitive outing for the Lions.

That statement seemed to ring true early on when Undera stormed out of the blocks at Undera Recreation Reserve, booting five first-quarter majors to three straight from the Redlegs.

The visitors had the edge in the second term, kicking four goals to the Lions’ three, with Undera holding an 8.8 (56) to 7.2 (44) lead at half-time and seemingly on track to end its winless start to 2026.

But Tallygaroopna continued to reel itself closer and closer to the hosts in the third term, again winning the quarter with four goals to three to only trail by eight at three-quarter time.

Undera wasn’t able to recapture any of its first quarter form in the second half, and the Redlegs only improved as the game wore on, saving a quarterly best six goals for the fourth.

The Lions only registered two majors to finish as they ceded their advantage and went down 17.8 (110) to 13.14 (92), a particularly stinging loss as they created more scoring shots than their opposition for the first time this season.

Despite another defeat for Undera, Russell Sheriff and Deakin Easterbrook stood out with five and four goals, respectively, while the latter, Zach Langlands, Anthony Miller, Matthew Perazzola, Alex Hywood, and Archer Carlile were named the Lions’ best.

The Lions face 10th-placed Violet Town this weekend in another game where they should be able to go toe to toe with their opponent.

Despite remaining winless, Undera is not bottom of the ladder due to Merrigum holding a worse percentage.

Girgarre v Nagambie

Girgarre’s inaccuracy proved costly last week in defeat to Stanhope, and the Kangaroos certainly needed to be much more clinical as rampant league leader Nagambie visited Girgarre Recreation Reserve in round five.

The Lakers not only had a perfect record through three matches but had won each with whopping margins, and the visitors seemed to be following their usual script in the first quarter against Girgarre, laying on seven goals to two to lead by 33 at the first change.

The second term was much more even, the Kangaroos kicking one goal to Nagambie’s two, but they needed to do more to stem the bleeding to have any chance of making a comeback, Girgarre trailing 3.3 (21) to 9.8 (62) at half-time.

The visitors seemingly put their performance into cruise control entering the second half, as the usually free-scoring Lakers only added another three goals in the third quarter while Girgarre again couldn’t make major inroads, only registering one of its own.

Facing a 55-point margin heading into the final quarter, the Kangaroos were resigned to defeat, while Nagambie already had the best percentage in the league and didn’t need a major boost in that regard.

But that didn’t stop Anthony Haysom’s team from clicking into its best form to finish, the Lakers piling on eight majors to three in the fourth, ballooning the margin up to 88 points in the end with a 20.15 (135) to 7.5 (47) victory.

Positives on the day were few and far between for Girgarre, which slumped to a third loss from four matches, although it did have its seven goals shared between seven players, while Reardon McIvor, Riley McNamara, Tyler McNamara, Joshua Mackrell, Billy Barnes and Harry Browning-Briese were named its best players.

The Kangaroos currently sit 11th on the ladder with a 1-3 record and they will be at home again this weekend as another challenging opponent awaits in Shepparton East.

In the other game that took place in round five, Longwood returned to the winners’ list with a comfortable 50-point win over Violet Town at Longwood Recreation Reserve.

The less-fancied Towners stayed in the game until three-quarter time, only trailing by 19 points entering the final term, before Longwood stamped its authority with a strong finish to win 21.18 (144) to 14.10 (94).

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Wednesday, 5th February 2031

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