IT was a tough day at the office for the reigning premiers in their first proper day of wet weather winter footy for the season.
On a boggy McNamara Reserve oval and in near-constant drizzling rain, Wangaratta Rovers were unable to overcome an early margin, downed 2.10 (22) to 9.12 (66) by the Myrtleford Saints.
By the time the seniors lined up for their match, the deck had already been chopped up by the two matches earlier in the day, with puddles of standing water at both ends of the ground and in the centre.
Despite having the momentum early, the Rovers were unable to hit the scoreboard in a meaningful way – by quarter time, they’d had 14 clearances and 13 inside 50s, but trailed the Saints by 17 points.
The trend continued through the second quarter, with the Rovers finding plenty of the ball but not capitalising on their chances when they arose, while the Saints kept seizing on opportunities.
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The Rovers trailed by 31 points at the long break, and still kept fighting hard through the third but were unable to convert on the scoreboard.
The slog wore on, with the Rovers finding their second goal of the day nearly 18 minutes into the final quarter through a Lochie O’Brien bomb into a vacant goal square, but the coffin had already been nailed shut.
Rovers football operations manager Barry Sullivan said Myrtleford played the conditions and took their chances better.
“It’s always an interesting contest at Myrtleford, you’re never sure which Myrtleford’s going to show up this year,” he said.
“The conditions, they played them very well – it was a wet, muddy ground, a bit rainy, and they just took advantage of their opportunities in the first quarter.
“Defensively, they played very well, we didn’t get any shots on goal which weren’t under quite a lot of pressure.
“They were very opportunistic and took their chances, their midfield played quite well against our midfield.
“Even their two big guys [Toby Cossor and Riley Smith] were equal to or better than our two [Ed Dayman and Will Christie] which is a bit unusual these days.”
Even though the conditions were far from ideal, Sullivan said they weren’t to blame for the loss, just the Rovers’ second of the 2025 season.
“Sam [Murray] had prepped them for wet weather footy, so no excuses on that front,” he said.
“I don’t think that was the intent, Sam made it very clear the game plan was adjusted to wet weather footy.
“It was just our ability to adapt, and maybe subconsciously we were looking for options you’d look for on a dry day rather than just getting the ball on boot and moving it forward.”
Despite the loss, the Rovers’ leaders fought hard all day, with Brody Filo, Ed Dayman and Sam Cattapan influential across the ground, while some of the younger Rovers are improving with every match.
“That’s one of the pleasing things, seeing some of the young guys showing they’re really at the level,” Sullivan said.
“Noah Scholte, Jai Dal Zotto, Sam Comensoli, Harry Nolan – they’re all certainly capable replacements and provide good depth.”
Rovers retain top spot on the ladder, equal with North Albury and Wangaratta with percentage becoming a factor, the Hawks ahead by 12.18 and 12.95, respectively.
In earlier matches, Rovers reserves fell to the ladder-leading Saints 4.6 (30) to 8.3 (51), while the thirds hung on despite errant goal kicking 2.19 (31) to the Saints’ 2.2 (14).
