Murray Football League
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The first of the local football leagues to resume this year, Moama had the honour of kicking things off with a stand-alone twilight game on March 27 against Deniliquin.
Made possible by a reshuffling of the round eight fixture, Moama blessed its new state-of-the-art facilities with a healthy crowd.
But the Magpies couldn't sustain their strong start against the Rams, eventually losing by 34 points as Deniliquin's Ash Morris went on a five-goal tear.
A week later it was back to Moama Recreation Reserve for a Good Friday clash and the first staging of the Three Jacks Cup since 2019 between cross-border foes Moama and Echuca United.
Led by a 52-point win from their seniors, it was a clean sweep across all grades for Moama as it reclaimed the cup.
Fifty-seven kilometres away, Tongala started its season off on the right note, beating its 2019 grand final nemesis Nathalia by a whopping 65 points at the Purples’ home ground.
A stand-out seven-goal performance from Northern Territory import Darren Ewing was the highlight.
But Ewing wasn't content with his first round bag, returning in round two with an even better offering — 11 goals in his side's 111 point hiding of Barooga.
In what was Tongala's first home game of the season, the day doubled as a tribute to Jayden Vick who died in 2020, as well as the chance to unfurl the club's 2019 reserves flag.
The Blues’ perfect start to the season continued into round three against Cobram, but over at Echuca South Recreation Reserve, things weren't looking as peachy.
The Eagles were handed their third straight loss by Deniliquin, the 75-point margin the Eagles’ worst losing margin thus far.
Moama was also having a so-so start to the season, although this was rectified in round four with Luke Eldridge having a day out in his 200th game.
The playing coach finished with six goals to help his team to an 84-point win over Finley.
Even without its Top End talent, Tongala continued to show it was a true premiership contender as it handed United another battering, led by five-goal efforts from both Makenzie Ryan and Jack Hammond.
Both United and Moama suffered big losses in round five, against Numurkah and Cobram respectively, while Tongala escaped a close call with a five-point win against the Rams.
Ewing was back in action in round six, snagging six goals in another Tonny win, while United's season continued to go from bad to worse, its 104-point loss to Barooga compounded by several injuries, including a broken hand for Kyle Armstrong.
The bad news kept coming, with the news that Hamish Cohen was retiring due to multiple concussions, leading into another tough loss to Rumbalara.
Elsewhere Tongala continued its stay at the top of the table with a huge 83-point victory over Moama, with playing coach Jordan Souter leading the charge with six goals.
The contest also saw both clubs revive the Jones Cup, named after brothers Tony and John Jones.
With the season put on ice for three weeks, another Three Jacks Cup clash between Moama and Echuca United restarted the season, with all the round's fixtures held in NSW.
Moama performed the clean sweep again, with Tongala and Rumbalara then facing off at Moama the next day with the Blues walking away 10-goal winners.
A 116-point defeat to Congupna a week later was the catalyst for United and its senior coach Adam Sutherland to part ways, with Francis Lias stepping in as interim coach.
That circuit-breaker was the fresh start needed to see the Eagles score their first win of the season the following week, although the success was brief as the Eagles were subjected to big losses for the remainder of the season.
At Moama though, the hunt for finals was well and truly alive as the league announced a top eight finals fixture instead of top six to accommodate the interrupted season.
A 28-point win over Numurkah kept the Magpies’ hopes aloft, while Tongala teenagers Mackenzie Cowley (six goals) and Harley Reid led the ladder leaders to as 55-point win over Barooga.
More postponements eventuated, with clubs only able to get one more home-and-away game in before the season slipped away under continued lockdowns.
With the cancellation of the final series, Tongala lost the chance to break its 37-year premiership drought, with the club named minor premier instead.
Sports journalist