The Blues have scored quality wins over top Murray Football League sides like Cobram and Nathalia, but have equally found themselves on the wrong end of scorelines against sides that form would indicate they shouldn’t, including Echuca United and, at the weekend, Rumbalara.
Rumba came into the game without a win and with its best offensive performance 75 points (in a game where the opposition scored 239), but broke through both those ceilings in this one, kicking 14.9 (93) to get past Tonny, 13.13 (91), by two points.
The game at Mercury Drive, Shepparton, was anyone’s to claim throughout, and began with Rumba narrowly edging the first term to lead 39-32 at the break.
Tongala kicked four goals without reply to start the second and claim the lead, the host then pulling one back to be within two goals at half-time.
The Blues led by as many as 21 during the third, but a late Rumbalara run kept the result in doubt at 78-69 heading into the fourth.
Tonny thought they had it locked up midway through the final term when two goals put them up 16, but Rumbalara showed a will to win that it had lacked this season, kicking three straight down the stretch to edge ahead in the dying minutes and claim the points.
Both sides leant on a single goal-kicker for much of their production, the Blues’ Darcy Laffy kicking six majors, while Rumba’s Levy Tejones found five, including the two sealers late on.
Having given up a guilt-edged opportunity to solidify itself around the top four, Tongala instead drops to 4-4, in a dog fight with Cobram and Moama over the bottom two finals places.
The Blues travel to third-placed Nathalia (5-3) in the next round and, while the Purples may have the edge on the ladder, recent history favours Tongala, which prevailed 81-72 in the opening round.
The game
Tongala: 5.2, 9.7, 11.12, 13.13 (91)
Rumbalara: 6.3, 7.8, 10.9, 14.9 (93)
Goals
Tongala: Darcy Laffy 6, Joe Guiney 2, Kyle Fitzgerald, Hugo Monnich Vo, Brayden O’Hanlon, Riley Smith, Tristan Watson
Rumbalara: Levy Tejones 5, Elwyn Bush 3, Darrnell Edwards 3, Ashleigh Miller 2, William Sanders
Best
Tongala: Tristan Watson, Bailey Waasdorp, Cameron Ilett, Darcy Laffy, Mitch Petersen, Mitchell Fitzgerald
Rumbalara: Brogan McGee, Anthony Walker, Elwyn Bush, Jaylen Saunders, Kane Atkinson, Jake Zerbato
11°C