Lancaster’s perfect start to the Kyabram District League football campaign continued at Tallygaroopna, as it claimed an outstanding victory on away soil in round seven.
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Coming into the clash at Tallygaroopna Recreation Reserve, the home side was looking to find some momentum following a mixed showing in the opening weeks of the season.
After two wins and as many defeats in four outings, the Redlegs struggled to find their groove in the opening quarter, falling 12 points behind and leaving themselves with a mountain to climb in the clash.
From there, the visitor from Lancaster showed no mercy as it ruthlessly dispatched the hosts in the second term, creating some clear daylight in the clash heading into half-time with the score reading 46 to 13 by that stage.
The boys in navy blue struggled to contain the attacking prowess of the high-flying visitors, with Lancaster piling on 6.10 in the second quarter to underline the formidability of the Wombats’ forward line on what was quickly turning into a day to forget for Tallygaroopna.
By the end of the third stanza, the Wombats were still refusing to show any mercy to their ailing opponents, more than doubling the deficit heading into the final period as their return of 20.24 underlined the one-sided nature of the contest.
For the runaway winners, Morrie Serra proved practically unplayable during an eye-catching performance on the road, tallying up seven goals in a memorable virtuoso showing.
Zac Cerrone and Blake McAuliffe also got in on the act with five strikes between them, while an ensemble cast of eight goal-scorers rounded out what proved to be an emphatic attacking masterclass.
Max Carroll, Matthew Fleming, Daniel Foley, Billy McLay, Riley O'Neill, Slater Sinclair and Sam Vick all provided goals to set Lancaster back down the highway with all four points.
Lancaster coach Nick Ryan appears to be putting his own stamp on his impressive outfit in 2026, after assuming the reins from two-time premiership coach Tom Davies just more than a year ago.
Reflecting on the performance of his team en route to a result that will reverberate around the grounds, the Wombats helmsman spoke of his delight at how his troops executed the job.
“Our pressure was pretty relentless, that’s where it really started opening up for us – that’s been the story of our first few games,” he said.
“The third quarter was probably where we really blew (the score) out, but the second quarter was the one that put us into a really comfortable lead.
“A lot of it comes down to relentless work-rate, a lot of the guys when they get in positions, even when they don’t get used, we see the good side of it and it gives us the opportunity to really go and go and control the footy.
“So we have a lot of different avenues and it comes down to work rate of the guys wanting to be in good positions.
“He came in last week and knocked some rust off and this week he’s really been able to capitalise and took some great marks that I don’t think many other blokes would be able to take.
“He was the beneficiary of a lot of good work up the field, but it was great to see him hitting the scoreboard.
“It’s been great that we’ve been able to build and build and a lot of the core group has been around for at least half a decade or so.
“Each coach puts their own little stamp on it, but when you’ve been playing in a system for so long, it becomes very easy to introduce new players to it and make them familiar with it as well.”
After closing out a clinical 20.24 (144) to 2.2 (14) victory, the result maintained Lancaster’s faultless start to the season, with a sixth win from six sending the all-conquering side to the top of the league standings.
Next up, the Wombats face Violet Town in round nine following a bye week, while Tallygaroopna will look to get back to winning ways when it faces the Towners in round eight.
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