Sport
14 August, 2026
Redbacks reign supreme
A BLISTERING third quarter has put Wedderburn back on top of the North Central league ladder.
By ALEX WHEWELL
A BLISTERING third quarter has put Wedderburn back on top of the North Central league ladder.
The Redbacks kicked 10 third term goals and kept their St Arnaud opponents to just three behinds at Donaldson Park on Saturday for the 95-point win.
Wedderburn got off to a flyer, keeping the ball in their half of the ground for most of the first quarter and putting pressure on the Saints’ defence.
Tom Campbell was the focal point inside 50 for Wedderburn as he put on the first two goals of the game.
The Saints began to find their way midway through the first quarter but were wasteful in front of goal, scoring 0.3.
Multiple defensive turnovers led to late opening-term goals for Oscar Holt and Hamish Lockhart with the Redbacks’ forward pressure the highlight of the opening quarter.
The second quarter started as a seesawing affair. Sam Lockhart kicked things off right away for Wedderburn, but Torin Petrie was able to get one straight back for St Arnaud.
Dane Keuken got one on the board for the Redbacks, but it was the Saints who were dominating possession through the second quarter.
Joe Maishman was taking over the game from the centre bounce and at stoppages, and the Saints were full of momentum.
A series of contested marks from Max Hungerford led to goals for Lucas Bridger and Joshua Hicks, the latter also involved in one of the plays of the game as he took a strong mark on the scoreboard side wing ending in a Mitch Egan goal from the top of the goal square.
It didn’t stop there for St Arnaud. Individual brilliance from a spinning Petrie led to their fourth consecutive goal. The Saints looked to be going into half-time back in the game, until the Redbacks went forward and Oscar Holt kicked a snapping goal seemingly out of nowhere, moments before the siren sounded.
That was just what the doctor ordered for Wedderburn, as they kicked 10 third quarter goals, to St Arnaud’s zero.
Whatever momentum St Arnaud had built before half-time disappeared almost immediately after the break.
Wedderburn came out firing, winning it from the centre and repeatedly sending the ball inside 50. Louis Holt opened the scoring for the quarter after the Redbacks won another clearance, before Hamish Lockhart continued the onslaught just over a minute later.
The Saints simply could not get the ball out of their defensive half, with Wedderburn locking it in and forcing repeat entries.
Zach Pallprat then snapped a goal from a stoppage before Noah Furlong converted on the run after another centre clearance.
Furlong turned provider moments later, lowering his eyes to find Jye Mortlock, who made no mistake from straight in front.
The Redbacks continued to find Tom Campbell on the lead and the forward made the Saints pay again and again with his third, fourth, and fifth goals.
By three-quarter time, Wedderburn had piled on 10.2 to 0.3 for the term and led by 84 points.
There was little left to decide in the final quarter although the Redbacks continued to attack.
Oscar Holt opened the scoring after Jye Mortlock weaved through several St Arnaud defenders, while Mitchell McEwen added two opportunities of his own, one from 45 metres out.
The Saints managed late goals through Jay Kirkwood and Lachlan O’Connell but it did little to slow the Redbacks with Zach Pallpratt putting the finishing touch on the victory with a running goal from just inside 50.
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