THE CRITICAL sending off of a Wedderburn defender in the last quarter has spurred a late Birchip Watchem surge in their North Central clash.
The Redbacks were just 11 points behind in a low-scoring affair when Jake Pallpratt was reported and given a yellow card for a high elbow hit.
With Wedderburn needing to attack despite being a man down, the Bulls took advantage of their numerical advantage and kicked another six goals to secure a 48-point win.
Wedderburn coach Tom Metherell said the three-quarter-time score, with Birchip Watchem on 6.6 and the Redbacks on 4.2, was indicative of how well his team’s defence was playing.
Indeed, it was a day when both defences were on top, so Pallpratt’s dismissal was crucial in the final result.
Veteran Danny Benaim kicked three goals after playing in attack all day, as Metherell papers over the cracks caused by the injury to star forward Mitch Jensen.
Jensen, whom Metherell rates in the top three players in the league, is still several weeks from his return from a fractured tibia, although he is back running at training in Melbourne.
He was hurt late in the round two match against St Arnaud after kicking 10 goals.
Metherell insisted that Wedderburn could have beaten the ladder-leading Bulls if not for the sending off.
The loss sees the Redbacks in fifth position after five rounds in a competition effectively split into two divisions, with the bottom three sides well adrift of the final-four contenders.
Darcy Jackson was named best for Wedderburn along with the ageless Benaim and impressive midfielder Zach Pallpratt.
Leading goalkicker Ben Edwards kicked another seven for the Bulls, taking his tally to 39 goals in just four matches. 
Hamish Hosking, Ben Lakin, Nick Rippon and Meyrick Buchanan were among the best for the winners.
Meanwhile, Wedderburn’s under-17 football team belted out the club song on Saturday after its first win since 2018.
And the young Redbacks did it in style, beating Birchip Watchem juniors by 94 points.
They came close a week earlier, falling by 12 points to Charlton after big losses to Sea Lake Nandaly, St Arnaud and Calder United to start the season.
In other matches, Charlton took out its second game of the year with a 59-point win over Donald, which is winless and on the bottom of the ladder.
A six-goals-to-none first quarter set up the win, although Donald kicked three goals to one in the second term to trail by 27 points at the main break.
Ben Lanyon, coach Mitch Collins, Sean O’Connor and Elliott Fitzpatrick were named best for the Navy Blues, while Donald’s coach Daniel Pearce, Dyson Bell-Warren and Charlie Campbell stood out for the Royal Blues.
Sea Lake Nandaly got back on the winners’ list in emphatic fashion with a 119-point win over St Arnaud, with 45 scoring shots to six illustrating the Tiger dominance.
Midfielder Wade Donnan. Adam Pattison and Jack Poulter starred for the winners, with co-captain Kurtis Torney, Jay Kirkwood and Zac Phillips best for the Saints.