By Lauren Henry

Southern Mallee Thunder will claim top spot on the Wimmera senior league senior ladder if it can knock over Horsham Demons on Saturday.

The Thunder impressed at Beulah on Saturday, overcoming Stawell by 23 points.

Held scoreless in the opening term, the Warriors didn’t fare much better in the second quarter to only manage seven points on the halftime scoreboard.

The Thunder was dominant, with 15 to two scoring shots in the first half, but inaccurate kicking meant it was only 28 points ahead at the main break.

Billy Lloyd and Sam White continued with their good form for season 2024, as Brad Lowe kicked three goals for the Thunder – the only multiple goalkicker for the match.

The Warriors picked up the pace in the second half and actually outscored the home team, but Stawell also had a case of the ‘yips’ in front of goal – kicking three goals and nine points.

With an exceptional percentage of 230.58 – well ahead of every other team in the competition – the Thunder are on equal points with the Warriors and just four points behind ladder leader Ararat.

However, with Ararat and Stawell having already played their round nine match on Good Friday, if the Thunder can claim this weekend’s round nine match against the fourth-placed Demons, then it will move into the top spot on percentage.

Horsham Demons were quick out of the blocks on Saturday against Warrack Eagles – jumping out to a 38-point lead by quarter time.

While the Eagles could manage just one goal by half time, they did show some fight in the second half and outscored the Demons 61-46 points.

Six goals from Kyle Cheney plus standout performances by Jake O’Donnell and Machok Garang were highlights for the home team.

The Demons were led by ever-consistent duo Tyler Blake and Billy Carberry, as Jordon Motton kicked a bag of five goals.

It will be a big test for the Demons when they host the Thunder at Horsham City Oval on Saturday – one of only three Wimmera league matches this weekend.

The other two matches are also set to be interesting as Dimboola hosts Minyip-Murtoa and Nhill play Horsham Saints.

Coming off a two-week break, the Burras should be raring to go against the Roos, who went down to the Saints by one goal on Saturday.

Playing in front of their home crowd at Coughlin Park, the Saints were again involved in a thriller, with the scores level at quarter time before the Roos gained the ascendency by six points at the main break.

The Saints were strong in the third term, with Mitch Martin, Sam Clyne and Cody Bryan leading the way as youngsters Jack Henry and Gage Wright stepped up their games to be named among the best.

Nathan Koenig, with four goals, and Corey Morgan, three goals, were handy in front of goal for the Saints, while Dimboola relied on just four goal-kickers for the day – Jackson Calder returned to kick six goals.

Trailing by 16 points at the last change, the Roos came home strongly to take it right up to the Saints, who snuck home in the end by a solitary goal.

The Saints, still clinging on with a chance to play finals, now face the tough task of playing the Tigers at Davis Park, Nhill.

Despite coming off a 67-point loss to Ararat, Nhill will be looking for a much closer game this Saturday.

Matt Kennedy, Xavier Bone and Glen Saniong were among the Tigers’ best, but with only one multiple goal-kicker, Daniel Batson with two, Nhill will need more firepower up forward to ensure it starts well early.

Against the Rats, the Tigers were down by 39 points at half time, and weren’t able to claw their way back into the game.

It didn’t help that Ararat co-coach Tom Williamson was on fire with eight goals – more than what Nhill kicked for the match.

The three Wimmera league games to be played in round nine action on Saturday are Horsham Demons versus Southern Mallee Thunder; Nhill host Horsham Saints; Minyip-Murtoa travel to Dimboola, while Warrack Eagles has a bye.

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