Vic Country defeated Vic Metro by seven goals, scoring 16. 9 (105) to 9.9 (63) at the MCG on Sunday.
The scores were level at quarter-time but the Vic Country team coached by Robert Hyde ran away in the second term and did not look back.
North Ballarat forward Lucas Cook starred for the country side, booting five goals for the day including three in three minutes in a purple patch in the second quarter.
At 194cm, Cook is sure to come under the watchful eye of AFL scouts.
He was ably assisted by mid-sized forward Jed Lamb from Yarram who bobbed up to kick four. Lamb showed dash and competitiveness that could prove to be a vital part of Vic Country’s campaign this year.
For Vic Metro, future Bulldogs father-son selections Thomas Liberatore (26 touches) and Mitch Wallis (25) both did well out of the midfield, but their best player was Oakleigh Chargers’ onballer Andrew Gaff.
Gaff won 31 touches out of the centre and his work rate stood out all afternoon.
Defender Max Otten - the younger brother of Adelaide’s Andy - played a solid game in defence and rebounded well.
Thomas Schneider showed impeccable vision for Vic Metro while Ryan Lester was good overhead in defence.
Bottom age Vic Country forward Devon Smith showed some creativity as a small forward. He had a shot in the opening minutes and finished with 3.2 for the match.
Vic Country 4.1 8.3 12.7 16.9 (105)
Vic Metro 4.1 6.3 7.5 9.9 (63)
Goals:
Vic Country: Lucas Cook 5, Jed Lamb 4, Devon Smith 3, Tomas Bugg 1, Tim Northe 1, Dyson Heppell 1, Tom Lynch 1
Vic Metro: Patrick Karnezis 2, Ben Jacobs 2, Viv Michie 2, Alex Johnson 1, Thomas Libertore 1, Darcy Barden 1
Best:
Vic Country: Mitch Hallahan, Lucas Cook, Andrew McInnes, Jed Lamb, Devon Smith, Jayden Pitt
Vic Metro: Cameron Guthrie, Billy Longer, Andrew Gaff, Ryan Lester, Thomas Libertore, Thomas Scheider
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs
