A SPIRITED second half carried Williamstown to a 56-point win over Essendon in the VFL on Sunday.
It was a crucial win for the Seagulls, moving them into fifth on the ladder with a 6-3 record before a tough month.
The Seagulls were strengthened by the return of captain Ben Jolley, playing his first game since late April. But it was the Bombers who got the hot start.
Essendon’s talls stretched the Seagulls early, with AFL imports David Hille, Tom Bellchambers and Scott Gumbleton all playing.
The Bombers led by five points at quarter-time but managed only one goal in the second quarter to fall behind by five points at half-time.
Williamstown won the game in the third quarter, booting six goals as it held Essendon to just three behinds.
Seagulls coach Peter German attributed the turnaround to winning the contested ball and a more committed defensive effort.
Leading by 32 at the final break, the Seagulls kicked another four in the last to further extend their lead.
Lachlan Hunter kicked three goals, while Cam Lockwood was sensational, as was Brent Prismall.
Mark Austin had another impressive game in defence.
German said he was impressed by his players’ response.
“The first half was a real arm wrestle and, if you look at the stats, both teams were good at putting their opposition under pressure,” German said.
“In the second half we were probably able to maintain that better than they were and it was pleasing we were able to manufacture goals from our talls and smalls.
“We started winning the contested footy and were able to run harder on the outside and get numbers free.”
With Jolley back in the team and the likes of Jamie McNamara and Daniel Pearce playing with the development team, the Seagulls have some impressive depth to guide them through a tough second half of the season.
“Ben is the leader of the club and he was great, given he has been out injured. He didn’t miss a beat,” German said. “We know we’ve got some tough games coming up that will define our season in many ways.”
