By Lance Jenkinson
Williamstown is on a roll in the Victorian Football League.
The Seagulls have soared to great heights during a seven-game unbeaten run of six wins and a draw.
The second-placed side all but locked away a top four spot with four rounds to go after an impressive 18-point win over premiership contender Essendon at Downer Oval on Saturday.
Seagulls coach Andrew Collins is pleased with the continual improvement of his team.
“Our football is getting a little bit better every game,” he said. “It was an important win on a significant day for Williamstown.”
The Seagulls sent out a statement of their premiership intentions by taking down a fellow heavyweight.
They did so in milestone games for Leigh Masters, who was celebrating his 150th VFL appearance, and Nick Sing, playing his 100th club game for Williamstown.
It was an arm-wrestle throughout, but Williamstown willed itself over the line.
“Today was a really tough challenge against a quality team,” Collins said.
“It was a really important victory for us because if we lost that one, we would’ve gone back into the group a little bit.
“Instead, we’ve now got a chance of finishing in the top two.”
On a day when players were in and out of the game, Liam Hunt and Mitch Hibberd were the Williamstown midfielders who produced four-quarter performances.
Liam Hunt did a power of work at the coalface.
PHOTO GALLERY: Williamstown vs Essendon
The former Coburg player is evolving into one of the side’s premier in-and-under ball winners.
“He’s just growing for us as a big, clean inside midfielder,” Collins said.
“He controls the middle of the ground and then occasionally pushes forward or back.”
Hibberd continued on with his fine season. He finished with a game-high 29 disposals – the seventh game in a row in which he has registered more than 20 possessions – and eight tackles.
Nick Rodda, Jaylon Thorpe and Josh Pickess kicked three goals apiece for Williamstown.
Rodda and Thorpe were commanding the air inside attacking 50.
“They were really big marking players today and it gave us a real presence in the front half,” Collins said.
For Pickess, it was another game to celebrate in what Collins described as a “career-best season” for him.
Williamstown will have the bye this weekend before home games against Coburg, Geelong and Werribee in the run to the finals.
Footscray had the bye last weekend.
The fourth-placed Bulldogs will hit the road on Sunday for a clash with Frankston.
In VFL women’s, Western Bulldogs were the talk of the league after they belted NT Thunder by 78 points at the Whitten Oval on Saturday. Deanna Berry kicked three goals and Vaomua Laloifi claimed best-on-ground in the Bulldogs’ rout.
The Dogs have moved into third spot on the ladder.
Williamstown could muster only one goal in a 39-point loss to Essendon.
MORE VFL NEWS
www.starweekly.com.au/sports/werribee-midfielder-lifts-his-game/
