Congupna's Bryden Squire fires off a handball.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Congupna’s triple-figure defeat of Rumbalara has kept The Road spotless for another week.
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The 2025 Murray Football League grand finalist made no mistake as Bryden Squire ran rampant in the 123-point win at Mercury Drive and Congupna has added another string to its bow with pre-season recruit Ben Fulford making an instant impact.
The small forward booted six goals in his first senior game for the club, a handy inclusion with mercurial spearhead Kyle Mueller not expected to return from a back injury until later in the season.
Tom McCluskey pitched in with five majors as Congupna showcased its even spread of scorers with Sam Buxton, Robbie Mifka, and skipper Dan Schaper slotting three.
Kian Wise booted three for Rumbalara and Kydan Atkinson and Brogan McPhee flew the flag admirably in the 6.6 (42) to 25.15 (165) loss, but it was to no avail as The Road found itself in a similar position to this time last season.
“If you said at the start of the year we'd be sitting 5-0, I would have definitely taken that,” Congupna coach Ben Bingham said.
“We’ve had a strong run and I think we're improving each week.
“We're throwing in different combinations. We have had two or two changes week by week, which I think is great because we’re giving guys different roles than we were probably looking at for the start of the year.”
Beyond the boundary line, the round six fixture took on greater significance as the 18th edition of the Unity Cup was observed, with both clubs coming together to recognise and pay tribute to women in both communities.
“It’s a really important day that we like putting on our calendar,” Bingham said.
“It’s a good chance to recognise those women that are helping out not only in our lives, but in our football and netball clubs as well.
“It’s a really big day to be a part of and the boys don't take it lightly, that's for sure.”
With another four points in the bank, Congupna will look ahead to what shapes as its biggest challenge of the season.
The Road hosts Numurkah in a top-of-the-table clash, with the Blues keeping their grip on second spot following a thrilling win against a plucky Echuca United.
A see-sawing clash at Numurkah Showgrounds ended in a barnstorming final quarter that saw the Eagles come from two goals down to threaten an upset of the highly-fancied Blues.
With minutes to play, Numurkah fired off two match-saving goals deep into red time to claim a 9.7 (61) to 8.8 (56) win, deftly aided by best-on-ground showings from Jordan and Josh O’Dwyer as well as two goals apiece to Toby Griffiths, Jarrod Holmes and Tristan Hopkins.
Eagles’ talisman Matt Lias led superbly for his club, while Jack Reiter converted three vital majors in the low-scoring encounter.
At Moama, Cobram consigned a languishing Magpies to a 146-point defeat.
Perry Lewis-Smith spearheaded the reigning premier’s demolition of the 1-4 Pies, while Ben Ryan rocketed to the top of the league goal-kicking with seven majors, taking him to 31 for the season.
Jack Murray, Jackson Trengove and Bodey Webb also cashed in with four goals each.
Second to Ryan in the goal-kicking is Nathalia’s Liam Evans with 30, lacing out four in the Purples’ 30-point win against Mulwala.
Meanwhile, Tongala showed its top six credentials with a thorough dismantling of potential finals rival Deniliquin, blitzing away in the second quarter to an eventual 84-point trouncing of the Rams.
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