A wasteful Montmorency outfit has succumbed to its fifth straight loss after being defeated by the bottom-of-the-table Whittlesea by 10 points on Saturday afternoon.
Ben Haynes’ men managed to claw their way in front midway through the third term after overcoming a six-goal opening quarter from the Eagles, but were unable to hang on to their lead as the visitors ran home in the last.
Missed opportunities ultimately cost the Magpies, whose 10.17 (77) scoreline wasn’t enough to edge out Whittlesea’s 13.8 (86), which was spearheaded by Janan Daniel (three goals).
Prize recruit Ben Kennedy pieced together a commendable performance with his grit and ferocity throughout the midfield, yet was one of just a few Magpies to make any significant impact.
Montmorency now sit two games outside the top-five, while Whittlesea’s win snapped their 11-game losing streak and sees them on equal ground with Hurstbridge.
It was the Eagles who soared in the first quarter, blazing away with six goals against Montmorency’s two.
Although the Magpies came into the game set on being the aggressors, and showed their physicality throughout, restraint was needed; the ultimate lack of costing the home side a few easy goals late in the term.
Despite the home side being up by five in the stoppages and two in the inside 50s for the quarter, Whittlesea looked far more settled with ball in hand, and subsequently capitalised on the scoreboard.
Xavier Dimasi jagged the first of the game just a few minutes in, before the Magpies pieced together a solid coast-to-coast passage of play to give Patrick Fitzgerald his first.
But from then on, goals were hard to come by, with the Eagles booting the next three goals through Daniel and Jack Tyson in the space of eight minutes; all three majors a result of too much space in the defensive end.
A man-on-man approach was stressed throughout the match, yet the visitors were able to break free and take uncontested marks all over the ground.
Kennedy finally snapped Whittlesea's streak with a goal after breaking free of Jack Dyson's tag, but the moment was immediately soured after a free kick was given away for a subsequent scuffle in the centre square, resulting in a major to Dimasi.
Ill-disciplined acts from the Magpies straight after saw another simple Whittlesea goal through Riley Dyson thanks to a 50m penalty.
With the margin at 22 points at quarter-time, the Magpies were set on honing their focus and hitting the scoreboard going into the second.
Montmorency prevailed in the following term despite not quite hitting their peak, outscoring the Eagles four-goals-to-one in the latter stages of the quarter.
Daniel once again showed his potency up forward, with the star Eagle finding enough space to swing onto his right boot from long range and slot the first of the term.
While the Magpies gained the ascendancy soon afterwards and found themselves with plenty of ball, unclean entries inside 50 limited the damage they could have inflicted.
Brent Fotheringhame finally squeezed through Monty’s first major at the 14-minute mark of the term, before Fitzgerald went back-to-back to make it three goals in as many minutes for the Magpies.
Whittlesea nevertheless looked dangerous and far cleaner with their ball movement.
But some run from Matt Hunt, a large leap and almost-grab from Ben Kennedy and a freakish goal from Kyan Westmore not only added some special moments to Monty's highlight reel, but brought the Magpies within a point.
One final behind extended Whittlesea’s lead to two points at the main change, with the feeling that Montmorency had built up their momentum and were ready to charge into the second half.
But once again it was the Eagles who jumped out of the blocks in the third, and despite the Magpies snatching back the lead at one point, the visitors looked to be the better team out on the park.
It was a nervy start for the Magpies, with a free kick paid against them for stepping out of the goal square during a kick-out and a series of behinds letting them off the hook for their jittery opening.
An unbelievable goal from Christopher Horman gave the Eagles a reprieve, but not before Watson jagged his second in equally impressive fashion to bring the margin back to less than a straight kick.
Kennedy continued to be explosive throughout the midfield despite Jack Dyson's presence, and was aided by Sam Binion, who too showed his class through the centre.
Their efforts eventually brought Ben Walton into the fold, with his major finally putting the Magpies in front for the first time, before Hunt put through out one his own to extend the lead.
But as quick as the lead had come, it was taken away just as fast, with back-to-back Whittlesea majors from Thomas Falls and Paul Higgins leveling the scores.
The Eagles opened the Magpies right up through the middle in the quarter’s final moments, with Horman converting in the dying seconds to take a six-point lead at three-quarter time.
Monty looked to be firmly in the hunt at the final change, despite several facets of their game which needed to be addressed - most notably the amount of space they allowed the Eagles to have, which resulted in uncontested play through the centre of the ground.
But the Magpies never found their way in front in the final term, registering just the one major score for the term as the Eagles’ two saw them over the line.
Their resolute defence and composure when transitioning out held the visitors in good stead, and as they scrapped their way forward, Jaron Murphy going back-to-back to establish a healthy 18-point lead.
Montmorency were presented with their chances up forward, yet their shots were amiss, resulting in a 1.5 final quarter.
Although the Magpies attempted to even up the numbers around the contest throughout the quarter, the Eagles ran down the clock, yet were unable to trouble the scoreboard any further.
With hope seemingly lost, the home side were handed a reprieve when Whittlesea stepped over the goal line for a kick-out, with Fotheringhame the final benefactor and putting the Magpies just nine points down with eight minutes to play.
But as the clock ticked down, the Magpies were unable to secure a major score to give themselves a chance at taking home the win, as the Eagles held on and secured their second win of the season.
Montmorency will be desperate to attain four points when they head to Bill Lawry Oval to take on Northcote Park, who too will be set on atoning their 55-point flogging at the hands of Greensborough.
MONTMORENCY 2.3 6.8 9.12 10.17 (77)
WHITTLESEA 6.1 7.4 11.6 13.8 (86)
GOALS
Montmorency: P. Fitzgerald 3, B. Fotheringhame 2, K. Watson 2, B. Kennedy , M. Hunt, B. Walton
Whittlesea: J. Daniel 3, C. Horman 2, X. Dimasi 2, J. Murphy 2, P. Higgins, R. Dyson, J. Dyson, T. Falls
BEST
Montmorency: B. Kennedy, K. Watson, P. Fitzgerald, S. Binion, J. Potter
Whittlesea: J. Dyson, C. Bland, N. Stefanile, J. Daniel, M. Atta, L. Deards
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