IT was another week of blowouts in Round 4 of the Victorian Football League (VFL), as the only somewhat close contests to be seen took place in Williamstown and Cranbourne.

Box Hill 16.12 (108) defeated Coburg 8.9 (57)

The Hawks returned to the winners list with a big victory over the Lions at home. Box Hill were ahead all day except for a brief period late in the second term and early in the third, where Coburg drew on the confidence gained from last week’s win against Frankston. From then on, however, the Hawks stormed home to win by 51 points. Marc Pittonet was the standout, with a goal, 29 disposals and 42 hitouts, while Dylan Moore kicked three goals. Harry Morrison also managed three goals along with his 32 disposals. Coburg’s Sam Lowson continued his push for mid-season draft selection with four goals.

Essendon 15.12 (102) defeated Collingwood 9.11 (65)

Essendon’s fast start at Windy Hill ensured they made amends for the AFL side’s Anzac Day defeat, with a 37-point win over the Magpies. Collingwood won the second half but couldn’t make up the half time deficit. Sam Draper recorded a mammoth 47 disposals for the home side while Jordan Houlahan kicked three goals. It was another typical Alex Woodward performance as he notched up 31 touches as teammates Rupert Wills and Daniel Wells continued to build, with 28 and 20 disposals respectively. Ben Reid’s case for AFL selection continues to mount, with two goals from 18 kicks and 12 marks.

North Melbourne 9.15 (65) defeated by Port Melbourne 19.10 (124)

The hapless Kangaroos were smashed by a rampaging Port Melbourne outfit, who appear to be one of the real favourites to finish top four. North managed to keep a leash on the Borough up until three quarter time, only trailing by 21 points at the final break. Port finished with a bang however, slamming home six goals to one in the fourth to win by 55 points. Roos supporters will be encouraged by the performances of Jy Simpkin (one goal, 33 disposals) and Tom Campbell (25 hitouts), while Paul Ahern also impressed with 32 disposals. Jordan Lisle kicked five goals for the Borough.

Casey 8.3 (51) defeated by Richmond 7.10 (52)

Richmond took all four points in a match where the margin for either side never extended beyond three goals. It was a tale of two halves as the Demons had the ascendency in the first and nearly managed to win it back from the Tigers in the second, just falling short courtesy of a rushed behind. Shai Bolton stood out for Richmond with 25 disposals and a goal, while Patrick Naish also recorded 25 touches. Declan Keilty, Liam Wale-Buxton and captain Mitch White all kicked two goals for the Demons.

Northern Blues 7.9 (51) defeated by Werribee 17.7 (109)

Werribee dominated all day in their clash with the Blues at IKON Park and locked themselves in as a genuine top four contender. The final margin of 58 points could’ve looked a lot worse if not for an improvement from the Blues in the second half; they only kicked two goals to the main break. Tom Gribble was best on ground with 29 disposals and a goal for the Tigers while Timm House kicked 4 goals. Jesse Palmer was the Blues only multiple goalkicker with two.

Williamstown 9.10 (64) defeated Footscray 6.12 (48)

The Seagulls ran away with victory in the battle of the west at Point Gellibrand. Footscray started the better of the two sides to lead at the first break, but Williamstown clawed back the lead in the second term and never relinquished it, despite it falling to just one point early in the last quarter. Nick Ebinger kicked three goals in his first game of the season for the home side while Liam Hunt had 27 disposals on his return from injury. Bailey Dale was best for the Dogs with a goal and 20 touches.

Bye – Frankston, Sandringham, Geelong

Photo: VFL.com.au