Richards played at centre half-forward and was a strong marking target for the team. His fantastic aerial work and second and third efforts made him dangerous up forward. Aaron Henneman also returned to the Bendigo team this week after one game in the seniors. His performance at centre half back should also put him in contention for a senior berth next week against Carlton.
Rookie Toby McGrath played one of his best matches for the season. After his opponent got on top early, he fought back and shut down Sandringham’s Oakley. VFL team manager Blair Hartley said the defence worked well together and not only did Toby McGrath have a strong game in the back pocket, Sam Hunt also played a fantastic game at full-back. “Hunt gave the team drive out of defence. On a number of occasions he ran off his opponent and moved the ball forward for the team,” Hartley said.
Bendigo faces the Northern Bullants Sunday at Cramer Street. “It is a must win match for us against the Bullants if we want to keep our finals hopes alive. The team is in good form at the moment, but it will still be a tough match. The Bullants beat us convincingly earlier in the season by 75-points,” Hartley said.
Bendigo Bombers: 4.3 8.5 10.8 15.11 (101)
Sandringham: 5.4 6.6 7.10 9.12 (66)
Goals: Bendigo - Richards 5, Haynes 3, Walsh, Lovett-Murray, Cail, Davies, Hall, Johns, Laycock. Sandrinham – Oakley 4, Carson, Radford, Gallagher, Smith, Haynes.
Best: Bendigo – Richards, Haynes, Hunt, T.McGrath, Henneman, Carter. Sandringham – Rivers, Grant, Hunter, Smith, Oakley, Howarth.
Bendigo statistics:
Haynes - 37
Carter - 36
Cory McGrath - 27
Forster-Knight - 25
Cail - 22
Murray - 21
Howard - 21
Harvey - 18
Hall - 15
Toby McGrath - 14
Henneman - 13
Richards - 13
Davies - 13
Laycock - 12
Walsh - 10
Hunt - 7
O'Keefe - 6
Rosa - 3
Brown - 3
Cartledge - 3
