MCUE kept Narrandera to just one behind in the second half as they ran away with the game in a scrappy affair, 10.12 (72) to 4.3 (27) at Mangoplah Sportsground.

There was only one goal separating the two teams at half-time until the Goannas lifted and got their running game going a little more effectively.

Narrandera successfully got numbers back and bottled the play up but it could only do so much as the Goannas’ superior fitness and skill level ultimately came out on top.

The Eagles went into the game without a couple of prime movers and the lack of depth showed, particularly in the big man department.

Narrandera’s backline held up well, their midfield made a contest but the Eagles just had little tall targets to kick to in attack.

MCUE coach Chris Daniher was not impressed by his team and chose to give credit to the opposition afterwards, instead of his own team.

“Narrandera were great, they had a game plan and they chipped it around and we did a lot of chasing,” Daniher said.

“We never got our game going so credit to Narrandera there.”

Narrandera kicked the first two goals of the game and gave some cheek in a low-scoring first half.

Mitch Gorman did a power of work in the ruck, while Alex Lawder got a lot of the footy around the ground.

In the end, just one goal after quarter-time was never going to be enough.

For MCUE, Matt Collins continues to grow as a forward and was a real handful for Narrandera, particularly in the first half.

The Goannas’ best was Jack Killalea, who dominated in defence and then moved into the middle of the ground where he continued to excel.

After having a year off last season due to work, Killalea is a welcome return at the Goannas.

“Jack was terrific,” Daniher said.

“Jack’s been playing down back and we pushed him into the middle and he gave us a lift which was terrific, I was really happy with Jack.

“He’s a good clubman and really important for the club.”

Others to shine were Sam Schiller and Col Sanbrook, who dominated in defence in the second half.

The win puts MCUE to the top of the Riverina League ladder after six rounds.

It has been a top coaching performance from Daniher to date, after the club lost several players and welcome few in over the off-season.

Full-time

MANGOPLAH-CUE (72)

2.5 4.8 7.9 10.12

NARRANDERA (27)

3.0 4.2 4.3 4.3 

Goals: (MCUE) M Collins 2, A Dickins 2, A Pettigrove 2, T Keogh, S Creasy, T Cohalan, P Killalea; (Narrandera) N Hetherington 2, T Sullivan, B Grant.

Best: (MCUE) J Killalea, A Pettigrove, M Collins, J Whitley, S Schiller, C Sanbrook; (Narrandera) M Gorman, S Light, D Burden, S Irons, A Lawder, L Paterson.