COLLINGULLIE-Glenfield Park returned to business as usual with a 42-point win over Coolamon on Saturday.
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The Demons returned to somewhere near their best with a strong performance, downing the Hoppers 14.12 (96) to 7.12 (54) at Crossroads Oval.
Collingullie-GP shook things up in the wake of last week’s first loss and it was enough to bring them back to life.
The Hoppers started best, but the Demons took control with a seven-goal second term.
Coolamon tried to rally and could have got themselves back in the contest only to squander several chances in the third term.
Collingullie-GP then came out and kicked the first three goals of the final quarter to put the contest to bed.
Collingullie-GP captain-coach Luke Gestier loved the way his team bounced back after last week’s loss to Leeton-Whitton.
“We put it on the boys and it could have gone either way but I was really happy with the way we responded,” Gestier said.
“It was a sizeable challenge for us, it wasn’t like we just butter up and get a soft win. It was a hard-fought win.
“We played some good footy and got it on our terms.”
The Demons swung Brad Aiken to a half-back flank, while Jimmy Morris spent more time forward, among a number of changes.
Aiken put in a vintage display across half-back, while Marc Geppert proved equally as damaging with a seven-goal haul.
With the Demons again taking a different approach to their attack, Gestier was pleased with how the forward line functioned.
“Brad was sensational across half-back, and to be honest, I think it just opened it up so much more,” he said.
“With moving him there, and jigging things around a bit, it seemed to open up a lot more.”
Apart from Aiken and Geppert, Lachie Moore continued his good form with another strong game. Steve Jolliffe and Jayden Klemke were also prolific through the midfield and going forward.
The only concern for the Demons was a shoulder injury to Kal Sykes.
For Coolamon, key defender Marshal Macauley never gave Gestier an inch in their battle. Joe Redfern at the other end of the ground was very good at centre-half-forward.
The loss does no favours for Coolamon’s faint finals chances, but they will learn their fate next week when they host Wagga Tigers on Sunday.
The Demons now leave Crossroads Oval for life on the road with four away games to finish the home and away season.