By LIAM TWOMEY
HOPPERS Crossing secured its first win under coach Steve Kretiuk, upsetting Sunshine by 21 points on Saturday.
After taking a four-point lead into quarter time, the Warriors continued to press their advantage.
Hoppers Crossing won the second term by 10 points and the third term by 11 points to hold a 25-point advantage at three-quarter time.
The damage could have been even worse for Sunshine with the Warriors having 15 more scoring shots at the final change.
Despite a last quarter fightback from the Kangaroos, Hoppers remained in control, sealing the 12.17 (89) to 10.8 (68) win.
“As a coaching staff we see Sunshine as a top four side so going into the game we were just hoping for a four quarter effort and we would let the result worry about itself,” Kretiuk said.
“That is what we are going to do all year.
“They had a really good win the week before and we learnt a lot from our game against Werribee. We just wanted to keep improving and keep working on the things we have been all pre-season.
“To the boys’ credit they really stuck to the task. We played four quarters of good quality football and ended up getting the result which is good.”
Saturday’s victory sees Hoppers Crossing square its win/loss ledger at 1-1 after two games.
The Warriors are in fifth spot on the ladder while Sunshine remains in third.
“We took a baby step this week but I think we have a hell of a lot of improvement to go,” Kretiuk said.
“I spoke to the boys after the game … we just need to keep improving. Teams improve throughout the year and we are still a fair bit behind some of the other sides.
“All we want this year is to play our brand of footy and to play for four quarters. Regardless of who you play against, you are going to be competitive if you do that. That’s what we want.”
This week will see Hoppers Crossing take on St Albans in the now traditional Good Friday blockbuster.
The match will be played at Hogans Road Oval.
