Sandringham has secured their third straight win defeating Essendon by 28-points at Trevor Barker Beach Oval on Sunday afternoon.
It was a clinical display from the Zebras, who led at every change and the defensive pressure forcing Essendon into errors and wayward kicking in front of goal.
The home side started well, kicking the first two goals of the game, the second one to Jack Lonie one of the easiest run in goals following a kick over the top.
Lonie bagged his second at the 19-minute mark, giving the Bombers concerns but the visitors hit back right on quarter time to only trial by two points.
The Matthew Egan coached Bombers came out of the blocks to kick the first goal of the second term, but their two-point lead was to be short lived and their only goal of the quarter.
The Zebras went on a rampage to swing the momentum in their favour, kicking four consecutive goals to hold a 20-point half-time lead over the visitors.
Sandringham continued the momentum after the main break, adding another three majors to make it seven straight since the 15-minute mark of the second quarter and open a 32-point advantage 17 minutes into the third term.
The Bombers made another challenge, arresting the deficit to kick three goals in a row to only trail by 14-points at the last change.
A wasteful Essendon kicked seven behinds in the final quarter, with the Zebras taking advantage of that with three majors of their own to run out victorious in an important win before entering the second half of the VFL season.
The St Kilda contingent led the way for the Zebras, supporting former Saint and Sandringham skipper Trent Dennis-Lane (8 disposals, 2 goals) to victory.
Goal sneak Jack Lonie produced a five-goal haul to be named among the best, while the likes of Eli Templeton (28 disposals), Josh Saunders (25 disposals) and Jack Billings (28 disposals) all amassed 20-plus disposals through the midfield.
Nick Coughlan played taller than is height suggests as a key defender, stepping up in the absence of AFL selectees Tom Lee and Luke Delaney, in arguably the best game he’s produced for Sandringham.
Jack Sinclair was another clear standout for the Zebras, showing his class with 23 disposals, 11 tackles and two goals to his name to again push his case for another AFL recall in Alan Richardson’s team.
With their third and final bye to come this weekend at the halfway mark of the VFL season, the Zebras are well placed at 6-2 and third on the VFL ladder.
SCOREBOARD
SANDRINGHAM 4.3 8.6 12.10 15.13 (103)
ESSENDON 3.5 4.10 9.14 9.21 (75)
GOALS: Lonie 5, Dennis-Lane 2, Sinclair 2, Kreymborg, Shenton, Curren, Rich, O’Kearney, Rice.
BEST: Lonie, Sinclair, Templeton, Billings, Holmes, O’Kearney.
