From Whitehorse Leader
Reported by Conor Ryan
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IT was a case of back to reality for Box Hill, as an inexperienced line-up went down to Bendigo by 73 points at Windy Hill on Sunday.
The Hawks bombed-out after half-time, as a six-point deficit turned into 34 points at three-quarter-time, before the Bombers enjoyed a seven-goal-to-one final-term romp to a 21.15 (141) to 10.8 (68) win.
Inconsistency has plagued the Hawks all season, but they were up against it before the ball was bounced on Sunday as injuries at AFL affiliate Hawthorn took their toll.
Schoenmakers, Cheney and Lisle were all late withdrawals while Box Hill regulars Adam Pattison and Dave Mirra were also missing as the Hawks had five first-gamers take the field against a Bombers team rife with AFL experience.
Box Hill coach Damian Carroll wasn't looking to make excuses.
"I'm more disappointed that we lost by 73 when I don't think we deserved to lose by that much. Our effort was very good through the first half. The end wasn't a good result. We were down in a lot of areas. They had a lot more experience, but that shouldn't be a reason to lose by so much," he said.
"We were pretty ordinary in that last quarter. The last quarter was a bit of a training run for them. We couldn't put any pressure on the ball-carrier.
"I think when Bendigo lifted its intensity we failed to step up and went back into conservative footy, rather than taking the game on like we wanted to."
Defender Jarrad Boumann was good for the Hawks, while Tim Northe provided a target up forward and finished with three goals. Ben Fagan also kicked three.
It's not all doom and gloom for the Hawks, as their top-of-the-ladder development team continues to post good results despite the steady stream of players needed in the seniors.
The Hawks remain in ninth position on the VFL ladder and will enjoy the week off before hosting 10th-placed Collingwood the following Saturday.
Carroll said the Hawks would use the bye week to get the squad into peak fitness.
"There are a few who came in late in pre-season who probably need a bit of extra work. There are others, like Sam Gibson, who have played every game and been shouldering the workload. They'll need to freshen up a bit," he said.
