Gallery | Herbert fires for Shepparton in GVL cross-town rival belting

Rain drifted in and out through Shepparton on Saturday afternoon, making the surface at Deakin muddy and slippery.

However, this was of no concern to the Bears as they used the wet conditions to their advantage, applying intense pressure on their Swans opponents from the first whistle to the last.

Shepparton small forward Jhett Cooper got his side off to a quick start, booting two snapping goals, one from each pocket, in the opening term.

The Bears held the football in their attacking half for most of the first quarter.

While the Swans were able to break free and kick a goal occasionally, Shepparton’s clearance dominance in the centre meant the Bears quickly responded with goals of their own.

Shepparton co-coach Xavier Stevenson said he was pleased with the work of his midfielders, such as Adam De Cicco and Liam Duguid, and ruckman Ash Holland, who gave the Bears first use of the football early in the game.

“Deakin is a ground where you have to win the clearance game, especially the centre clearance,” Stevenson said.

“Because it gives you such a good position going forward.

“Early in the game, I think we were winning clearances 10-2.

“It stemmed from big Ash — who is having a fantastic year — and then our mids got to work.

“We know if we can give our forwards an opportunity for a one-on-one, that will give us the best opportunity to score.”

In a switch-up from his usual role as a stingy defender, Shepparton’s Connor Fleming was thrown forward with great effect.

The young gun Bear’s speed and pressure in the forward 50 was noticeable as Fleming finished the match with three goals.

Stevenson said one of Shepparton’s great strengths heading into finals was its ability to move players across different areas of the ground.

“We have had a look at different (positions for players) and we will continue to do so over the next week and into finals,” he said.

“(Fleming’s move forward) might be one we use in finals; it might not be, but we know if we need him forward, he can play a role for us there.”

Shepparton star forward Trent Herbert produced his best performance of the season goal-wise.

The strong-marking key forward booted seven goals for the Bears, including one after the final siren, which was followed by a version of NBA star Steph Curry’s ‘night, night’ celebration.

The Bears had a couple more reasons to cheer after the match, with Shepparton legend Stephen Ash’s son Ryan making his senior debut in the number three, while Tyler Larkin celebrated his 50th senior game of football.

Shepparton’s dominance and lead grew with each quarter before the Bears finished the match in top gear, outscoring the Swans 50-14.

The final score was 20.15 (135) to 6.9 (45).

For the Swans, it was a disappointing performance.

Star ruckman Mark Kovacevic had a fascinating duel against Holland, with two of the league’s best big men battling it out all day.

Young gun Swan James Auld was busy for his side, while defender Luke Davies worked tirelessly.

Shepparton Swans coach Jedd Wright said there were not many positives from Saturday’s result.

“We are really disappointed with the performance we put out there today,” Wright said.

“Shepp Bears are a great team and they played great footy, so credit to them, but we are pretty disappointed with the way we played.

“We watched a lot of film, we reviewed them really hard, we knew they liked to chip the ball around, take the short (options) and then break for space.

“We planned everything, but we just didn’t execute.”

This weekend, Shepparton will travel to Kyabram, while the Swans will host ladder leader Echuca in the final round of the home and away season.