Mount Pleasant’s Jesse Touhey kicked a pair of goals in his side’s win over Heathcote in round one. Photos: File.
Elmore was the odd one out in the opening round of the 2025 Heathcote and District Football League as Mount Pleasant and LBU tallied significant victories to start their respective seasons.
Mount Pleasant v Heathcote
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The Mighty Mounts would’ve felt their name was justified when it notched the highest score by far in round one, putting Heathcote to the sword in dominant fashion.
For a side which made the semi-final in 2024, Heathcote put up little defence against Mount Pleasant, who missed the finals entirely last season.
The mighty Mounts came out all guns blazing, drilling eight goals in the first term to launch to 50 points inside the first quarter.
Meanwhile, the Saints managed three of their own but still trailed by 32 at the first break.
Mount Pleasant added a further five goals to its growing tally in the second term, while Heathcote kept along at a similar pace as the first quarter, kicking another 2.5, the disparity now 49 at the major break.
If it hadn’t already, the game slid away from the Saints in the third term, with the side failing to kick a goal in the quarter while Mount Pleasant added another seven, with the lead ballooning out to 92 at three-quarter time.
Three goals to the Saints in the final quarter was not enough to dent Mount Pleasant, who continued to wreak havoc, adding six more goals to defeat the Saints by 117 points.
The final score was Mount Pleasant 26.13 (169) to Heathcote 8.7 (55).
Brodie Leonard-Shannon had a day out in front of goal, kicking six for the match, with Mitchell Bennet chipping in with four.
Leonard-Shannon was joined by Jack Hickman, Chris Down, Tyler Mcnamara, Reardon McIvor, William Wallace in the best on.
The Mounts will attempt to use the strong momentum of round one to challenge LBU, who also secured a win in round one.
Thomas Leech found himself on LBU’s best list after its win against Huntly.
LBU v Huntly
Could 2025 be the year LBU returns to its former glory? Well, it certainly has gotten off to a good start, claiming a tight but thrilling win over Huntly at home in round one.
The Cats got off to a rocking start, kicking a trio of maximums to open their season account while holding Huntly to 2.3, taking a seven-point quarter-time lead.
The Hawks had opportunities to grab the game by the neck as LBU began to falter in the second term, adding just nine points to its first quarter total.
While Huntly outscored the Cats in the lead-up to half-time, it only managed 2.4, bringing the game to level pegging at 31-apiece at the major break.
LBU found its first quarter form and then some in the second half, returning to form in front of goal, snagging 4.2 in both the third and fourth quarters.
The Hawks also improved on their first half of play, adding 3.4 in their last two quarters, which ultimately wasn’t enough to stop a Cats side with its claws out.
With just over a goal separating the two sides, the match was a good barometer for understanding each team’s standing in the HDFL.
The final score was LBU 12.11 (83) to Huntly 10.15 (75).
Both Thomas Leech and Jack Reiter kicked a pair of goals each to lead the Cats, with Leech finding himself named among the side’s best along with Tyler Phillips, Jack O’Callaghan, Luke Saligari, Matt Hore and Lachlan Holthuisen.
LBU got it done by committee, with 10 individual goal-kickers contributing. Meanwhile, Huntly’s Sam Dunstan and Abe Sladden did the heavy lifting for the visitors.
With the side’s first test passed, it will look to maintain rhythm against another one of its contemporaries in the league, Mount Pleasant, who is also coming off a big win in round two.
Elmore captain Rhys Holmberg led his side to the brink of a stunning round one win over North Bendigo.
Elmore v North Bendigo
The Bloods were unlucky not to come away from round one with a win, with the 2024 wooden spooners making life difficult for last season’s preliminary finalist North Bendigo.
It was level pegging through the opening quarter, with Elmore the more accurate side, kicking 4.2 while the Bulldogs managed 3.7, the latter holding a one-point lead at quarter-time.
North Bendigo got on top of the Bloods in the second stretch, kicking 4.5 to Elmore’s 3.1, to make the disparity eight at the half.
A third term slump by both teams made things interesting, but the Bloods weren’t able to capitalise and retake the lead, managing just 1.3.
Trailing by 15 points heading into the fourth quarter, Elmore found some rhythm, putting together a strong finish to its match by kicking four goals.
However, it wasn’t quite enough to catch North Bendigo. Despite the Bulldogs still struggling in front of goal, they managed to outlast Elmore’s surge to notch an eight-point win.
Elmore’s main man James Harney kicked a bag for the match, with the Bloods having seven different goal-kickers.
While Elmore is bound to be disappointed to not get its season under way early, a solid tango with the Bulldogs will give it confidence and hope of avoiding the wooden spoon in 2025.
