Match result: North Ballarat 8.10.58 defeated by Williamstown 9.17.71
Venue: Eureka Stadium, Ballarat
Conditions: Sunshine - 12 degrees

In action:
- Liam Anthony (31 disposals, 9 marks, 6 clearances, 7 inside 50's)
- Trent Dumont (19 disposals, 7 clearances, 5 tackles)
- Brad McKenzie (22 disposals, 11 marks)
- Aaron Mullett (34 disposals, 13 marks)
- Joel Tippett (8 disposals, left field with knock late in third quarter)
- Eric Wallace (6 disposals, 18 hit-outs)
- Max Warren (22 disposals, 8 marks)
- Mitch Wilkins (14 disposals, 5 marks, 5 tackles, 1 goal)

NMFC.com.au's best: Aaron Mullett

Matchups
- Eric Wallace v Nick Meese
- Joel Tippett v Sean Tighe
- Mitch Wilkins v Mitch Banner
- Aaron Mullett v Brett Bewley
- Liam Anthony v Jack Johnstone

What the coach said (Gerald FitzGerald)
Quarter time: “We're second to the ball, blokes getting past us too easy. We're preparing for a strong finish to the year and it has to start this quarter. It comes down to our mindset and urgency levels.”

Three quarter time: “Our issue that we've got to get right is that we're getting enough of the ball, we're just turning it over in bad positions.”

Story of the game:
For the second straight week, North Ballarat was jumped early, trailing by 17 points at quarter time. Again the Roosters responded, kicking four goals to one in the second term to lead by two points at the main break.

Williamstown had the advantage of the wind in the third quarter and made it count, kicking five unanswered goals. The Roosters trailed by 32 points at the final change.

North Ballarat battled valiantly and kicked the only three goals of the last quarter. It wasn't enough though, as it fell by 13 points.

Points of interest:
1. Aaron Mullett collected possessions at will playing across half-back, ending with 34, the most by any player on the ground.

Mullett worked on finding the balance between defending his opponent and attacking the play.

"His focus was to defend first and attack second. He's still got a little bit to work on at stoppages but there's no doubt that the Roosters were able to transition the ball chiefly a few times because of his desire to run and create.

"It's a learning opportunity for Fish to get those things right so that when he goes back to AFL level he's got all those things in his game right." Development Manager Ben Dyer

2. Joel Tippett limped off late in the third quarter with a right knee injury.

Luckily for the key defender, it was diagnosed as a slight irritation to the back of the knee and he was only taken off as a precaution.

3. Liam Anthony was confronted with a different challenge than usual – lining up as a tagger also intent on winning his own ball.

He handled it well after a slow start, collecting 31 disposals, 6 clearances and 7 inside 50's.

"Early on he probably didn't react quick enough on the turnover and transition to stop his opponent from getting his own ball.

"He fixed that up after quarter-time and his defensive side was a lot stronger. Considering the conditions and the wind, he also used the ball really well."

"In terms of setting us up through the half-back area of the ground, he was good in that regard."

4. Trent Dumont had a strong first half, collecting six clearances and dominating on the inside. However he was quieter after the break, and finished with 19 disposals and 7 clearances.

"He was effective clearance wise, to the point he was a long way ahead of the next best on the ground in the numbers (in the first half).

"They weren't all quick kicks out of congestion either. A couple of times he came out of traffic and he was able to sum up the situation well and retain possession."

5. Max Warren played another solid game down back, marshalling the Roosters' defence and holding firm against opposition attacks.

"They (Williamstown) went long on quite a few occasions so it meant our spare was able to influence, and that was Max on quite a few occasions.

"He was able to intercept mark and then run the ball out as well. He also offered a fair bit of rebound. It was a good game from Max."

Most likely call-up: Aaron Mullett
Next week: Saturday August 23 v Port Melbourne, North Port Oval