Echuca and Rochester enter this weekend’s Goulburn Valley League football clash in red-hot form.
Echuca and Rochester will resume their rivalry this weekend across all football and netball grades in the Goulburn Valley League.
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The Murray Bombers won both the senior football and A-grade netball the last time the two sides met in round three.
The football win was particularly important for Echuca, which at the time exorcised demons from being knocked out by the Tigers in the 2025 finals series.
That loss for Rochester meant it started 2026 with an 0-3 record, and after nine rounds the Tigers were 3-6 with a finals spot in jeopardy.
But Ash Watson’s side has turned a corner of late, currently on a four-game winning streak and sitting fifth on the ladder.
Also in a rich vein of form is Echuca, which has won six straight matches and is enjoying a strong season, setting up a mouthwatering encounter.
Simon Maddox’s team is second, having only lost once, with the Murray Bombers currently in a tight race with Shepparton for the minor premiership.
With the Bears facing another in-form side this weekend in Mooroopna, there could be an opportunity for Echuca to move a game clear at the top, should it win and Xavier Stevenson’s side slip up.
But Rochester’s resurgence makes victory for Echuca no certainty, and the Tigers have been a thorn in the Murray Bombers recently, having won three of the last four meetings between the two sides.
While the senior football clash should be tightly contested, Echuca is heavily favoured in A-grade netball against a lowly Tigers outfit.
The Murray Bombers currently sit second on the ladder and have won eight matches in a row, while Rochester has won only three times in 2026, sitting 10th and being unlikely to qualify for the finals.
Echuca defeated Rochester 64-39 when the two sides met in round three.
Echuca coach Bronwyn Slater is wary of complacency setting in, given the contrasting seasons the two sides have endured.
Slater will have Belinda Lees back at her disposal for this weekend’s clash after the experienced goaler missed Echuca’s past two matches.
Similarly to the footballers, Echuca’s netballers are currently in a tense fight for first.
Along with the action on the court and field, Echuca is also holding a Past Players Day and Ladies Day this weekend, with the latter starting at 1pm.
Members from the Murray Bombers’ 2001 GVL football premiership side will also be in attendance as part of a reunion, that team having beat Rochester in the grand final that year.
Echuca’s senior clashes against Rochester will take place on Saturday, July 18 at Moama Recreation Reserve, with the A-grade netball at 12.45pm, and the football fixture starting later at 2pm.
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