Pioneers coach Danny O’Bree lamented “silly decision-making” in the opening stanza, but credited his side for its response to a three-quarter time reshuffle.
“We just kept playing pretty basic football where we didn’t really challenge them,” O’Bree said.
“It kept playing into their hands with some silly decision-making.
“It wasn’t until three-quarter time that we were really specific about how we wanted to move the footy.
“When we did change it, they played really well and got themselves back into the game, and also into a winnable position.
“We had significant chances to win the game, but leaving it to the last five minutes wasn’t ideal — you want to play your decent footy early on.”
The Pios were sluggish to get off the mark in their round six clash, going scoreless in the first quarter before finding back-to-back goals through Rochester’s Tegan Williams in the second to trail by 15 points at half-time.
After making a name as a defender, Williams, a member of the Pios leadership group, made the switch forward for Bendigo in 2022, with seven goals to her name as a leading option out of the forward 50.
Williams was among the best against Calder finishing with three goals, and O’Bree said the pieces were starting to come together for the “skilled” young tall.
“This is her first time up forward,” he said.
“With her skill set, she’s been working pretty hard to not only learn the position but also to showcase her strengths as well.
“She was able to do that on the weekend — it was pretty pleasing for her. ”
Bendigo currently sits ninth in the NAB League.
The Pios face Murray Bushrangers at Epsom-Huntly Reserve this Saturday, March 5
