Purples pile on hurt for Blues

Tongala was quickly on the back foot in the contest and the Purples tripled the Blues’ score in the opening quarter, jumping to an 18-6 lead.

Tonny would recover somewhat in the second, winning the period narrowly to go into the half 10 goals behind.

However, the second half flowed all in Nathalia’s favour, the Purples powering into the Blues’ goal circle with regularity and defending their own effectively.

A lower finals side last year, Nathalia is one of the sides to beat this year, possessing a record of 8-1.

Having hit the halfway point of the year, Tongala will be looking to recapture its best form on the run home.

The side remains 1.5 games back from the last finals spot, but is trailing fifth by three games.

The Blues’ draw will improve in the second half of the year, with Tonny having faced one of the league’s current top five in six of its nine games.

This was the side’s second meeting with Nathalia, the first ending 45-29 in the Purples favour.

An opportunity for the Blues to prevent a three-game losing slide presents itself this week when Tonny travels to 1-8 Finley.