Leader has the final word after long-sought win

NORTH Warrnambool Eagles captain Liam Ryan had the last say after his side's first win since April 26."When you are 1-14 you have to salvage something from the season," Ryan declared after the Eagles defeated South Warrnambool 15.13 (103) to 12.11 (83) on Saturday at Bushfield Oval."We set ourselves, even last week, to finish off as well as we could."North's only two wins for the season have been at South's expense, which could ultimately deprive the Roosters of their late-season objective - fifth place.In a tight, see-sawing contest, the Eagles kicked the last three goals of the third quarter to open a 14-point buffer.The Eagles then threatened to self-destruct with a series of minor scores.While the home side was spraying the northern-end goals at the start of the final quarter with seven successive behinds, South closed to within a point at the 13-minute mark when Michael Clements kicked his second goal of the term.It took veteran midfielder Justin Marris to steady North with his second goal of the game at the 16-minute mark after a kick-in error from South.Youngster Zac Ledin set up Ricky Smedts after a penetrating run through the corridor at the 19-minute mark but South won the next centre clearance and Sam Kelly converted to keep the visitors with seven points.The match-winning goal came at the 22-minute mark and it was worth the wait for loyal North supporters.Billy Smedts, back from Geelong Grammar for one of his rare appearances with the Eagles, won possession near the boundary in traffic at half-forward.Under pressure on several fronts, he drove the ball along the ground into space and it bounced, slid and rolled with a Daicos-like spell directing it through an unguarded goal square."The good players seem to kick them," coach Leigh McCluskey commented later.Smedts' unlikely goal lifted North to a 13-point advantage, then Devon Healey added the exclamation mark from a set shot at the 26-minute mark.Ryan credited the tortuous nature of the final term with shedding 13 successive defeats."When you haven't won for so long it's never going to be easy when you do," he said.He said it was special to share the result with Billy Smedts and Zac Ledin (Geelong Falcons) as it could be a long time before the Eagles saw them on the field again.Ledin played in the midfield, while Smedts spent the first half in defence before pushing forward.North's onballers Ryan, Xavier Mills and Josh Parkinson were crucial in the second half, while ruckman Nick Ryan was tireless against his opponents, Tom Crosby and Jordan Dillon.Ricky Smedts also made an impact in the second half when moved from centre half-forward onto the ball.With so much to play for, South was unable to generate enough effective run and carry from half-back to stay in the contest.