by Nicholas Duck

Warragul and Drouin both face tough challenges in round five of the Gippsland League while there a few games that will shape the top end of the table early in the season. Here's how this week's matches are shaping up:
Saturday 7 May 2022
Warragul vs Traralgon
Time: 2:20pm
Location: Western Park
The search for an elusive first win continues for Warragul this week, and it may be a challenge against the strength of Traralgon.
The Gulls would be disappointed with their performance last round, where they were bullied around the ball by Morwell for most of the day.
Star recruits Nick Graham and Jed Lamb have been excellent performers, but the problems for Warragul appear mostly in the forward line, where Lamb has often appeared as the only threat to opposition backlines.
Put simply, the other Warragul forwards haven't been able to contribute as much as they would have liked in recent weeks, as the Gulls have kicked just three and four goals in their last two rounds respectively.
The loss of star performer Cooper Alger has also been keenly felt, and has left the Gulls looking one-dimensional.
Things won't be easy this week either against Traralgon, who will be fuming after letting their match against Moe slip last week.
The Maroons managed to stage an impressive comeback after trailing by as many as five goals against the Lions, but just couldn't get the job done in the end.
It means that Traralgon's two losses this season have been extremely narrow ones to the two undefeated ladder leaders, and also means that Warragul will have to play their absolute best football if they want to stand any chance in this one.
Sale vs Drouin
Time: 2:20pm
Location: Sale Oval
Drouin came crashing back down to Earth last week and now face a big away trip to face a Sale side that seems to have their season back on track.
The young Hawks showed plenty of signs of growth against Wonthaggi, where they burst out of the blocks early and also began to stage a second-half comeback before they ran out of energy and were duly overwhelmed by their more experienced opponents.
It was still a significant improvement for a team that showed very little in their first two matches, but also showed just how much of a work-in-progress their youthful 2022 side really is when compared to the Drouin teams of the last few years.
They will certainly be hopeful of causing an upset against Sale, who have appeared vulnerable at times this year.
The Magpies started slow this season, losing their first two matches and looking disappointing for a team expected to play finals.
They've picked things up, however, after a rollercoaster win against bitter rival Maffra last week brought their ledger back to two and two.
Sale will be quite confident going into this one, especially with the home ground advantage, although the Hawks have shown that if you underestimate them they can certainly surprise you.
Sale should still win, but don't be surprised if Drouin gives them a run for their money.
Wonthaggi vs Maffra
Time: 2:20pm
Location: Wonthaggi Recreation Reserve
An intriguing match-up awaits in this game, as both Wonthaggi and Maffra try to establish themselves as top sides this season.
Wonthaggi have started the season a little slower than they might have liked, but still find themselves third on the ladder with two wins, a draw and one loss next to their name.
The Power flexed their muscles last week against Drouin, and will be hoping that game is the beginning of some sort of momentum as they look to continue pushing themselves up the ladder.
Maffra, meanwhile, have lost their way a little this season, having lost their past two after starting the season with two straight wins.
After years of league domination it's starting to appear that last year's drop down the ladder may not have been the aberration the Eagles were hoping for, though an away win against Wonthaggi will certainly put some respect back into their name.
Pleasingly for Maffra, the Eagles will welcome back star forward Daniel Beddgood this week and will get to team him up with fellow key forward John Butcher for the first time this year.
Wonthaggi will go into this game expecting to win, but even in their current form Maffra's best footy will put up a serious challenge.
Bairnsdale vs Moe
Time: 2:20pm
Location: Bairnsdale City Oval
Fresh off a thrilling one-point win over Traralgon, Moe remain one of two undefeated sides in the Gippsland League, and will be liking their chances of going five and zero against Bairnsdale.
The Lions started well against the Maroons last week before withstanding a spirited comeback to retain their perfect record, as captain-coach Declan Keilty put in an almighty performance down back to will his team over the line.
Bairnsdale, meanwhile, will be very keen to forget their own game last week as they took a depleted side to Leongatha and were completely obliterated to the tune of 185 points.
The Redlegs will have to make it an absolute priority to stop Lions livewire Harry Pepper, who leads the league's goalkicking with 19 goals in just four games.
When Traralgon managed to lock Pepper down that's when they limited the Lions' scoring prowess, so this will be of utmost importance to the winless Redlegs if they want to cause an upset here.
It should be noted that before last week Bairnsdale had been relatively competitive in their other matches this year, so they will certainly be keen to show their dispirited performance against the Parrots was nothing more than an aberration.
Moe will go into this game as red-hot favourites but Bairnsdale's desire to bounce back may make them dangerous.
Morwell vs Leongatha
Time: 2:20pm
Location: Morwell Recreation Reserve
Morwell looked to be a solid young side in their win last round against Warragul but things will be ramped up this week as they meet the undefeated and seemingly unstoppable Leongatha.
The Tigers' pressure was immaculate against the Gulls, locking the ball in their forward half for most of the game and overwhelming their opponents through the sheer number of shots they managed to generate.
It will be a whole different ball game against Leongatha though.
As they have so often been in the past few years, the Parrots once again appear to be the league's benchmark side, and their complete dismantling of Bairnsdale last week showed that they are certainly not wanting for hunger.
Morwell have been a relatively competitive side for much of their season, but unless they can contain the power of the Parrots' midfield and their ample firepower up forward, they will very quickly find themselves staring down the barrel.
Expect Leongatha to win, and if Morwell isn't completely on top of their game expect the Parrots to win well.