It was the battle of the birds on Saturday afternoon in a smokey game at the Collie Recreation Ground where the Augusta Margaret River Hawks defeated the Collie Eagles.
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The Eagles got off to a great start when Jack Dye kicked the opening goal just two minutes into the game, but Collie's lead wasn't to last.
About mid-way through the first quarter, the Hawks clicked into gear and strung together six straight goals to open up a handy lead.
The Hawks' Mitch Payne kicked three goals in the opening stanza, one of which came from a big pack mark and another from a mark on the goal line. Harry Taylor kicked two goals and Braydon Smith kicked one.
The Eagles' Kolbee Fleay kicked the final goal of the first term to keep the home side within reach, as the Hawks went into quarter-time with a 2.1 (13) to 6.1 (37) lead.
Collie started the second quarter much like the first, with a quick goal to Bailey Moloney getting them back on track, though he suffered an ankle injury in the process.
But the Hawks hit back again with goals to Payne, Smith, Ricky Cary and Thomas Mcdonald.
Matthew Michael added a goal for the Eagles, but the home side went into the main change with a big deficit as the Hawks held sway 4.3 (27) to 10.2 (62).
The Eagles fought hard in the third quarter and kicked consecutive goals through Alex Tweedie and Rory Bebbington. For the Hawks, Cary and Jonathon Coghlan were amongst the goalkickers as Augusta-Margaret River went into the final quarter with a 13.3 (81) to 7.5 (47) lead.
While Collie fought hard in the final term to outscore the visitors, they were unable to put much of a dent in the margin and the Hawks walked away with a well-deserved 29-point victory.
Augusta Margaret River Hawks coach Matt Jamieson said he was happy with the performance.
"We were after a really fast start today and we are really pleased with the way we started," he said. "We haven't started well out here for the last couple of years, so that was definitely a focus."
Collie Eagles coach Seth White said his team dominated in the middle half of the game but couldn't put the score on the board.
"They (the Hawks) kicked six goals in the first quarter and we lost by five goals, so that was probably the difference in the game," he said.
The Eagles will play at their home ground again on Saturday afternoon, June 1 at 2:30pm with another tough opponent in ladder leaders Harvey Brunswick Leschenault, while Augusta Margaret River will play Busselton in the traditional Southern Derby on Sunday afternoon, June 2 at 2:20pm for the Busselton Toyota Cup.
