In round 11 of Gippsland League Football, the Redlegs headed down the highway to take on old rivals Sale, in what was a series of impressive performances from the Bairnsdale club.

The senior side the Redlegs played to a level much higher than their ladder standing would suggest, playing in a one-point thriller.

In the first quarter, the Bairnsdale brigade competed well through the likes of Ricky Tatnell and Linc Robinson coming to the quarter-time huddle leading the Magpies by six points.

In the second term it was a similar story with the Bairnsdale sides intent and application bringing them into the half-time break with a slightly extended eight-point lead.

In the third term the resurgent Magpies pushed back hard through tenacious ex-VFL midfielder Shannen Lange and veteran Kane Martin, who led the way for the Sale side to lead by 14 points at the three-quarter time break.

In the final term the Bairnsdale side battled hard to be neck and neck with the Magpies but ultimately to no avail, going down by a solitary point in a nail-biting affair.

For the Sale side it was a vintage Kane Martin that slotted four majors, while John Gooch led hard all day and Shannen Lange was at his devastating best.

For the Redlegs it was Nathan Dennison who troubled the scorers with three goals of his own and typically solid performances by Simon Deery and Andrew Nelson were integral in the narrow loss.

The constant presence of Ricky Tatnell and Josh Wykes will be important in the weeks to come, as the club searches for another win.

In seconds action, it was a barn-storming performance for the Bairnsdale side.

The consistency of the Bairnsdale midfield meant the scoring opportunities for the Magpies were few and far between, holding the Sale side goalless in the first half and allowing only a miniscule three scoring shots for the game.

At the end of the match, the Bairnsdale side were winners to the tune of 88-points.

For the Redlegs Alex McLaren led from the front booting a game-high five majors, Boris Bryant was again too much for his opposition number and Tyran Rees again showed why he is a senior footballer in waiting.

While in the Sale inner sanctum there would be some cause for concern regarding the club's depth, with only Daine McGuinness and Lakshay Panwar looking the goods.

Coming to round 11 with a slew of top-line performances, the Bairnsdale juniors would have been confident of a big win over Sale but this was not to be.

A dogged contest ensued for four quarters with the sides both playing great team football, with the end result a narrow nine-point win to the Bairnsdale side.

For the Magpies, Cooper Whitehill, Cohen Wade (two goals) and Noah Hurley were impressive while for the Redlegs it was damaging forward Thomas Hudson (five goals) along with the astute Will Bromage and skilful Robbie Farnham that were the difference.

In a continuing trend for the Bairnsdale junior sides, the under 16 team recorded a 2- point win over their Magpie contemporaries.

In a game where the skills and setup of the Bairnsdale side were far superior, it was Max East who looked the goods in front of goal booting five majors, while Logan Dunkley was at his energetic best and Jayke Andrews-Hei worked hard all match.

For the Magpies it was Mason Annear, Baxter Pearce and Giann Pirona who were consistent performers on the day.

IMAGE: The Bairnsdale vs Sale rivalry is still strong as pictured in this previous clash. (2019 Photos) K834 - A6910297