WITH all the talk about the spectacular form of Whorouly and North Wangaratta, reigning premier Moyhu has been flying under the radar in Ovens and King football.
A loss to Bright last week only amplified suggestions that the Hoppers had slipped down the pecking order.
Coming up against a Benalla outfit that was looking better by the week, Moyhu was staring down the barrel at the very real possibility of two straight losses.
But there are a number of good reasons last week's loss was the Hoppers' first in more than a year, and they were all on display in what ended up being a 42-point win over the Panthers.
It was the Panthers who started stronger the pace of Daryl Webb and Todd Rogers, the class of Cody Taylor and the grunt of Jack Frampton and Richard Bull ensuring plenty of forward momentum.
But after slotting the first two goals of the match through Webb and Bull, things started to go awry for Benalla.
Despite winning more than their share of the ball, the Panthers' scoring opportunities dried up as they began to turn it over.
Kicking against a strong breeze, the Hoppers hurt the home side with goals to Ryan Craig and Stuart Smith, and went into the first break with a two-point lead.
By - SCOTT ANDERSON.
Last Modified on 14/05/2012 10:50