By Marcus Uhe
A six goal final quarter powered the Casey Demons to a come-from-behind win over Port Melbourne to register a maiden victory for the 2024 VFL campaign on Saturday afternoon.
Trailing by 14 points at the final break, the Demons kicked the final four goals of the match and eight of the last nine to snatch the four points on a gloomy afternoon at Frankston’s Kinetic Stadium, 13.12 90 to 11.9 75.
The lead was as large as 26 points when Borough forward Guy Barnes kicked a fourth Port Melbourne goal in 12 minutes to open the second half as a two-point lead quickly ballooned, before Casey kicked into gear to close the contest with a rush.
The Demons hit the front after 14 minutes in to the last quarter, when Matt Jefferson fed a handball to Kynan Brown wide of a stoppage who snapped truly from the pocket.
Ollie Sestan nailed another from a stoppage thanks to some slick ruck work Tom Fullarton, and Kai Windsor put the finishing touches on the result with a running goal from just inside 50 after his defenders won possession back at the half back line.
It’s an important win for the Demons after dropping their first two matches of the season at home.
Brown, Sestan and Josh Schache each kicked three majors and Fullarton two, with Lachie Hunter registering 23 touches on his return from injury.
Bailey Laurie, meanwhile, had 24 disposals, 20 tackles and 11 clearances in a huge performance.
The Demons have a bye next week but will return for an Anzac Day Eve tussle with Richmond on Wednesday 24 April at the Swinburne Centre.
Richmond sit eighth on the table with two wins to its name to open the season, despite a raft of injuries to the AFL side.
