NAVARRE only just managed to get out of jail against Natte Bealiba, in a hard fought affair in the Maryborough Castlemaine District Football League clash.
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Navarre were expecting a close encounter, but may have received more than what they bargained for.
Coach Daniel Parkin showed mixed emotions following the game.
"I'm not too happy with the result," Parkin said.
"They really came out to play and we had most of our players stuck in second or third gear. We were very lucky to get out of jail."
A couple of late goals secured the win by 24 points, a margin that Navarre would not be accustomed too.
"It is a good one to get out of the way before finals time," Parkin said.
"It is pretty hard for a team to play decent football week in and week out. I don't expect that, but sometimes we could all work harder."
Rhett Murphy was again in the best players and having played a full four quarters he shone in the coach's eyes.
"His effort in the ruck stood out," Parkin said.
"It wasn't just in the initial contest, it was his second efforts that impressed us."
Best players were hard to find for Navarre, with no real standout in defence or through the middle and being low scoring, there were no huge bags of goals either.
Louis Hannett was best on ground and is getting closer to playing his best football.
"Louie was better than he has been this week," Parkin said.
"He is still a fair way from his best football, but he is getting better with each game he gets under his belt."
Jayden Fowkes was the standout in defence, denying Natte easy inside fifty entries.
Natte Bealiba's better players were onballers Stephen Ross and Brent Mortlock.
Despite them winning plenty of the ball, they had some big names out of their forward line, which looked to hurt them.
A highlight of the match was when debutant Tom Hannett kicked his first senior goal to put the result beyond reach.
Hannett was a touch more than 30 metres out and on a slight angle when he slotted it through.
"Tom was really good," Parkin said.
"He showed a lot of poise for a junior. He really weighed up his options before he disposed of the football."
The final score was Navarre 9.10.54 defeating Natte Bealiba 6.4.40.
Navarre will have tonight off training before a taxing session on Thursday and the weekend off.
Personal trainer Josh Driscoll will take the session, with Parkin expecting there to be plenty of running involved.
Fitness will be a priority now leading into the finals series.
