Devonport                               4.1,  5.1,  8.1,  10.4  (64)

GOALS, North Launceston: B. McCulloch 3, T. Couch 2, M. Walsh 2, T. Bennett 2, C. Harrison 1, B. Cox-Goodyer 1

Devonport : M. Thorp 5, B. Sharman 1, L. Bissett 1, D. Riley 1, C. Burnett 1

BEST, North Launceston: T. Bennett, Z. Burt, B. Cox-Goodyer, A. Lee, T. Donnelly, J. Ponting

Devonport: M. Thorp, D. Riley, B. Symmons, S. Egger, Q. Byard, B. Butler

Sometimes you just have to win ugly.

That was the sentiment from North Launceston  coach Tom Couch following Sunday’s 19-point triumph over Devonport as Invermay Park made its debut as a State League venue.

To get the 11.17 (83) to 10.4 (64) triumph, Couch and this troops had to delve quite deep into their bag of tricks as this was a contest that did not reflect the rather large gap between the two on the ladder.

Devonport coach Mitch Thorp kicked four first quarter goals as the visitors led by 18 at the first change, with the Bombers kicking into gear after that.

The Pies dominated possession and territory, and had a ferocious appetite for the contest in the early stages, but roles were reversed in the second with the Bombers kicking the first five majors of it in no time.

But Devonport reapplied themselves and kept the margin to 14 at the long break.

The third and fourth quarters had a similar script. The Bombers would start like a house on fire, only for Devonport to be looking the better team by the time the barely audible siren was sounded.

The margin got to 26 in the third, before the Magpies rediscovered the scoreboard to make it 16 at the last change, and it was out to as much as 31 in the last before Devonport’s strong finish.

“That’s probably about as ugly as it gets,’’ Couch reflected post-game.

“I thought the first quarter, they really beat us for effort, and that’s not on. We have to be better next time [in that area].”

There were some excuses as such for the Bombers. Stars Taylor Whitford and Jay Lockhart were among eight regulars who were missing, while the Sunday game even saw some unavailabilities in the coaches box.

“But it was great to get some of the boys a bit more exposure with Mitch Connelly playing his first game, Brighton Denman playing his third game getting to sing the song for the first time, Tom Donnelly, Dyl Headland playing his fifth game.”

Part of the reason the Bombers got back into it was by restricting Thorp after quarter-time.

Jock White struggled one-out early, with Zac Burt then going back and getting help from an extra man or two pushing back.

“But it was more really just being harder at the footy and just tackling to match that effort. They beat us in that area in the first quarter which was embarrassing.”

Alex Lee was dominant in the ruck and around the ground against his former side, while Tom Bennett was in brilliant marking form. Bart McCulloch kicked three goals, with Couch and Mark Walsh kicking two.

Appropriately, Josh Ponting was among the best at the ground which also the spiritual home of his uncle Ricky.

Thorp, who was proud of his side again displaying strong improvement, kicked 5.5 and took 11 marks, with Dylan Riley and Beau Sharman also strong.

North Launceston travel to West Park to face Burnie on Sunday, while Devonport will host Hobart City on Saturday.