Season 2026 of Ovens and King senior footy is off to a very interesting start.

In the dying light of Saturday at North Wangaratta Recreation Reserve, the Hawks managed to pull one over on reigning premiers Bright with a stunning six-point win under lights.

It was messy at times but the Hawks got the job done 7.14 (56) to the Mountain Men’s 7.8 (50) at the final siren.

Anticipation was at a fever pitch as the umpire balled it up to kickstart the game, with both midfields eager to get their hands on the ball and get it moving forward.

Bright were the more clinical squad early, generating eight scoring shots for five goals, while the Hawks sprayed it across the goals, managing only six minor scores for the opening term.

It was all Bright traffic early, kicking the first five goals straight before North Wangaratta even got on the scoreboard.

The contested ball was hard to win with the pressure being exerted by both squads, but North Wangaratta managed to finally slot a major through Riley Burrows, before Damien Bradley brought the deficit to 18 points by the half.

The Hawks seemed like a different team after the break, ratcheting up their defensive efforts to deny Bright any goals in the third term, while their ball transition out of defensive 50 was effective and accurate.

If only their goalkicking was as well.

The Hawks kicked three goals in the third term, manufacturing a two-point lead at the final break, but the damage could’ve been far more, with five minor scores, North Wangaratta sitting at 5.14 at three quarter time.

With it all to play for in the final term, the ball spent a lot of time between the arcs, and while Bright fought hard, the Hawks had enough on the board and the pressure to lock it in and take the four points.

North Wangaratta coach Corey Smith said the drought-breaking result was a great sign the new list was coming together in meaningful ways.

“They were saying it’s been 14 years since we beat them last,” he said.

“We knew with the newer group we had, we weren’t going to click straight away, playing praccy matches we had a different sort of mixture.

“It took us a while to get going, and I think we pretty much had vintage Bright early, they jumped is in the first quarter.

“We remained calm, it’s a credit to our group because I think last year we would’ve folded over and given up, so it was good, it showed a bit of maturity.”

Smith praised his defenders, which kept Bright to just two goals after quarter time, as well as the slick midfield.

“We addressed at quarter time that Bright came out and were hitting their lanes pretty much every kick going inside 50," he said.

“They could’ve been anywhere on the wing and their forwards had plenty of space, so we just needed to tighten up and guard a bit of space as well.

“Credit to the backs, they came out after not so much a spray, but the response from them was fantastic.

“Zak Sartore had plenty of the ball, his fitness and accountability is brilliant as well.

“He’ll go both ways which, in the O&K, most midfielders back their own game and they’re not really accountable.

“Having that accountability and being able to ride the other blokes in there.

“We got pretty good service from [Aaron Cheong] and [Matt] Curtis in the ruck as well, so it’s definitely exciting having a midfield who can read a couple of quality ruckmen.”