ANGASTON announced itself as a genuine premiership threat by comfortably defeating reigning premier Nuriootpa by 27 points in its annual Barossa, Light & Gawler A-grade football Anzac Day  clash last week.

The Tigers kicked the first goal of the game, but it was all the Panthers thereafter.

Nuriootpa’s poor kicking and decision making allowed the Angaston forwards to take advantage, and they did so in style booting six unanswered goals to lead by 32 points at quarter-time.

Dylan Tuckwell was lethal by crumbing goals, while Ryder Eberhard was a powerful force in the forward line.

The Tigers soon found their rhythm and cut the margin to 26 points by the main break.

Jackson Baldwin was the standout for Nuri, but he had little help around him through the midfield.

The Panthers dominated the third quarter to set up the win, blowing the margin out to 43 points at the final change.

Angaston then took its foot off the gas in the final stanza, allowing the Tigers to boot four goals to two.

Eberhard and Tuckwell slotted seven goals between them, while Steve Rusca and Marc Borholm jointly took home the Bob Christie Medal.

For the losing side, Tim Dimasi and Ryan Foulis were serviceable with two goals each.

Angaston coach Jay Shannon was delighted with the impact of both Tuckwell and Eberhard.

“We kicked straight in the first quarter and we put the scores on the board, which was great because the previous games we’ve had a slow start,” he said.

“Ryder’s been fantastic, he’s honestly put in a really good pre-season for a young kid, he really wants to have a good season.

“He’s been riddled with injuries down at Central (District), he’s got his body right and he’s really committed to the club.

“I think he’s kicked 11 in his first few, and to be honest he’s let himself down with a few set shots, but it’s not just about kicking goals, he leads up, he creates space.

“‘Tucky’ (Tuckwell) is very good around the stoppages, and we’ve got him playing the small forward role as well.

“With a few more midfielders coming in, we always knew he can play around the footy, so we wanted to improve his forward work.

“He’s another young kid with plenty of talent who’s done a good pre-season.”

Unfortunately, the Panthers lost Jake Hood to injury early in the contest, but Shannon said he’s 50-50 to line up against Willaston this week.

Meanwhile, Nuriootpa will travel to Williamstown to play Barossa District.