GAWLER Central has won its third game on the trot, knocking off South Gawler by 40 points in Barossa, Light & Gawler A-grade football on Saturday.

The Tigers came to play, and kicked away to a 16-point quarter- time lead and never looked back.

Sean Baker and Cam Reynolds were sensational in the guts, while Brad Mercer was back to his scintillating best up forward.

The Lions couldn’t touch the Tigers as they again burst away to a 29-point lead at half-time.

Central then kicked further ahead, extending the lead to 49 points at the final change.

South booted a few consolation goals late to bring the margin back to 40 points at the final siren.

Mercer finished with five, while Baker kicked three.

Nick Hooker and Jonty Schultz slotted two apiece as the Tigers ran riot.

Gawler Central coach Matt Whelan said he’s feeling a lot better than he was in the first half of the year.

“It’s a great feeling and there’s a genuine vibe around the club because the reserves are going okay and we’ve turned a bit of a corner,” he said.

Whelan also heaped praise on Baker and Mercer about how they’ve changed the dynamic of the team.

“We’ve basically had those two in and out in the first half of the year, they hadn’t played a lot of footy together, but we’ve been able to get Mercer to a level of fitness after an injury, and when Baker plays for us he’s so strong at the contest,” he said.

“They’re more mature, stronger bodies.

“They’ve helped the younger guys.”

The Tigers now sit two games outside the top five, but Whelan is keeping a lid on his side’s recent form.

“We believe we can certainly win games in the second half of the year, whether six or seven wins gets us in (I’m not sure); we’re behind the eight-ball, South beat Barossa the week before,” he said.

“Our focus is just on knocking off anyone we can.

“Every week we assess where we are.

“There’s a belief in the group that our best footy is as good as anyone’s.”

South Gawler faces Kapunda this weekend, while Central travels to take on ladder leader Tanunda, and Whelan’s expecting a big challenge.

“They’re the league leaders, they’re a very good team,” he said.

“They have some height, our game style probably matches up. “Tanunda’s a small oval, we’ll adjust a bit, and we’ll back our style in.”