Bears Lagoon-Serpentine coach Jake Wilkinson is looking forward to how his team responds to its first loss of the LVFNL season.
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The Bears played well for three quarters against reigning premier Marong last week, but a lapse in the third quarter proved to be the difference between the two teams in the 38-point margin.
A clear top four has emerged in the LVFNL, with the Bears sitting comfortably alongside Marong, Pyramid Hill and Bridgewater in the hunt for the premiership.
Having beaten Pyramid Hill in round one, the Bears complete the set of top four teams when they face Bridgewater on Saturday.
A win would give the Bears a handy buffer over Pyramid Hill and Bridgewater in the race for the double chance for the finals.
"The best thing about the competition this year is that there's going to be four teams that can give it a red hot crack,'' Wilkinson said.
"The team that can hold their structures and play the way they want to play for four quarters will get the job done. It's exciting for the competition.
"(Bridgewater) is another big game for us and we look forward to the challenge ahead."
Marong coach Linton Jacobs had his first look at Serpentine last Saturday and he described the Bears as a "very good footy team".
"We were very mindful that they had some good players missing,'' Jacobs said.
"They have some really good players and they'll feature very heavily at the business end of the season.
"I'm tipping we'll play them a fair bit in the back half of the year.
"They're strong around the contest, (ruckman) Justin Laird in particular.
"(Full-forward) Josh Mellington is obviously a very good player. I thought Knotty (Shaun Knott) probably won the battle with Mellington, but he still kicked six goals. He looked really dangerous."
Mellington has 41 goals through four games to lead the league goalkicking award - five clear of Bridgewater's Lachlan Sharp, who will be at the other end of the ground on Saturday.
Sharp was held to one goal in Bridgewater's 53-point loss to Pyramid Hill last weekend.
It was Bridgewater's first defeat of the season and the first leg of a testing three-week period for the club.
Andrew Collins, Alex Pollock and Nick Hall missed the loss to Pyramid Hill and Bridgewater co-coach Rick Ladson hoped to bolster his squad for the clash with the Bears.
"We have Serp and then Marong the weeks after that, so it's a good period for us,'' Ladson said.
"There's a couple we could get back (for the Serpentine game). Andy Collins should be good to go."
The team outside of the top four with the most scope to improve appears to be Inglewood.
The Blues broke through for their first win of the season when they defeated Newbridge last Saturday.
With games against MGYCW, Mitiamo and Calivil United over the next three weeks, the Blues have a chance to make fifth place their own.
"We have a run coming up that if we want to be a team that's competitive we need to continue to play how we did (against Newbridge) and keep playing the right way,'' Inglewood coach Fergus Payne said.
"We're getting better each week."
