Under 19 Round Review
By Britt Goldsmith
ROUND 2 REVIEW
Bentleigh 12.9-81 def Cheltenham / St Pauls 8.9-57
Bentleigh jumped to their second win of the season, running over Cheltenham / St Pauls by four goals at Jack Barker Oval.
Cheltenham / St Pauls were on the back foot from the start in this match, trailing by 17 points at the first break. By half time, Bentleigh kept the home side to just 2.3 and behind by 23 points.
Led by best on ground and 2017 SFNL Under 19 Best and Fairest Anthony Malamas, Cheltenham / St Pauls were able to swing momentum their way with a 4.2 turnaround, outscoring their opponents by two goals and closing the gap by 11 points heading into the final term.
However, the Demons returned from a quiet third term with their best Liam Nunn paving the way to boot four goals to Cheltenham / St Pauls’ two, and holding on to take the win.
Malamas was Cheltenham / St Pauls’ best with two goals, and Nunn, Jarrod Johnston and Lachlan Kiely were standouts for Bentleigh.
St Kilda City 17.13-115 def Endeavour Hills 3.1-19
Endeavour Hills fell victim to a 96-point loss at the hands of St Kilda City in a stunning home performance.
St Kilda City turned it up at the Peanut Farm, with their classic defensive presence restricting the visitors to just 1.1 heading into the final term.
82 points down at three quarter time, Endeavour Hills were able to lift in the final term with two goals, but City showed no signs of slowing down and doubling that with four goals of their own.
Ubil Chol starred for City, alongside teammate Alex Mills who showed no mercy for Endeavour Hills, turning the forward line into his playground with seven goals to his name.
Dingley 22.14-146 def Hampton 2.0-12
It was a dismal day for Hampton as the Dingoes came to play at the Peterson Street Reserve, putting on a show in a 134-point demolition of the home side.
A team effort from the visitors saw points scored from 10 goal kickers across the board, including five from Round 1 Leader Shooting Star nominee Jack Farrington and three from best on ground Adam Peacock.
Despite best efforts from 2017 Interleague representatives Troy Smith and Bailey Griffin, the Dingoes were simply too strong here, piling on the damage more every quarter and forbidding Hampton from making a move on the scoreboard until the third term, with Griffin kicking Hampton’s only two goals in the last half of the match.
Oakleigh District 12.13-85 def Keysborough 2.15-27
2017 premiers Oakleigh District bounced back from a disappointing Round 1 loss to Parkmore / Springvale last week, running over Keysborough by 58 points at home.
Oakleigh kick-started their win with a 6.3 to 0.0 lead at the first break but failed to back it up with 1.2 in the second term, and only 1.4 in the third.
Here, Keysborough had enough of the ball, however inaccuracy in front of goal (particularly 0.6 in the second term) stopped them from turning the margin around.
Despite trailing by 43 points approaching the final term, positives could be taken here for Keysborough with Oakleigh only outscoring them by four points the second and third quarters.
It was apparent Oakleigh had seemingly taken their feet off the brakes after their six-goal haul in the first term. However, they were able to switch back on in the final quarter, with their best Lau Bir leading them to a 4.4 to 1.7 effort.
Dion Elefantis was best for a hopeful Keysborough, and Yianni Billias was also impressive with four goals for the winners.
Parkmore / Springvale Districts 8.7-55 def East Brighton 7.3-45
East Brighton came close to their first win of the season in the round’s most competitive match, falling short by 10 points to Parkmore / Springvale Districts.
In what was an impressive step-up from last week’s tough loss to Dingley, East Brighton managed an improved scoring effort, including four goals from Fraser Young.
Jacob Bakes starred for Parkmore / Springvale in a best on ground effort boasting three goals, next to teammate Dylan Hettiarachchi who was also impressive in Round 1.
