Men’s Division 1 — Round 7
Dingley remain the clear benchmark in Division 1, moving to 7-0 after another commanding performance, while Cheltenham and Narre Warren kept the pressure on inside the top three. Bentleigh’s tight win over Cranbourne was the closest contest of the round, while Murrumbeena continued to handle the sides beneath them as they try to prove their finals credentials.
Bentleigh Seniors 11.9 (75) def Cranbourne Eagles Seniors 10.10 (70)
Bentleigh held on in one of the games of the round, taking down Cranbourne by five points despite a late push from the Eagles.
Cranbourne gave themselves every chance in the final term and almost stole the game late, but Bentleigh did enough to bank an important win and move to 4-3, keeping themselves inside the top four after seven rounds.
Castan Racunica was the difference forward of the ball, kicking six goals to lead both sides. For Cranbourne, Trent Marotta continued his outstanding season with five goals, with both Racunica and Marotta now sitting on 23 goals each at the top of the Division 1 goalkicking.
Cheltenham Seniors 15.10 (100) def Hampton Park Seniors 9.8 (62)
Cheltenham made their intentions clear from the first bounce, taking the opening quarter 29-1 and never really giving Hampton Park a way back into the contest.
The Redbacks eventually found some rhythm offensively as the game went on, but Cheltenham’s control across the ground was too strong, finishing with 367 disposals to 290, 118 marks to 52, and 56 inside 50s to 47.
Jacob Edwards produced one of the most complete performances of the round, finishing with 29 disposals, 21 contested possessions, 12 marks, nine contested marks, six intercept marks, five inside 50s and 205 ranking points. Daniel Vaughan was also huge with 29 disposals, 11 marks and six intercept marks, while Dylan Weickhardt had 30 disposals and eight inside 50s.
Up forward, Jack Lonie kicked five goals, while Ben McDonell added four in a strong attacking spread. The result keeps Cheltenham second at 6-1, looking clearly like the best side outside of Dingley through the first seven rounds.
Narre Warren Seniors 11.18 (84) def Springvale Districts Seniors 5.12 (42)
Narre Warren continued Springvale Districts’ shaky start to the season, winning by 42 points to move to 5-2 and hold third spot on the ladder.
Springvale still had some enormous individual performances. Jack Sketcher racked up 43 disposals and eight rebound 50s, while Piva Wright continued to build a team-of-the-season case from the ruck, finishing with 24 disposals, 17 contested possessions, 17 hit-outs, 14 clearances, eight inside 50s and a goal.
But Narre Warren’s depth again proved too hard to stop. They had more of the ball, used it better, and finished with 56 inside 50s to 37. Peter Gentile was arguably best on ground, putting together a dominant all-round performance with 35 disposals, 19 marks, four intercept marks and 172 ranking points.
Callum Porter was another major contributor with 28 disposals, eight inside 50s and 131 ranking points, while Tom Toner again hit the scoreboard with a goal and three behinds in a forward-half role.
Dingley Seniors 16.11 (107) def St Paul’s McKinnon Seniors 10.8 (68)
Dingley are starting to shape as the early premiership favourites, moving to 7-0 after a 39-point win over St Paul’s McKinnon.
The Dingoes were too strong across the ground, winning the disposal count 335-280, marks 116-99 and inside 50s 54-45, while also holding the edge in ground balls and hit-outs to advantage.
Lachlan Benton produced possibly the individual game of the season so far, finishing with 45 disposals, 13 marks, six clearances, nine inside 50s and four goals. On that form, he is building a strong early case as one of the league best and fairest favourites.
Christopher Horton-Milne was also excellent with 34 disposals and eight clearances, while Kristen Feehan’s defensive work stood out with 20 disposals, 11 marks, six intercept marks and five rebound 50s.
St Paul’s McKinnon were not without strong contributors, with Will McCartney collecting 24 disposals, Angus Edgar finishing with 27, and Liam Purcell competing hard in the ruck with 33 hit-outs.
Murrumbeena Seniors 19.15 (129) def Port Melbourne Colts Seniors 9.16 (70)
Murrumbeena handed Port Melbourne another tough loss, taking care of business with a 59-point win at Murrumbeena Park.
It was the sort of result the Lions needed. They are still yet to fully prove themselves against the top sides, but they have been strong against the bottom half of the ladder and were comprehensive again here, winning disposals 373-295, clearances 47-37, hit-outs 57-29 and inside 50s 63-48.
Edward Adams was damaging forward, kicking six goals from 11 disposals, while Angus Bowd had a major impact with 23 disposals, three goals, five tackles and 144 ranking points.
Levi Young was also influential through the ruck with 41 hit-outs, eight clearances and eight inside 50s, while Samuel Michael had 27 disposals and eight clearances. Thomas Rigby added 32 disposals and 11 rebound 50s in a strong performance behind the ball.
For Port Melbourne, Jess Mildenhall battled hard with 30 disposals and three behinds, while Aidan Farrell had 25 disposals and six inside 50s.
Best players from the stat PDFs
- Lachlan Benton - Dingley: 45 disposals, 13 marks, six clearances, nine inside 50s, four goals.
- Jacob Edwards - Cheltenham: 29 disposals, 21 contested possessions, 12 marks, nine contested marks, six intercept marks.
- Peter Gentile - Narre Warren: 35 disposals, 19 marks, four intercept marks, six rebound 50s.
- Piva Wright - Springvale Districts: 24 disposals, 17 contested possessions, 17 hit-outs, 14 clearances, eight inside 50s, one goal.
- Angus Bowd - Murrumbeena: 23 disposals, 13 contested possessions, six marks, five tackles, three goals.
