Highett Cement Finals Spot

DIVISION 1 – ROUND 17 WRAP-UP

With Good Will Hunter

The penultimate round of the season saw several games decided by massive margins.

The biggest of these was East Brighton’s 112-point thrashing of Clayton at Hurlingham Park. Although the Clays were competitive in the first half, they couldn’t contain the Vampires in the second as they slammed on 15 goals to one after the long break. Despite his baptism of fire, debutant full back Jack Gavin showed glimpses of a promising career at Meade Reserve. But rampaging midfielder Dean Williamson and classy forward Mark Jamieson were the chief destroyers for the Vampires, finishing with nine goals between them.

The Dingoes crushed a lacklustre Chelsea Heights by 103 points down at Beazley Reserve. Dingley effectively ended the match as a contest at the first change, booting 7.2 to 0.0 and setting the tone for a dismal afternoon for the Heighters. Spearhead Dean Francis took a lot of the credit after his superb 10-goal haul, but it was Jackson Peet and Luke Walmsley that did most of the damage through the midfield for the Dingoes. Jordan Peryman was the Heighters’ best.

Cheltenham recorded a convincing 74-point win over St Kilda City at Jack Barker Oval. After a tight first half, the Rosellas clicked into gear and blew the game open with an eight-goal third term. The home side’s key forwards were on fire, with 10 goals coming from the boots of Brett Collins and Pat Nicholls. Saints coach Gav Mahony fought hard all day and was among his side’s best.

Not all the games were blowouts, with East Malvern and Bentleigh playing out a ripping clash at Dunlop Reserve. Although the Demons led for most of the day in what was a close contest, they just couldn’t land the killer blow to finish off the persistent Panthers. The usual suspects in Sam McGarry and Scott Lawry were instrumental in Bentleigh’s narrow 12-point triumph, while Chris Duck starred with five goals for East Malvern.

The final match saw the in-form St Pauls cruise to an easy victory over Heatherton at McKinnon Reserve. The Dogs assumed control of the game in the second term and took a five-goal lead into the sheds before running out winners by 44 points. St Pauls ruckman Andy Gilbert was clearly the best afield, booting three goals and giving midfielders Mark Marasco and Peter Mercoulia silver service with his aerial dominance. Kane Tucker was again the standout for the Tunners.

 

DIVISION 2 – ROUND 17 WRAP-UP

With Jason Barbin

Round 17 was one of the most crucial rounds of the season in determining who was going to fill out the last spot in the top 5 and boy did this round produce some great football.

Murrumbeena took on Doveton in a game that while it no impact on the finals, turned into one of the games of the season. Though Doveton led at every change, the Beena were never too far behind and the pressure applied by both sides made for an entertaining game and showed some encouraging signs for next season. Peter Dye brough his goal tally to 63 for the season with another 8 goals for Doveton.

Springvale won back some much needed confidence with a win against finals bound Caulfield by 10 points. Springvale were impressive in the first half in building a 17 point lead against a lacklustre Bears outfit. Caulfield managed to turn their form around in the second half and outplayed Springvale but weren’t able to finish their chances kicking 4.9. Gav Vasallo was best on ground.

In the most critical matchup of the round was the game for the final spot in the top 5. Highett secured a finals berth after coming down from division 1, defeating Oakleigh District. Highett came out of the blocks hot and dominated the first half to lead by 27 points at half time. But Oakleigh never gave up in the second half and reduced the margin to just 3 points going into the final quarter but it wouldn’t be enough as Highett held on to win by 7 points. Tom Brown and Dale Velardo kicking 8 goals between them.

Hampton got their biggest win of the season with a dominating performance against Moorabbin. The Roos never had a sniff as Hampton jumped to a 37 point lead at quarter time and from there it only got worse. It was the most dominating performance from any side in division 2 this season. The Hammers finished with 6 different multiple goal kickers. Darren Harrison was the best of them with 7.

In the most anticipated contest of the season, Skye put in a sub-par performance, losing to top of the table and minor premier to be Mordialloc by 34 points. Mordialloc capitalised on a strong start to lead by 19 points at half time. The second half was disastrous for the Bombers as they failed to register a major score, allowing Mordialloc to drop a few gears and cost to victory. Simon Fragiacomo was the best for the Bloods

 

DIVISION 3 – ROUND 18 WRAP-UP

With Andrew Paloczi

Lyndale was not daunted by the prospect of taking on Mount Waverley in Mountain Lion territory. The Pumas played inspired team football in the first quarter. Their tackles were sticking and their ball movement was slick and efficient, and by quarter time they had charged to a 31-point lead.

Mount Waverley responded strongly in the second quarter and was five points in front by the main break. Incredibly, after such a bright start, the Pumas added only one goal to their quarter time score for the remainder of the match. James Gough had his own cheer squad urging him towards the milestone of 100 goals for the season. Deep in the last quarter, he lined up for number 99, but alas it was a behind. His seven for the day left him on 98. Ian Taylor was named the best for the Mountain Lions in their 61-point win.

Dandenong will take positive thoughts into its next pre-season after finishing in style. The Redlegs hosted Endeavour Hills and ended the Falcons’ season in unceremonious fashion, thrashing them by 94 points. Warren Kairns was best for the Redlegs, and Brodie O’Loughlin kicked seven goals.

Sandown grabbed third spot on the ladder with a 97-point away win over Black Rock. At quarter time it appeared the Jets might take charge of the game as they skipped to a three-goal lead; although the Cobras edged in front in the second term, they only held a 10-point advantage at the long break. Sandown then kicked an astounding 14 goals to one for the rest of the day. The Cobras’ Clint Sheedy was another player to boot seven goals this round. Teammate Frank Martinicchio was a couple of goals behind him, but was named the winners’ best player.

Ashwood finished its season at home with a comfortable win over South Yarra. The Magpies led at every change and their final margin was 38 points. The Lions took a little positive energy into the off-season, winning the last quarter. Chris Meyers starred for the Magpies with six goals and was named their best.

Carrum Patterson Lakes enjoyed a Friday night party at the expense of Hallam. It is debatable whether or not the Lions’ 158-point victory was good finals preparation. So out powered were the Hawks that they could only manage one goal for the night. For the Lions, Rhys Chadwick and Trevor March booted five goals each, and Chris Barr was best on ground.

 

UNDER 19s – ROUND 17 WRAP-UP

With Josh Schonafinger

The penultimate home and away round of Under 19 footy unfortunately contained a few blow-outs.

In exhibit A, Dingley ran over Chelsea Heights by a resounding margin of 109 points. Although the Dingoes only had six goals at half time, they finished the match with 17 majors. The Heighters couldn’t get on the board, recording only two points. Ryan Payne put in a dominating performance for the victorious Dingoes.

Another big margin was seen in the Bentleigh and Hampton clash: 94 points when the final bell sounded. The Dees kicked seven goals to one in the third quarter to really tear the game apart, and finished with 18 for the match. Nicholas Lowrie continued his goal kicking form with another 4 majors. Bentleigh have maintained their momentum all season, can they keep going for another five weeks?

The other one-sided match was Clayton proving too good for Highett; the difference was 112 points. The Clays slammed in nine goals in the final term to make it a miserable day for the Dogs. Jack Day and Mason Lambert combined for nine of Clayton’s 20 goals in a comprehensive display.

There was a bit more of contest when St Pauls hosted Skye, two teams set to play finals. The Doggies had the better form going into the match, however the Bombers had a fast start and wouldn’t be caught, winning by 23. Nathan McConville had a brilliant game and was best on ground for Skye.

In the match-up between Cheltenham and Carrum Patterson Lakes it was the Rosellas who burst out of the gates to lead by a couple of goals at quarter time. However, Dylan Cott had a day-out for CPL and was key in his side’s turnaround; they went on to win by 39 points.

 

THIRDS – ROUND 17 WRAP-UP

With Josh Schonafinger

Cerberus have made winning big a regularity in 2014 and last weekend again they had a convincing 72 point win over Cheltenham. Cerberus led 11 goals to none at half time, before the sting went out of the game in the second half. Benjamin Eddy kicked five for the victors.

Endeavour Hills need other results to go their way, but thanks to their 121 point thrashing of Dandenong, they can still finish as high as third. Cedric LeGrand was the star, kicking a handful for the Falcons, as he and 11 other players kicked at least one goal.

Skye dealt Dingley only their second loss of the season in a very impressive display at Kananook Oval. The Bombers showed that they aren’t all attack, keeping the Dingoes scoreless for the second and third quarters. The final margin was a 67 point victory to the Bombers.

An eight-goal haul to Mount Waverley’s Andrew Meredith lead the way for a big 89 point over Clayton. Despite a strong performance from Naser Mustafovski, the Clays were no match for the finals-bound Mountain Lions, who kicked 22 goals for the match.

In other matches, South Yarra ensured that lowly Doveton remained winless for the season, with a 90 point win.

Black Rock and Sandown were fighting out for sixth position, and the Cobras got the chocolates with a nine-goal win and a BOG from Mitchell Rossborough.

Unfortunately Moorabbin had to forfeit again, handing the points to Hallam.