Round 5: Men's Football Review
Wet weather footy was back around the grounds in the SFNL this week, with some hard fought wins across the board.
DIVISION 1
A mouth-watering matchup between two of the competition's big premiership chances saw Dingley host the new kids on the block Cranbourne.
A low scoring and scrappy match still saw a big third quarter from the Eagles as they took a strong lead into the final break. But the Dingoes got on top in the contested possession count and kicked all three goals of the final term which was just not enough as they fell short by twelve points.
Jackson Peet thrived in the conditions for Dingley with 10 clearances and 19 ground ball gets. Whilst for Cranbourne, Marc Holt kept on delivering with another four goals, and Jordan Bertrand was named best-on with 12 touches and 6 one-percenters.
The in-form Cheltenham hosted the winless East Malvern on Saturday afternoon in a game which looked a certain result at first glance.
East Malvern jumped out of the blocks to take a first quarter lead. With their top-end stars leading the way with outstanding performances.
The Rosella’s showed their class and fought hard in the remaining three quarters to claim a strong win by 65 points.
Dylan Weickhardt is starting to look like an early favourite for the league medal, as he kicked three goals to go along with his 31 disposals.
Some great performances from the Panthers included Tom Preece with 40 touches and 23 ground ball gets. Whilst Lucas Hall was named their best with 30 disposals, 8 spoils and 17 rebound-50’s.
A scrappy affair at Springvale Reserve saw Springvale Districts hold on to claim an impressive win over Bentleigh to keep them in touch with the top five.
Districts star Matt Wetering was back from the VFL to play his first game in the SFNL this season. Wetering kicked three goals and was dangerous with his 10 disposals. Matt Blair was a force in the ruck with 8 clearances, 6 tackles and 29 hitouts.
For Bentleigh, Nick Wynne yet again led the disposal count for the Demons and added two goals.
St Kilda City had a monster win over Mordialloc at the Peanut Farm as they led at every change for a 12-goal win.
The fire-power up forward was just too much for the Bloods as DeGois slotted 5 goals and so did Brayden Irving. City also welcomed back star forward Aaron Edwards to make their forward even more dynamic. Edwards kicked two in his return to the Farm.
Despite trailing at quarter time, St Paul's McKinnon had a commanding win away from home against Port Melbourne Colts.
The Doggies kicked 15 goals to 6 after quarter time to run away with a 50-point win. Stephen Muller was outstanding up forward with six goals whilst Ashley Munday was named their best player on the day.
DIVISION 2
The Caulfield Bears hosted the undefeated Demons at Koornang Park, Chelsea Heights always a few goals ahead of the Bears.
The Heighters kicked a sweet five goals in the final term of the match, knocking the final nail in the coffin for their strong win.
Angus Macpherson had a stellar game, moving the ball out of their backline and lining up goals for team mates Aaron French and Jordan Peryman.
Hampton Park had a great win in front of their fans against Heatherton this week, keeping supporters excited with a great third quarter.
Seven goals well and truly cemented a dominant third term, only leaving room for the Tonner’s to score three goals in the last half.
Hampton Park shared the scoring opportunities around with four goals each to Kyle Hendy and Jye King.
A well matched game took place between Keysborough and East Brighton, both club’s demonstrating excellent defensive power across the board.
The scoreboard was tight until the final term, Keysborough kicking a few quick goals to get ahead of the Vampires before the final siren.
Thomas Shaw had a great game for the Kookaburras, kicking three goals and moving into the fifth position in the division two leading goal scorers tally.
A sensational come from behind win propelled the Doggie’s to a great win against Skye at home, a quick six goals in the fourth quarter left the bombers shell-shocked.
“We played super for three quarters but let Highett run all over the top of us in the last quarter. We lost from a seemingly un-loseable position which was disappointing.”
Nathan McConville was a standout for Skye, demonstrating great ball use while also managing to kick two goals from the wing.
Doveton Doves had the week off but will come back swinging against Chelsea Heights, neither teams have tasted defeat so far this season.
DIVISION 3
Narre South Coach Scott Mackenzie “couldn’t be prouder” of his boys as they won a down-to-the-wire game against Murrumbeena.
Murrumbeena led by the slimmest of margins at half-time before a solid second half saw Narre South hang on by eight points.
Mandrez Manu had three of the Saints seven goals and Phil Ward was listed as his side's best player, but it was a great team effort according to the coach.
“I could give you 22 names (for the Saints best performers), it is very hard to answer the way the game was played,” Mackenzie says.
An absolute slog of a game at Roy Dore Reserve saw Carrum Patterson Lakes run away with a win over Ashwood with a great final quarter effort.
A hard-fought effort across the ground for CPL with Jack Conroy named their best player.
Ashwood coach Nick Morrey applauded the effort of the Lions on their home deck which felt the full effect of the weather on the weekend.
“It was horrendous conditions for footy with only 6 goals kicked for the day and CPL were able to use the ball better than us and deserved the win,” Morrey says.
The Woods also suffered a couple of serious injuries but remain optimistic they can push forward in the coming weeks.
Black Rock remained undefeated in Division 3 after another solid four-quarter effort over Clayton on the weekend.
Coach Ryan Handley praised the Jets ability to be more direct and physical as the game progressed and was particularly positive about the performances of his three best on ground performers.
“Taylor Meyer was fantastic, Stuart Wines would be leading the comp medal and Kieran Taig has been making his presence felt as a key ruckman in the competition,” Handley says.
The Jets are showing no signs of slowing down and will get another boost when Skipper Daniel Kick returns this week.
Another tough result for South Yarra as Endeavour Hills defended their home turf with a 130 to nine win.
Jarrod Marolla was the beneficiary of the hard work up the ground as he finished the five goals for the Falcons. Whilst Van Velsen was best on ground with a goal to his name as well.
DIVISION 4
Under the Lyndhurst Lights on Saturday Night, the Lightning got themselves back on the winners list with a strong win over Dandenong.
Hamish Browning leads all of Division 4 in goal-kicking, as he led the way on Saturday night with 6 more majors.
“The game was a hard physical game and we (Dandenong) were competitive for three quarters,” Dandenong Coach Michael Lawrence said.
Lawrence added that Lyndhurst usual suspects Browning, Gardiner and Twite all played very well.
A commanding second half from Lyndale saw them run over the top of Hampton at home as they grinded out a 29 point win.
The Puma’s certainly missed a lot of opportunities in front of goal with 17 behinds for the day. However, a great showing from the likes of Jackson Collard and Brendon Groenedyk ensured the Hammers had little chance of kicking a winning score of their own.
The Frankston Dolphins continued to flex their muscles on Saturday as they had a strong win over Moorabbin at Widdop Crescent Reserve.
A nine goal to one second term ensured the Dolphins were in control of the contest with forwards Liam O’Donnell and Rich Mathers combining for 11 goals.
Jack Waller was named best on ground and added one goal. Whilst Andy Mathers continues to dominate with another ball-magnet performance including 2 goals.
South Mornington enjoyed their biggest win since entering the Southern Football Netball League with a 92 point home-win against Cerberus.
Despite a tight opening term, the Tigers created a bigger buffer each quarter including a 53-point final term, to have a statement win over the Three-Headed Dogs.
Jordan Waite kicked six goals and Leon Grant bagged five as the two combined for eleven of their 18 goals.
At Power Reserve, Hallam kept the Doveton Eagles goalless for the entire first half whilst piling on 10 goals themselves to build an insurmountable lead.
The Eagles defended better in the second half and kicked two goals of their own but it was not enough as the Hawks claimed another win.
The Shalassian boys were again amongst the best players for the Hawks who are sitting pretty in second position on the SFNL Division 4 ladder after five rounds.
