Caulfield’s close shave, Eagles back in hunt

Mitch op’t Hoog – @mitch_hoog

In Round 11, there were some important wins at both ends of the table; at the top end of the table, Caulfield narrowly avoided a loss to an admirable Williamstown CYMS; while at the bottom end of the table, Kew secured their second win in a row to get one game closer to climbing out of the relegation zone. In the middle of the table, Marcellin had their most important win of the season to climb back up to fifth spot on the ladder and stay within the hunt for a spot in the finals.

Marcellin put in their most convincing performance of the past six weeks to defeat the in-form Old Geelong by a comfortable margin of 54 points. While this was Marcellin’s second win in three weeks, it was also just their second win since Round 6, so needless to say it was a much-needed victory for the Eagles! The victory was established on the back of a stellar first quarter in which Marcellin kicked six goals to one and dominated all facets of the game. Trent Carlson starred in his best game for the year while Matthew De Luca top-scored with three goals in what was his best outing, too. This was a massive win for Marcellin as Old Geelong were coming off a two game winning streak and a loss meant they would’ve fallen ever closer to the relegation zone; instead, however, the Eagles now sit in fifth spot and remain well within the hunt for a spot in the finals. For Old Geelong, they slip from fifth to sixth on the ladder with inconsistency plaguing their season so far. They’ll be looking for some better form in the coming weeks if they’re to remain in finals contention. The Ogs will be looking to their captain, George Burbury, to reignite their season after he starred in their Round 11 loss and put in a strong performance in the successful VAFA Big V rep game.

Old Ivanhoe have hit a purple patch over the last four weeks as they secured their fourth win on the trot, defeating the down-and-out Hampton Rovers by 21 points. It was fast start for Old Ivanhoe that put the game to rest early, as the Hoers kicked five of the first seven goals to lead by 28 points at the main break. Led by Josh Pavlou and Roland De Biase, a mini Rovers resurgence took place in the third and they got back within 12 points at the final change. The Rovers continued their third quarter form early in the last and managed to get within a kick before the Hoers ran away with it in the last half of the quarter. Old Ivanhoe’s Samuel Wilcox stood up in the last and had his best game for the year while Carl Groth and Brandon Lee combined for four goals for the day to put the game beyond doubt. The past four weeks from Old Ivanhoe has completely turned their season around! From Rounds 1-7, the Hoers were averaging just under 59 points per game, over the past four weeks, they’ve averaged over 100 points per game, a massive difference of 41.55 points per game. On the back of these impressive stats, they’ve climbed from eighth spot in Round 7 to now sit one game clear in third spot on the ladder after 11 rounds. Conversely, Hampton Rovers are sitting stangant in the same position they were in five weeks ago, ninth spot and in the relegation zone. The Rovers are averaging just 53 points per game and when you contrast that with the top two teams, Caulfield Grammarians and Old Haileybury, who are averaging 108 and 92 points per game, respectively, they’re sitting well behind the pace.

It appears Williamstown CYMS much prefer the windy pastures of Fearon Reserve than they do Altona Green Park. Since returning to their rightful home ground after resurfacing was completed, they’ve played two games there, one against Old Mentonians where they dished up a convincing 70-point win over Old Mentonians in Round 8, and another last week in Round 11 when they got agonisingly close to knocking off the top-of-table, Caulfield Grammarians. It was a hard-fought two-point win for the Fields who were Leading by 16 points at the main break before the CYs booted seven goals to five in the final two terms to fall just short of snatching a victory from the jaws of defeat. Caulfield have BOG Jack Presnell and their in-form forward, Declan Reilly, to thank for this close win, as both put in standout performances. Reilly bagged four goals, making it 20 from his past four matches and taking his season tally to 36. Sean McVernon and Tim Murphy starred for the CYs, yet despite their close shave and tremendous effort, Williamstown CYMS fall a spot into fourth place on the ladder. This close loss to a quality opponent will have opposing teams fearing the thought of travelling out to Fearon Reserve to take on the CYs.

Kew made it two wins in two weeks, defeating Old Mentonians by 19 points in what was a crucial game for both team’s bids to steer clear of the relegation zone. The Panthers will be ropeable with their second half of footy. After leading at quarter time and half time, the Panthers fell away and allowed Kew to kick nine goals to five in the final two terms and run away with the victory. While Kew were again without their key forward, Andrew Brazzale, who has kicked 24 goals for the year, for the second week in a row, there was someone there to fill the void, and once again, it was Kyle Margaritis who trumped his stellar performance from last week and finished with five majors. Margaritis was ably supported by Nathan Sambevski who was judged best-on-ground. For the Panthers, their loss to Kew was their fourth loss in a row and leaves them squandering in eighth spot, just one game clear of the relegation zone and two games clear of the Bears at the bottom of the ladder. While Cameron Sharp starred for the Panthers their past four weeks have been well below par, averaging over 110 points against per game with an average losing margin of 46 points. They’ll look to get players back in the coming weeks and return to their early season form, and hopefully staying well away from the relegation zone in the process.

Old Haileybury ended their two-game losing streak in style with a comfortable 43-point victory over Old Camberwell. After the first quarter, the Wellers would’ve been feeling confident of their season ahead with just two points in it against one of the competition’s better sides. However, that was as close at the Wellers would get to the Bloods who flicked a switch in the second quarter and subsequently kicked 11 of the last 16 goals. Durras Seccull was a welcome inclusion into the Bloods already potent attack as he bagged five goals in his first match for the year. For the Wellers, James Allen and Fraser Wells impressed and couldn’t have done much more to prevent their team from sliding down one spot on the ladder into seventh. The Bloods remain one game above Old Ivanhoe in second.