The Premier B Podium Has Been Decided

Eliza Wright

This Saturday marked the last game for the Premier B Men’s home and away season, with 5 teams playing their final game for the year. De La went down swinging, losing to The Uni Blacks by 27 points meanwhile Gary Smorgan Oval hosted a draw between AJAX and St Bedes/Mentone. Old Haileybury got to work against Williamstown, overcoming CY by 123 points, and with lots to play for, Fitzroy defeated Beaumaris by 32 points. This sees the final ladder with Fitzroy in fourth, Old Haileybury in third, Beaumaris taking home the silver and the University Blacks awarded the minor premiership.

With their finals hopes still alive, De La Salle couldn’t hold onto their lead over the University Blacks. De La started off strong with a 4-point lead as Hugh Nicholson and Liam Jenkins got to work through the middle. The Uni Blacks bounced back quickly as Hugh Curnow and James Sansom did what they do best in front of goal, alongside Nicholas Hey who drove the Blackers to a 10-point lead. A seesawing third quarter saw Brodie Mclaughlin step up with his hard-contested footy and 5 handy goals. However, the engine room in Lachlan Knight stopped De La from stealing the lead. With a final score of 13.11-89 to 9.8-62, the Uni Blacks took home the four points and the minor premiership for the 2022 season. This game sees De La finish fifth on the ladder, with the fight for the cup just outside their reach. De La have had an extremely strong finish to the year and built on an already agile and hardworking playing group. Having finished top of the ladder, the Uni Blacks will take on Beaumaris in the first week of finals and will also have the luxury of the double chance. The Blackers are 2/2 against the Sharks, defeating them by 74-points in round 4 and 38-points in round 12.

It’s never too late for our first draw in Prem B with scores all tied up between AJAX and St Bedes/Mentone Tigers this week. The Tigers began the game on their terms, securing themselves a 21-point lead. Michael Barnes and his 2 goals were essential in helping SBMT keep control of the footy, alongside Christopher Mangoni continuing to rally the troops. AJAX found their feet in the second term with Jarryd Ludski’s speed out of the middle helping claw back this margin to 8 points. Bradley Caplan and Kane Nissenbaum worked harmoniously up forward, recording 2 goals each. AJAX continued this momentum in the third quarter, snatching a 2-point lead over the Tigers. A hard-fought effort from SBMT’s Alexander Browne and Kai Stretton kept St Bedes Mentone in the game. With neither team able to get their side over the line, the final score read AJAX 11.9-75 to St Bedes Mentone 10.15-75. AJAX have been an exciting young team to watch all year with their continual pursuit of growth and team-first mentality evident in their game style. Finishing seventh on the ladder this year, no doubt this side will bounce back even stronger in 2023. St Bedes Mentone have had an up-and-down year with some exciting wins and the sixth spot on the ladder, they are another side that will take their momentum into next year.

It was a blood bath down at Princes Park this week with Old Haileybury triumphing over Williamstown CYMS. Williamstown kept Old Haileybury close for the first quarter, trailing by 11 points in the opening term. Samuel Callard worked hard around the ground for CY while Aydan Kovach and Patrick Galic saw no signs of wavering down forward, grabbing themselves a goal each and battling hard to shift the momentum. Old Haileybury brought the pressure in the second term with Samuel Loewe and Jack Lonie’s hard work through the forward 50 paying dividends. There was no stopping William Mackay and Nathan Dowsett as the second half saw Old Haileybury run away with the game, with a final margin of 123-points. This game ends the season for Williamstown, seeing them finish eighth on the table with only 3 wins for the year. Another young that side will take some crucial learnings from this year and come back stronger in 2023. On the other side of the coin, Old Haileybury’s determination has landed them in third place, as they look to take on Fitzroy in round one of the finals at Piranha Park. The Bloods have defeated the Roys twice throughout the home and away season with a 56-point victory in round 8 and a 59-point victory in round 16 Old Haileybury have done well over the past few weeks to get their game in order and is heading into this finals series as serious flag favourites.

Banksia reserve set the stage for an extremely tense game against Beaumaris and Fitzroy. The Roys knew De La were hot on their tails, gripping onto their 4^th spot. This inspired a strong first quarter from the Roy’s with Donovan Toohey surging the ball out of the middle, nudging the Roys to a 3-point lead. Connor Murphy and Robert Cathcart were among the best for Beauy, working tirelessly to fend off the Roys. Fitzroy were up and about in the third term extending their margin from 2 points at halftime to 29-points. Jack Mckay brought the heat around the ground, wrestling the momentum well and truly in favour of Fitzroy. Despite the best efforts of Sam Gibbins and James Taylor, the undisciplined Sharks let the pressure of the game get to them. A game-sealing goal from Ted Clayton was the nail in the coffin for Beauy going down by 32 points. Beaumaris finished second for the season and look forward to the Uni Blacks at Trevor Barker Oval in the first week of finals. The Sharks are yet to defeat the Blackers, but the double chance might inspire them to risk and roll on Saturday. As for Fitzroy, they will face off against Old Haileybury. While history suggests this game should fall the way of Old Haileybury, Fitzroy have nothing to lose and are hopeful to snatch the 4-points from the Bloods.