Cobras strike in a nail-biter

Chris Ciampoli

Koonung Park held a nail biter between the Old Paradians and the Old Yarra Cobras. The Raiders stormed forth to exploit the wind amongst a few Cobra missed sitters in the first quarter to take the lead at quarter time.

Harrison Colomer and Luke Brock ripped up the oval to provide opportunities for forwards to capitalise, Noah Whittle (2 Goals) and Darcy Taylor (2 Goals) did just that with the help of Thomas Cooper’s (2 Goals) supremacy. But the Cobras are not ones to back down from a fight and showed their venom in the second, kicking six. Luke Stacker and Will Fleming put in an astounding performance of gut and vigour while big Tim Orchard (2 Goals) used his body well. Tom Bell (1 Goal), Anthony Lamana and Lewis Mitchell (1 Goal) won the in and under for Jack Hall (2 Goal) to convert.

With a 23-point lead at the main break, all the Cobras had to do was hold off the Old Paradians pressure. By the fourth quarter it was a scrappy contest between two teams desperately holding on by a thread. By the sound of the final siren, the Cobras held strong to win the skirmish by three points.

Aquinas displayed another prime example of passion and grit in their encounter with the behemoths in the South Melbourne Districts. A 23-point lead at quarter time was reduced to four by halftime. But the talent of the Swan’s roster proved too much even for their never-die attitude.

Jason Clifford (3 Goals) showed off his versatility winning the hard ball gets and kicking with accuracy. Dermot Murphy dominated the centre with the help of Max Collier (1 Goal) to provide opportunities for star forward Sam Bradford (3 Goals) to convert with the addition of Jamie Brooker’s creative flair (2 Goals). The Swans shut down the chance for a comeback in the fourth to leave with their chins high after a win by a kick.

South Melbourne have bounced back from the tough loss last week with nothing but elegance and have shown once again that they’re in the top four for a reason.

The tough conditions seem to be no match for the Whitefriars in their 34-point win over Bulleen Templestowe. The Friars took full advantage of the wind in the first quarter kicking up and long the ground to open the game up for a forward’s triumph booting six. From there it was a hard fight against the hungry Bullants.

Travis Baker and Jacob Berry were great down back, set up well behind the footy, and placed heavy pressure refusing to allow any space for Bullant forwards. Ryan Turner used his brilliance to set up the contest and Vito Midolo’s run off the wing was vital in getting the ball deep into the forward line. Daniel Wood put in another masterclass along with Angus Hands (1 Goal) to allow opportunities for Marlon Simbolon (2 Goals) and Jack Coates (3 Goals) to convert.

In addition to Nick Garratt’s (2 Goal) leadership around the ground, one evidently by example, the Friars clearly want that top four spot, and with a huge clash against South Melbourne Districts in Round 13, it may just be their decider.

From ball movement, to set up, to versatility, the Brunswick boys are back at it with a 59-point victory over St Mary’s Salesian. Ferndale Park saw the best of the best, a Brunswick squad full of contributors; Jackson Browne added to the barricade down back using the ball with ease while Ben Wilson was once again strong down the middle.

Zeph Hooke and Lewis Bonney-McKenzie gave plenty of drive off the half back-line. Paul Scamporlino (4 Goals) has come into his own translating his hard work ethic to the scoreboard and likely to be a huge danger for opposition soon to come. Although in the first half Brunswick struggled to capitalise on their opportunities going 5.13, the half-time talk fixed up their accuracy issues for the remainder of the clash.

Overall, Brunswick is a club of determination, hard work ethic, and positive culture with a bright generation ahead. Young players like Lewis Bonney-McKenzie and Zeph Hooke have had a solid season so far, not to mention the great Tahj Haddock who’s able to tag star forwards like a professional. At this rate the Brunswick boys are most definitely finals bound.

Once again, Parkside were ruthless on Saturday in their 45-point win over MHSOB and extend their domination over the division to a seven-game win streak. Matt Holden was at his best and Dominic Douglas (2 Goals) converted their hard-earned effort to the scoreboard with efficiency.

Max Doyle won the in-and-under and set up well for the fifty along with Mitchell Lawson (1 Goal). Star forward Benjamin Radford (3 Goals) shoots ahead on the divisions goal kicking tally even in rough conditions rising to 51 goals overall.

There isn’t much more to say about the Devil’s domination, time and time again they’ve proven themselves as the ones to beat. High on the ladder at the top spot and deservedly so, the bets are in, they’re grand final bound.