Tigers and Sharks shaking things up in Premier B

Josh Heriot

With only two rounds to come this season, the middle part of the ladder continues to be tight as Beaumaris mount a finals race which started with them defeating Old Geelong on the weekend. Likewise, St Bedes/Mentone have kept things interesting with a win over the second placed Fitzroy in a round that was vitally important for clubs with their seasons still alive.

While inaccuracy caused some minor problems, Beaumaris were able to secure a 65-point win against Old Geelong at Banksia Reserve. The Sharks finished with a staggering 40 shots on goal but converting in front of goal was an issue with 25 behinds for the afternoon. Despite this, Joel Cusack showed some polish with five majors along with Ben Hempel who kicked four.

Old Geelong was restricted to just 7 goals for the match with Beaumaris putting on a blistering second half as they dominated the ball movement and maintained much of the possession. The Sharks ruckman Callum Heath was once against their best as he continues his fine year, with he and Harry Thompson of Old Trinity standing out as two of the strongest ruckman in the competition. The win for the Sharks see’s them now on equal points with Old Geelong and only a game behind De La Salle and St Bedes/Mentone who sit in the four.

St Bedes/Mentone Tigers kept their finals hopes intact with an 8-point victory over Fitzroy. In what was a fantastic high scoring game, the Tigers were able to kick six goals in the first quarter to edge the margin at quarter time out to 19 points. The final change saw the Tigers 20 points in front before the Roys got going in the last kicking four goals to two.

Fitzroy’s Aiden Lambert was handy down forward with four goals while the Tigers were assisted by Jack Ferraro who finished with four and was named as their best. Chris Mangoni also played a part in the forward line with three majors.

For the Roys, it’s a loss that will sting, particularly heading into September where momentum is crucial for teams vying for the ultimate success. The Tigers finish the round inside the four, but they must win their final two games against De La Salle and Williamstown with the Sharks holding a significantly higher percentage.

De La Salle found themselves in an unusual situation with an incredibly low scoring match against Old Trinity with the rain clearly causing problems for both sides. Old Trinity finished the day with just two goals while De La Salle was only able to get the win with just five goals.

De La Salle’s Joshua Cumberlidge kicked two majors with Lachlan Gawel their best on ground. For De La Salle they continue their run to the finals in third spot but with the unpredictability of the season they too will be under pressure to perform during the final two rounds.

The final two games of the round were somewhat predictable with Williamstown defeating Monash Blues by 47 points and St Bernards beating AJAX by 93 points. While they won’t be playing finals, the season from Williamstown has been a positive one with a young developing list continuing to gain experience at a strong level. Oskar Manton again was busy up forward with four goals while Will Smyth also kicked four goals.

The Snowdogs continue to build momentum at a crucial stage of the season which again saw a plethora of goal kickers hit the score board. Dom Sullivan kicked five majors for the afternoon and joined the list of their 10 goals kickers, six of which had two or more goals while Ethan Schumann was named the Snowdogs best player.

Premier B have a chance to regroup and tighten up on those areas that need improving as they head into a bye round, ahead of what will be a mammoth final two matches of the home and away season for 2023.