Top four sides continue to break away from the pack

Round 5 of the Division 3 Men’s competition saw the continuation of the top four sides in Power House, Wattle Park, North Brunswick and Richmond Central continue to break away from the rest of the competition with three of these of sides winning in Round 5.

Box Hill North would return to winning ways after a comfortable 115-point win against local rivals Eley Park at Elgar Park.

The Demons created plenty of chances throughout the first quarter, but were unlucky for it not to show on the scoreboard, only managing to score three goals and nine behinds in that period.

From there, they managed to kick a far more respectable 17.16 in the next three quarters, with their physicality proving too much for Eley Park.

Player-coach of the Demons, Beau Parthenides, was most impressed by his team’s fourth quarter performance, where they managed to kick 53 of their 145 points, demonstrating their ability to continue scoring and not switch off after securing the victory.

While Eley Park were held to their lowest score for the season so far, coach Matt Embling noted how pleased he was with his side’s pressure and intensity throughout the game, despite the scoreboard not reflecting it.  

Power House made it five wins from five games with their 47-point victory against Richmond Central.

It was a close first quarter on the scoreboard, with both teams being tied at 21 apiece coming into quarter time. This was despite Power House coach Nick Cox conceding that his team should have been ahead, given the number of possessions and chances that they generated.

But after that, Power House were able to use their kicking game to break the game open in the second quarter. They would kick eight goals from eight shots while holding the Snakes to just 13 points. This would prove to be an unassailable lead despite Central’s best efforts to close the margin in the second half.

For the Snakes, it appears to be a similar story from last year of not being able to beat the top three teams. In fact, the last time that they beat an opposition who was in the top three was in Round 8, 2024 when they defeated at the time 3rd place Swinburne University.

Richmond Central coach Michael Motta did note that they are getting better when competing against the top sides. But admitted that they just need to improve on their forward connection and defence to remain competitive in those matches.

North Brunswick has delivered their biggest win for the season so far as they beat Swinburne University by 132 points.

The Bulls were dominant from start to finish as they continued their strong form from last week with coach Domenic Fontana believing that this was his side’s most complete performance thus far.

Leading the way for the Bulls was forward Matt David, who managed to kick 12 goals and four behinds.

It was quite the turnaround for David, with Fontana most pleased for him. He noted that coming into the match, David had put a lot of work into his goalkicking, having kicked 0.5 for the season.    

For Swinburne, this loss further demonstrates their rollercoaster start to the year.

In the space of five games, they have had two 100+ point wins alongside two 100+ point losses.

There are signs that their game plan is a competitive one; it just needs to be a more consistent one.  

Albert Park has made it back-to-back wins after beating La Trobe University by two points.

The game was very even, with the largest margin at any stage of the match being just 12 points.

But in a match that saw seven lead changes (with three of those in the final quarter), the Falcons would kick three behinds late in the final quarter to seal their second victory for 2025.

While coach Jack Aimes was not present at the match, stand in coaches Brett Tottenham and Dan Donaldson were impressed by Dan Harmer’s game in defence particularly in the fourth quarter which played a huge role in their win.

And while La Trobe just fell short, they certainly had their chances. In the first and third quarter, the Trobers managed to kick five consecutive scores, but on both occasions only managed 2.3.

Had they been slightly more clinical in front of goal during these patches, they would have found themselves back in the top four.  

Wattle Park continues their undefeated status for 2025 with a commanding 133-point win against Chadstone.

The Synners were able to match it with the Animals during the first quarter and even led in parts of it.

However, from the second quarter onwards, it became a scoring avalanche for the Animals as their experience would shine through for the remainder of the game.

Animals coach Glenn Hopkins was initially frustrated at his side, believing that they did not show Chadstone enough respect within the first quarter.

But after a strong message at quarter time, he was far happier with his team’s performance in the remaining three quarters as they were able to control possession and turn that into scoring opportunities.

While Chadstone are still winless, coach Ian Ledder would once again highlight that his side was able to play well for certain parts of the game but just needs to sustain it for a full four-quarter performance to be competitive.

Having coached Wattle Park between 2019 to 2022, Ledder made it a point to his players during the second half to observe the similarities between Chadstone’s and Wattle Park’s gameplan.

This became a point of emphasis for Ledder with his players also observing the similarities and taking confidence that if they can replicate this in their own game, then they might be able to replicate Wattle Park’s winning ways in the not-so-distant future.

For Round 6, Richmond Central will take on Chadstone at Jordan Reserve as they look to avoid having three losses in a row. Eley Park plays host to North Brunswick, while Box Hill North faces off against Swinburne with both teams looking to be 3-3 at the end of the match. Both Power House and Albert Park will be looking to continue their winning ways in their local derby clash, with just 600 meters between their fortresses, and Pit Lane their Great Wall. And to finish the round off, Wattle Park will head to Bundoora to face La Trobe.