Friars taste defeat for the first time in 2025

Round 6 of the Division 2 Men’s competition saw Old Yarra Cobras and St Mary’s Salesian deliver strong performances to maintain the top two spots on the ladder, while South Melbourne registered their second win of the season. 

South Melbourne backed up last week’s big win over Hawthorn with a tougher 13-point win over Canterbury at the Canterbury Sportsground. The 54 points scored by the Bloods was the lowest by any winning side to this stage of the season.

The low-scoring affair saw the lead change after every quarter, with South Melbourne kicking three goals to one in the final quarter to see them claim the four points.

Bloods coach Nick Abbott described the win as another step in the right direction, and a good learning experience for the playing group in how to win a game where things didn’t always go their way.

“[There’s] still plenty of improvement to come, and we’re looking ahead to some more tough battles over the next couple of weeks to keep our season alive,” he said, with his side now sitting seventh on the ladder.

Old Yarra Cobras continued their unbeaten start to the season, grinding out an 11-point victory against West Brunswick at Ransford Oval.

The Cobras, who were already missing roughly 10 players from their first-choice side, lost Will Fleming to a calf injury in the warmup and Callum Copeland to concussion following on off-the-ball hit in the third quarter.

Old Yarra coach Nathan Monaco was stoked with how his side – especially some of the younger players – stepped up to keep their winning streak alive.

“Joel Glassborow got a little bit of a lesson form Billy Irving (five goals), but he was very good across half back, Adam Papatheodorou came in for his first game in a while with a goal and some really good pressure, and Yaya Bushnaq had plenty of run and carry; he’s just relentless,” said Monaco.  

St John’s turned a 19-point deficit into a 17-point victory in in their clash with Hawthorn, squaring their win-loss record for the first time this season. The Hawks kicked six goals to two in the first half, with Ethan McLaren and Jack Kenny bagging two each.

JOC’s coach Tim Edwards said it was the worst first half he had seen his side play, leaving him wanting to tear his hair out and deliver an almighty spray during the main break.

But St John’s flipped the script with a six goal to two third quarter to lead by one straight kick going into the final term, a lead they wouldn’t relinquish for the remainder of the contest.

Edwards highlighted the efforts of makeshift ruckman Aydan Unger, who competed well despite having only a handful of senior games to his name.

“Ayden’s never played ruck before, and the Hawthorn ruckman was about two feet taller than him, but he was one of the reasons we got back into the game in that third quarter,” he said.

MHSOB notched up their third home win over the season, outclassing Aquinas by 74 points.

The Bloods were competitive early, trailing by four points at the first break, before the Unicorns took jumped out to a 31-point lead at the half and a 48-point lead at three quarter time.

The 74-point victory was MHSOB’s largest win of the season, surpassing the 41-point win over Canterbury in Round 2. Will Hellier bagged five goals for the Unicorns, while James Lees and Matthew Pereira also made valuable contributions with four each.

St Mary’s Salesian handed Whitefriars their first loss of the season, controlling the match after half time to finish with a 78-point victory.

Saints coach Clay Tait felt their opponents adjusted to the wet conditions more quickly when the rain came in during the second quarter, was happy with how his side kept a level head and stuck to their structures.

“We had good structure both defensively and offensively, so when it did slide forward, we were set up for it. We were quite composed under pressure, which was really good,” he said.

Jacob McElroy proved an important target up forward in his first game since Round 3, finishing the day with five goals.

“Having him back in the side makes a massive difference, he’s a forward who knows where to get and hits the scoreboard every week,” Tait said.

Whitefriars coach Lucas Matthews said his team struggled to match St Mary’s physicality around the contest, which meant they were unable to slow the opposition down with repeat stoppages.

Round 7 action sees Whitefriars play Hawthorn; with both sides looking to bounce back this is shaping up to be a good contest. Meanwhile the Old Yarra Cobras welcome MHSOB to Koonung Reserve. Elsewhere, second-placed St Mary’s Salesian square off against fourth-placed West Brunswick at Ferndale Park, South Melbourne are aiming to make it three wins in a row against St John’s, and Aquinas will be looking for their first win of the season when they host Canterbury.