Someone’s ‘0’ has got to go! AJAX and Parkdale victories increase the magnitude of this Saturday’s collision

Premier C Men’s pacesetters in AJAX and Parkdale Vultures continued their undefeated starts to the season in Round 7, ensuring their rendezvous at Gerry Green Reserve this Saturday, is perfectly poised.

AJAX came out in a mood, adapting well to challenging conditions, generating a significant buffer heading into first break. This 32-point deficit only grew in the second quarter, with Glen Eira/Old McKinnon, who saw the effectiveness of their talismanic talls handicapped by the considerable wind, unable to match it with Lachlan Buszard’s table-toppers.

The match ended 16.10 (106) to 7.6 (48), with Nick Lewis winding back the clock for the Jackas, and Sean Bass making it eight goals in the last fortnight for the Gryphons, after kicking three majors. Toby Lipton and Elliot Debinski also drew Buszard’s praise, while all three Carey brothers received nods in Guy Martyn’s bests, alongside usual suspects Lachlan Mirams and Nick Mavropolous, whose seasons continue to impress, despite the Gryphon’s lowly ladder position.

A professional final quarter in Glen Waverley saw the Parkdale Vultures pull away from Mazenod. The Nodders fought gamely in the third, halving the halftime deficit, but the weight of territory in the last proved too much, with Owen Lalor’s side kicking five of the contest’s final six goals. The final score reads 12.11 (83) to 6.5 (41), ensuring the Vultures trail AJAX on the ladder by percentage only.

Peter Banfield’s Nodders are in the midst of a tricky month of fixtures. May has so far seen the side play three of the top four, with the fourth, in St Bedes/Mentone Tigers, awaiting them on Saturday. Banfield, never one to shirk the realities of the coaching caper, offered that his side ‘have lots of work to do to recapture some form’, and lamented the continued absence of last year’s Premier C Best and Fairest, and team co-captain, Matt Fewings.

Keeping pressure on the top two with a sixth victory from their first seven games is St Bedes/Mentone Tigers. The 11.18 (84) to 5.10 (40) win away at Parkside was another performance powered by the efforts of leaders Matt Lehpamer and Lachlan Palfrey, according to second-year coach, Brad Berry.

“Palfrey is really growing into leadership,” Berry said. “He’s displaying good old-fashioned captaincy – he does whatever the team needs, whether it be relief ruck work or providing timely goals.”

“Lehpamer and (Jake) Ryder are adding offensive and defensive elements to their games, which have been previously built on purely in-and-under prowess, which is also pleasing,” he added. Mitch Rowe’s ability to ‘find another gear’ in the last quarter saw him round out Berry’s bests.

With the game delicately poised at 33-30 at halftime, the Tigers recorded seven of the eight second-half majors to run out victorious, with Devils coach Rick Frost crediting the opposition’s ball movement for this run. “They did very well to cut us through the middle of the ground,” Frost said.

Devils livewire Matt Holden continues to raise the eyebrows of opposition coaches, and his own, with his performances, with Michael Romano, Harry Dehne and Josh Moylan also afford mentions in Frost’s wash up. However, Moylan’s concussion in the fixture provides another selection challenge for Frost to navigate.

In Windy Hill, PEGS mixed it with Beaumaris early, before the Sharks midfield gained the ascendancy, against an undermanned Bombers engine room. The match finished 16.13 (109) to 8.2 (50) in Beaumaris’ favour, although the margin doesn’t reflect the tight nature of the contest.

A decision made by PEGS coach Rob Kerr to swing a midfielder behind the ball to start the second half kept the game the attritional, with both sides registering a solitary goal apiece in the third quarter. 20 minutes into the last, Beaumaris had added just one point to their halftime advantage, before three goals in five minutes, inside time-on, inflated the margin.

Sharks coach Josh Bourke often praises his side’s fitness, and this late flurry adds credence to his notion that his side ‘runs games out really well’. In-form midfielders Riley Mihailovic and Riley Virtue, and utility Jai Florent continued their strong seasons, while first-year commodities Harvey Backman and Angus Marcombe continued their solid starts to life as senior footballers, combining for three goals and impressing around the ground.

Oscar Bales ‘held down the fort’ for Kerr, taking several strong intercept marks, while defender Sahand Ghasimzadeh impressed in his second game back from cricket commitments, finding himself in the bests. “He will help our youngsters a lot with his smarts and talk,” said Kerr. Ruckman Ade Akintola played his third game for the year, after the St Albans recruit injured his hamstring in Round 1.

 “Like a few other teams, we need to get a few back to challenge that top bracket for longer,” mused Kerr, no doubt pleased to have this experienced pair easing their way back into senior football.

Elsewhere, Marcellin recorded their first victory on the road for the year, trouncing Prahran at Toorak Park, in what head coach Bernie Dineen described as ‘really good reward for effort’. Dineen was at pains to mention the competitiveness of his charges across the last six weeks, despite registering just the one win in that period. Finally getting some nourishment, in the form of a 14.16 (100) to 8.3 (51) victory, pleased Dineen greatly.

“The statement made by our leaders was indicative of their character, and I’m proud of that,” he said. These leaders (the likes of Adam Tomaro, Matthew Capetola, Shaun Tyquin, and Patrick Howe) again found themselves in the bests, with Dineen describing their contributions to the year as ‘enormous’.

“We invested in leadership heavily during the pre-season – how does it look across our whole program? Training, reviews, recovery, and obviously gameday. These boys are driving us forward,” he added.

The victory moves Marcellin into a logjam of sides sitting 2-5 on the year, while Prahran remain winless, and in 10th, with their next chance to register a breakthrough victory coming in the form of a trip to 9th-placed Glen Eira, this Saturday.

In the last weekend of fixtures before the King’s Birthday bye, 1st-placed AJAX visit 2nd-placed Parkdale Vultures in the match of the round, while 9th plays 10th when Glen Eira/Old McKinnon host Prahran in Carnegie. Marcellin test themselves with a visit to Beaumaris, PEGS host Parkside and St Bedes/Mentone Tigers journey to Glen Waverley, where Mazenod await.