Kings in the clutch: Cellar-dwelling Caulfield stun ladder-leaders Scotch in another boilover victory

At the beginning of Round 7, the Caulfield Grammarians sat in the place of wooden spooners, despite a thrilling Round 6 victory to shift their record to 2-4 after starting the season 0-3.

Momentum in their season was silently beginning to shift, but to the casual viewer, the Fields’ lowly percentage suggested they were a long way from the competition’s best.

On Saturday, their greatest challenge yet awaited them. Old Scotch, who were the only side to sit undefeated with six wins, had commanded a minor premiership position, and had defeated Caulfield Grammarians by 95 points in Round 1.

To most, another thrashing result, let alone the win, was expected for the Cardinals.

But the Fields had come to play.

Caulfield got underway with a two-goal advantage at quarter-time, but Old Scotch managed to square the ledger again at the main break, 43-apiece.

A term of just five behinds to 17 points saw Caulfield extend the margin back out to two goals by the final quarter’s start, but the ladder leaders were always going to fire again.

The Cardinals charged home to kick another 20 points, but the Fields took the most of their opportunities in the fourth period to maintain their three-quarter-time advantage and produce a stunning boilover by five points at the final siren.

It seemed a David versus Goliath effort for the bottom-placed Caulfield to pull off an away victory against the top of the table Scotch, but this momentum shift in their season has been brewing across the month of May. Caulfield have defeated De La Salle and Old Xaverians in the last three weeks, but the combined margin of all three wins this year is just 13 points.

The Fields now move up to fifth on the ladder, and sit just a game behind University for an entry into the top four, however their percentage is at just 46.1.

That doesn’t faze Caulfield coach Cooper Rule however, who is buoyed by the sharp turn in form and the Fields’ upset on the weekend.

“A proud day for our team and the club,” Rule said, as Caulfield Grammarians won all eight fixtures across their respective teams and programs.

“It was a high quality contest and a great game to watch, with both sides playing that fast and attacking footy.

“It felt like we owned the match for most of it, but credit to Scotch, every time we looked to pull away, they found a way to respond.

“Our intercept work stood out and gave us real drive off half back, which set up our forward entries nicely. Plenty to like, and lots to build on.”

Quinn Cooper’s three goals deemed him Caulfield’s best afield, while Tom Farrer’s two for Old Scotch were of equal importance.

With Scotch suffering their first defeat, a new ladder leader has risen, as St Kevin’s defeated Old Xaverians by 69 points.

It was SKOBS’ defence that stood up yet again, forcing low percentage shots from the Xavs which resulted in an inaccurate scoreline of just two goals but 10 behinds.

Meanwhile St Kevin’s were contrastingly efficient, especially early on, tallying five goals and one behind in the first quarter to kick a score ultimately greater than what Old Xaverians achieved in the entire contest.

Mark O’Mahony was St Kevin’s’ best on ground while Lucas May has increased his buffer on top of the league’s goalkicking tally after another bag of four. Henry Lasscock, Tommy Trist, and Alby Hewitt were some of the best for Old Xaverians.

Old Brighton have also jumped up a rung on the ladder as they continue an unblemished start to the season with a 76-point win over De La Salle.

De La Salle were within just a couple of goals at quarter time but a ruthless second term from the Tonners saw the lead extend to nearly 50 points by the main break. De La tightened up in the third term and matched it with their opponent, but another blitz in the fourth quarter left little in doubt about the result, as well as the Tonners’ premiership credentials.

Old Brighton coach Travis O’Donohue praised De La’s initial defence but was proud his players could overcome the challenge.

“We knew De La Salle would be hard to beat on their home deck and they defended the ground really well in the first quarter and didn’t allow us to have any fast ball movement,” O’Donohue said.

“Our midfield, led by Cooper Dowe, started to get on top in the second quarter and managed to break the game open. Bailey McKenzie was exceptional up forward again.”

Joshua Murray and Samuel Cross were commendable for De La Salle, with the former kicking four of the club’s eight goals.

The University Blues have grinded out a 22-point win against a plucky St Bedes/Mentone Tigers outfit, maintaining their position inside the top four.

The Tigers were never out of the contest, always within touching distance at the end of each quarter, but the Blues kept gradually increasing their advantage each time.

Inaccuracy in the first half played a major factor in keeping SBMT alive as University converted just four of their first 14 scoring shots, while the Tigers had just half of those opportunities, yet only trailed by two goals at the main break.

University sharpened up in the next half however, and that turn in scoring prowess paid dividends by the final siren.

Charlie Summerfield, Will Vavallo, and Grant Walker were the Blues’ best on, while Keanu Nadji, Archer Duke, and Rhett Fernando found themselves in the best for SBMT.

In Round 8, Old Brighton look to continue their winning ways against Old Xaverians, while SBMT and De La Salle will be duelling to avoid a claim on the wooden spoon heading into the King’s Birthday weekend bye.

Caulfield’s next upset challenge comes against Uni Blues, with a win meaning their win-loss records even up and would place the Fields just percentage outside the top four despite their 0-3 start to the season, nearly completing a stunning 180 degree turn on their year.

Old Scotch will look to avenge their first season defeat and top ladder position against the new leaders St Kevin’s, who are still yet to record an official loss on the season.