Top four continue to prevail as clubs prepare for mid-season changes

The top four of Holmesglen Under 19 Premier Men’s have continued to stamp their authority on the competition, creating a three-game buffer between teams inside and outside of current finals calculations.

Old Scotch ended a two-game losing streak; however it didn’t come without an almighty challenge by De La Salle.

The Cardinals appeared to have a stranglehold on the contest at three-quarter-time after a congested, low-scoring first half, increasing their lead of 16 at the main break to 36.

However, De La fired every shot they could in the final term whilst restricting Scotch to just a goal and a behind. De La Salle had nine scoring shots before the final siren, but managed to convert just four into majors, leaving the fifth-placed side ruing chances to steal the win at the eleventh hour.

De La Salle coach Nick Walsh said there were “some good learnings” to be taken out of the valiant defeat.

“It was probably a game that got away from us in the third quarter,” Walsh said.

“It was quite even in the first and second terms however Scotch were more clinical in terms of ball movement and in front of goal.

“The bigger bodies got the better of us after half time, but we changed a few things up and added some speed into the middle to kick four goals to one in the last.”

Old Scotch’s Tom Wenzel was influential with four majors, while Louis Breguet was deemed best afield for De La.

A scintillating fourth quarter by St Kevin’s toppled any chance of an upset for St Bedes/Mentone Tigers after the Tigers caught SKOBS off-guard to begin the contest.

SBMT brought “real heat” to the contest early on, wrestling out a quarter-time lead that was maintained nearly through to the main break. St Kevin’s were able to click into gear somewhat towards the end of the second term however and regain the margin in their favour, overturning a 15-point deficit to a six-point lead.

“I challenged the players at half time to stamp our own physicality on the contest. To our credit we responded and got the game on our terms,” St Kevin’s coach Paul Greenham said.

Limiting the Tigers to just 10 points in the third period of action, the six-point lead grew to 23 points, however SBMT remained a live chance in the contest at the penultimate siren.

Enter St Kevin’s’ Lucas May.

The current leading goalkicker of the competition delivered a 15-minute burst that even his coach couldn’t comprehend.

“With the game on our terms I asked the boys at three-quarter-time to get to work on efficient ball use. I didn’t envision the last quarter response that came through,” Greenham said.

Call it a flow state, or a mindset of being “in the zone”, May illustrated exactly what all athletes strive to achieve, and his St Kevin’s teammates ensured that the hot hand – or boot, rather – was fed.

May had two goals up to three-quarter-time. By the final siren, he had finished with nine.

It was a stunning individual display, aided by quality deliveries from the most lethal attacking team in the division. The near-four-goal lead at three-quarter-time ballooned out to 82 at the final siren, thanks to St Kevin’s’ 10-goal-to-one term.

Johnathon Gambaro and Tom Conlan were also amongst SKOBS’ best, while Liam Napier was deemed best-on-ground for SBMT.

University Blues have survived an arm-wrestle with Old Xaverians, with multiple lead changes throughout the contest.

The Blues led by under a goal at quarter-time, but the Xavs pipped the lead back at the main break, setting up a tantalising upset opportunity.

University fired off the long break however, kicking four goals to one in the third term before a back-and-forth final quarter saw Old Xaverians fall short by just 14 points.

Uni Blues coach Steve Boakes said after the match that the Xavs’ current position on the bottom of the ladder doesn’t reflect the quality of their team, lauding the opponents for their fighting effort.

“When Xavs get off to a good start they are always hard to contain which was the case again… We refocused at half time and were much better in the second half, but Xavs are a much better side than their ladder position would indicate,” Boakes said.

“Captain Carl Ziebarth led by example while Will Richter and Tom Hill were effective in creating plenty of scoring opportunities with strong defensive pressure up forward.”

Lone multiple goalkicker Charlie Landrigan was amongst the best for the Xavs.

Old Brighton have escaped trying windy conditions at Glen Huntly Park with the four points after they were challenged early by Caulfield Grammarians.

Caulfield established a 10-point lead by quarter-time thanks to a heavy breeze making it extremely difficult for the Tonners to exit their defensive half.

“It was really challenging conditions for both sides with a strong wind to the Neerim Rd end. We really struggled exiting out of our backline in the first quarter and Caulfield’s forwards made us pay on some back half turnovers,” Old Brighton coach Travis O’Donohue said.

“We knew we had to capitalise when kicking with the breeze in the second and Andrew Langworthy stood up and won some really important one-on-one contests inside 50 for us.”

Take advantage of the wind Old Brighton did, kicking five goals to two in the second half to reclaim a solid two-kick buffer.

The Tonners were then able to mitigate Caulfield’s attack in the third term, allowing for just five behinds while scoring two further goals themselves, before once again performing well with the win to increase the final margin to 32 points.

Langworthy and Charlie Richardson were the Tonners’ best, while Jude Fountain and Eddie Gibb were admirable in defeat for the Fields.

While there is now a three-game buffer between fourth and fifth, an intriguing patch of the season is upcoming, as multiple clubs have confirmed they are set to deal with a mid-season player exodus due to overseas trips and the university exam period.

It presents as an interesting window for clubs in the lower half of the table to challenge for upsets and bridge the gap between the top four and the rest.

In Round 10, De La Salle host the Uni Blues, while a top four battle between Old Brighton and Old Scotch could shift the standings in the upper portion of the table. Old Xaverians and SBMT will both be looking to bounce back in their clash, while Caulfield will travel to TH King Oval to take on St Kevin’s.