Preston hearts broken as Oakleigh take fourth spot

The Preston Bullants season has come to a grinding halt after the narrowest of defeats at the hands of UHS-VU, going down by 3 points in a thriller at Ruthven Reserve.

The job at hand for Preston was clear. Win – and you qualify for finals.

A competitive first quarter saw plenty of momentum build up for both sides with Preston claiming the early goals before UHS swiftly responded. Both sides had plenty of scoring opportunities and only four points separated the two sides at the first break, going the Bullants way.

The Bullants had the run of the play in the second quarter in a four goal to two display as the Vultures failed to convert in front of goal, allowing Preston to push ahead and build up their lead to 14-points at half-time.

The narrative thus far flipped in the third term as the Vultures worked hard in defence to limit the Bullants to just one goal, as UHS showed they will be a contender in 2026. They overturned their deficit to lead by 1-point at three-quarter time, though could’ve been much further ahead as inaccuracy continued to trouble them: 9.5 (59) to 8.12 (60).

The stage was set for a thrilling final quarter as UHS came out firing with four early goals to shatter the home Preston crowd who could feel this one slipping away and extend the lead out to 26 points. However, to Preston’s credit, they did not give up and played with grit knowing their season was on the line. The Bullants found three goals to bring themselves right back in this game, trailing by 6-points entering time-on.

Despite the best efforts of Preston with multiple opportunities inside 50, the footy kept going through the behind line as the Vultures hung on for a determined 3-point victory, meaning that Preston’s hopes for finals qualification would be reliant on the Oakleigh and Monash Blues result. The final scoreboard read 12.11 (83) to 12.14 (86).

UHS’s Brandon Jackson had another outstanding performance with four goals to take his tally this season to seventy-one majors, whilst Luke Green, Liam Sutton and Dean Calcedo were amongst the best players for Preston.

Unfortunately for Preston, Oakleigh thrashed the Monash Blues by a massive 123-points to book their finals ticket and knock the Bullants out of the four.

With a finals spot up for grabs, Oakleigh showed their intent early with five goals to two in the first quarter, and could’ve been much further ahead with eleven scoring opportunities in the first term. The Krushers quite literally crushed Monash in the second quarter as their forward pressure turned up a gear, kicking five goals and six behinds whilst leaving the Blues scoreless, providing Oakleigh a huge 60-point lead at half-time.

The story was much the same in the second half as Oakleigh’s forwards booted another eleven goals whilst Monash could only manage two more majors. It was a given that Oakleigh were going to win, so all that was left was for pundits at the ground to keep an eye on the Preston vs. UHS-VU score, as the Oakleigh faithful crossed their fingers for a Preston loss.

The Krushers got their wish and their emphatic victory coupled with Preston’s loss has granted Oakleigh fourth spot and a finals berth.

With an average score of 96 points this season, Oakleigh will no doubt be looking to disrupt the order this final series and see if their key forwards can cause damage.

Oliver Thomson and Elliot Black starred for Oakleigh with five and four goals respectively.

Ormond achieved a well-deserved feat of going through the entire season undefeated with their 22-point victory over Brunswick.

Kyle Pinto’s men set the tone early as all lines went to work to leave Brunswick scoreless in the first quarter. Brunswick improved in the second quarter as they found opportunities inside 50, but Ormond nonetheless led by 21-points at the main break.

Both defences held firm at the start of the third quarter with a long period of no goals being scored, until the drought ended with five late goals spread amongst both sides, so Ormond’s lead had gradually increased to 32-points at the final change.

Brunswick had a successful fourth quarter and outscored Ormond, but it was a case of too little too late as Ormond had done the required work to sew up victory and claim their eighteenth win and perfect home-and-away record for season 2025.

By no means have the Monders had an easy run home, playing three of the top five teams in the last four weeks, so will be primed for their next challenge against 2nd-placed Old Peninsula.

A strengthened Old Peninsula side, with the re-addition of former Melbourne Demons captain Nathan Jones, aided the Pirates to a 79-point victory over Kew to lock up their double chance in the finals.

The first quarter was a bit of an arm wrestle as neither side managed to grab hold of the game, with Kew kicking three behinds to Old Peninsula’s one goal and five behinds. However, this quickly changed in the second quarter as the Pirates showed why they deserve a qualifying final kicking eight goals to one to work up an impressive 51-point lead at half-time.

The Bears responded in the third term with two early goals and then a late goal to Regan Smith, but the damage had been done as their 45-point deficit at three-quarter-time proved to be too much to come back from as the Pirates stormed home in an attacking last quarter.

This result sees these teams remaining where they were on the ladder, with the Pirates securing the double chance, whilst Kew hold 3rd spot and will be meeting up with Oakleigh in the elimination final.

Bradley Schuurman was one of the standout players for Old Peninsula with four goals to his name – three of those coming in the fourth quarter.

With both sides set to be relegated to Division 2, it was Therry Penola who ended their season on a positive note with a 13-point victory over Elsternwick.

The Lions experienced success in front of goal at both the early and latter stages of the first quarter, with two late goals giving them a 22-point lead at quarter-time.

Elsternwick were more consistent in the second quarter to bring themselves right back into the contest and reduced their deficit to just 9-points at half-time.

It was game on in the third quarter as both sides made their opportunities count inside 50, but Therry Penola were ever so slightly ahead, and notwithstanding a surge in momentum and intensity from the Wicks in the fourth quarter, the Lions held on to record their third victory of the season.

Patrick Carracher was key to Therry Penola’s forward line with five goals going his way.

The competition pivots to finals with the home and away season demonstrating that Ormond, Old Peninsula, Kew and Oakleigh are the four most deserving teams. However, keep an eye on the Preston Bullants and UHS-VU, particularly, who had strong seasons and will be back to prove a point next season.

The qualifying final sees Ormond hosting Old Peninsula. Ormond would appear to be favourites considering they went through the season undefeated. However, in their matchups with Old Peninsula this season, the Monders only managed to defeat the Pirates by margins of 12 pts & 4 pts, so it will be game on at Trevor Barker Beach Oval.

The elimination final sees Kew taking on Oakleigh at Coburg City Oval. Just one game separated these sides all season, however Kew did convincingly beat Oakleigh in their two matchups this season.