Hampton celebrate first Senior’s victory in 580 days while Parkdale declare early dominance

Round 1 of the Premier C Men’s competition kicked off with a bang, with Fitzroy, PEGS, Hampton Rovers, Mazenod, and Parkdale banking wins to begin their 2026 campaigns.

Fitzroy 19.20.134 def Marcellin OC 10.3.63

A monster first quarter yielding 57-points set up Fitzroy’s dominant 71-point win over Marcellin.

Fitzroy raced out of the blocks with four straight majors to Marcellin’s solitary behind to have the wind in their sails at the mid-way point of the first term. The Marcellin Collegians rallied to cut the margin to 25-points when the quarter time-siren blew, as Caleb Barry, Elliot Atwell, and Patrick Curtain got involved.

However, this was the closest margin all day, as Fitzroy put the hammer down with a strong defensive performance in the second quarter to limit Marcellin to one scoring shot in the second term. Dan Shepherd, Ted Clayton, Caleb Harward, all became multiple goalkickers in the second quarter for Fitzroy, continuing to keep the scoring momentum going as their backs held Marcellin goal-less.

A much-improved third quarter followed for Marcellin, culminating in winning the third quarter, kicking two goals of their own as Fitzroy kicked inaccurately with four minor scores. Yet, Fitzroy coach Jack Dalton revved up the troops at the three-quarter-time break to will his team to score freely in the fourth term. An eight-goal quarter followed from Fitzroy side, with Dan Shepherd capping off an excellent first outing for 2026 by booting a handful. Vice-Captain Clayton kicked three goals, while Will Hodgman, Connor McAuliffe, and Luke Minahan were all proficient on the scoreboard.

Fitzroy begin next week’s ANZAC round with a clash against fellow Round 1 victors Parkdale, while Marcellin will be hopeful of responding against Glen Eira/Old McKinnon in their first home game of the year.

PEGS 11.17.83 def Glen Eira/Old McKinnon 5.6.36

PEGS tidy form-line to end 2025 has been carried into 2026, with a 47-point victory over Glen Eira/Old McKinnon.

Early-season cobwebs seemed to get the better of both sides in their first quarters for premiership points, as PEGS nudged in front at the quarter-time break with a two-goal lead. Reuben Stathis goaled in the 20-minute mark of the first term to give PEGS some breathing space in a tight tussle at PEGS Playing Fields.

Riley Simmons opened the second quarter with a clever finish for the home-side, before the visitors struck back courtesy of James French’s straight-kicking. Both teams missed opportunities at goal throughout the middle passage of the second term, leaving PEGS with a 14-point advantage at the main change.

From then on, PEGS broke the game open with frequent entries inside 50 giving Simmons, Matthew Barake and Ethan Caddeo opportunities to extend the home side’s margin to 39-points at three quarter time, putting the result virtually beyond doubt. Glen Eira/Old McKinnon struggled to get first possession, culminating in a score-less term.

Fourth-quarter goals from Caddeo, Simmons and Benjamin Murphy, put the icing on the cake for PEGS as they cruised to a 47-point victory at the final siren. Among Glen-Eira/Old McKinnon’s best were the Irishman Seamus O’Brien, Ashley Carey, goal-scorer Bobby Tang, Liam Taffe, and Jack Richardson.

PEGS will look to continue this winning formula as they finish Round 2 against St Bede’s/Mentone. Glen Eira/Old McKinnon travel to Marcellin to take on the Marcellin Old Collegians, aiming to bounce back after their Round 1 loss.

Hampton Rovers 17.12.114 def Old Peninsula 13.9.87

Round 1 was a momentous occasion for Hampton, as they notched up their first Senior’s victory in 580 days, leading at every break to win by 27 points.

Unfurling their Division 1 flag, Old Peninsula brought the intensity early on Saturday to lead mid-way through the first term. Hampton fought fire-with-fire as they brought their best physical game to the table. A late couple of scores from Hampton meant the Rovers took a seven-point lead at quarter time.

Not to be outdone in their premiership celebrations, the home side booted four consecutive goals courtesy of Kurt Thiele, Rohan Heasley, Edward Evans-Brumby and Nelson Forrest. Hampton broke their second quarter duck with a major at the 13-minute mark, as the Rovers’ younger-side began to beat the Peninsula on the outside with run-and-carry.

Rovers Coach Paul Carrigan said his young side just out-ran and inevitably, outran Old Peninsula despite both sides enduring a deadlock for most of the second and third quarter.

“Our younger blokes ran them off their legs”, Carrigan said, noting that Hampton had 10 Under 21 representatives in their playing 18. 

Four late goals in time-on in the fourth quarter put the Rovers out to a healthy advantage, running out 27-point winners. Both teams suffered a few casualties, leaving no players on the interchange by the final siren.

In next week’s fixtures, the Rovers play host to Ormond, while Old Peninsula look to rebound against Mazenod at Harry MacDonald Oval.

Mazenod 11.13 79 def St Bedes/Mentone 10.13.73

The closest game of the round was decided by a single goal as Mazenod knocked off the Tigers at Mentone Reserve.

Boasting a tall forward line, Mazenod got off to a strong-start with Hayden Boyce booting truly in the fourth minute of the game — his first of five majors for the afternoon. After a defensive tussle, the Tigers evened the ledger through a Lachlan Palfrey goal. It wasn’t long before Shaun Levell imposed himself on the contest to kick two late goals to give Mazenod a six-point lead at quarter time.

It was goal-for-goal in the second quarter, with familiar names Lehpamer, Bowles, Boyce, and Palfrey hitting the scoreboard for their sides to leave the game evenly poised at half-time.

This trend continued for the third quarter until the mid-way point of the fourth term. With the score 73-apiece at the 19-minute mark, it was truly anyone’s game. Jack Caspersz goaled, then the man-running hot, Hayden Boyce delivered the knock-out blow for Mazenod. 

St Bede’s/Mentone coach Joel McKee was impressed with his team’s ball movement and ability to stay with Mazenod till late in the fourth term.

“We just couldn’t do it for long enough,” he said. “We didn’t get our moments right in the last (quarter). If we did, we’d win the game!” A loss like this hasn’t deterred any spirits for McKee’s men.

St Bede’s/Mentone travel to play PEGS as Mazenod face off against Old Peninsula in ANZAC weekend football.

Parkdale 26.18.174 def Ormond 6.7.43

Parkdale have established themselves as the premier side in the competition after a 131-point drubbing of Ormond.

The win was achieved off the back of a dominant display from former Cat, Demon, and Bomber, Mitch Brown, and forward Jye Elcock. Brown ran riot in the forward 50 with nine goals, while Alcock was pretty handy himself with four majors.

Ormond Coach Kyle Pinto addressed his side’s limited pressure as a decisive factor in the game.

“We had poor pressure all day,” he said. “We lost two players in the first quarter, one of which was our gun ruckman O’Toole” .

On the contrary, Owen Lalor was chuffed with Parkdale’s opening round performance, highlighting that all facets of the game were in good order against Ormond.

“The contest around clearances was good and our back seven were terrific with a lot of intercept marks and support” Lalor said.

Aside from Brown and Elcock, Lewis Castle, Kai Day, Liam Marshall, and Darcy Brown were among the best on ground for the winners.

Parkdale’s victory sets up an intriguing Round 2 clash with Fitzroy at W.T.Peterson Oval, while Ormond take on Paul Carrigan’s Hampton Rovers.