Prahran dominate away from home in Division 1 Men’s

Brunswick (15.19 – 109) def Old Yarra (5.6 – 36)

The Old Yarra Cobras suffered another tough loss in their 73-point loss against Brunswick. Brunswick took a 58-point lead into half-time, with the Cobras unable to get their first goal on the board until the third term. In an upside for the team Old Yarra did win the final quarter, scoring 15 to 9 before the final siren.

Early in the game injuries forced a number of changes for Old Yarra, coinciding with Brunswick taking the early lead. Cobras coach Nathan Monaco said that “This is by far the most inexperienced team I have coached, so it’s about finding the wins within the game.” Those wins did come in the second half, as he was impressed to see his side’s ability to adapt, saying “we were outplayed and overcommitting numbers early, but was great to see with the adjustments at half-time”. The changes did lead to positive results, while Brunswick had a powerful first half, but the scoring significantly balanced as the game went on, with the Cobras able to go 34-49 in the second half.

Next week, Old Yarra will face off against an improving Kew side away from home. Being only one of two teams yet to get a win on the board, they’ll be fighting hard not to remain stuck at tenth. Meanwhile, Brunswick will host a significant match-up against top-placed Preston, who are coming off their own solid win against some of the best in the division.

Kew (14.17 – 101) def St Mary’s Salesian (12.11 – 83)

Kew and St Mary’s Salesian competed in a hard-fought game on the weekend. Kew took a three-point lead into quarter time and were only being able to extend that to five points at the half. However, Kew were able to break ahead slightly in the second half, setting up a roughly three-goal lead. St Mary’s were able to respond and had a chance to take back the lead, but were unable to capitalise, allowing Kew to build back the gap and get the win.

St Mary’s coach Heath Chipperfield said, despite the loss, he was “really proud of the group and their resilience”.

With a number of forced changes and a couple of debutants over the last couple of weeks, he still said he thought the side “played some of our best patches of footy for the year” and that  “a number of areas that we’d addressed previously were greatly improved from previous rounds, and a good sign of our growth.”

A key standout was Hamish MacMillan, whose work-rate and building confidence had Chipperfield thinking he “will be a wonderful footballer for us over a long period of time.”

Further shout-outs were given to the young players of Hearn, Circelli, and Moore who all stepped up in the middle.

In Round 5, Kew will be up against the struggling Old Yarra Cobras. Kew will try to get a winning streak started against a team that has yet to get a win on the board. St Mary’s Salesian will hope to get back on the winners list after their first loss of the season; however, they’ll be hosting Parkside, who similarly have just the one loss to their name against the top side in Preston.

Oakleigh (14.18 – 102) def Monash Blues (7.8 – 50)

A fast start from the Monash Blues saw them up 32 points to four at the first break.

However, Oakleigh quickly responded in the second term, making it a four-goal-to-one quarter to the away side. After the half-time break, Oakleigh took control of the game, stacking on another ten goals to eventually make it a 52-point victory over the Blues.

After a disappointing first term, Oakleigh coach Chris Worner gave the side a powerful pump-up to get them going. The side responded to this, limiting Monash to only two goals for the rest of the game. Worner said he challenged the side to have the lead by half time, a challenge they nearly accomplished, with him saying “if it wasn’t for Errant kicking at goal, then we would have been in front.”

Worner was impressed by his side’s ability to recover and increase their pressure in the second half, specifically giving praise to Mahoney, Heverin, Eadie and Roach’s domination of the contest. Furthermore, Tom Gillard had an enormous impact despite a heavy tag, alongside a massive effort from Deacon Kitts, dominating the ruck in his first senior game.

Monash will be hoping to get their first win on the board when they host UHS-VU, a side that suffered a heavy loss on the weekend and will be trying to find some upsides despite a significant injury toll. Oakleigh will play away from home when they take on Prahran, the winner of which will likely take second place and push their opponent out of the top four.

Preston Bullants (11.16 – 82) def Parkside (5.8 – 38)

Despite a valiant second half, Parkside weren’t able to keep up with top-of-the-table Preston. Neither team was able to kick a goal in the first quarter, although Preston took a six-point lead into the break due to plenty of missed opportunities. However, in the second term the Bullants took off, scoring seven of the next nine goals to create a significant lead. Parkside weren’t able to recover enough, eventually going down to Preston by 44 points.

In response to the loss, Parkside coach Rick Frost gave Preston their plaudits, he said “Preston were very good, they were far better at the contested possession around the ground.” However, it displayed a clear focus for his side going forward with key work needed in the contest. Frost further said “Contested possession is a big one and holding the ball for longer (execution) will be important for us.” A few names stood out to Frost, with Riley Williams, Corey McKay, and Michael Romano all impressing.

After suffering their first loss Parkside will be hoping to prove they are still a top contender when they face off against St Mary’s Salesian away from home. While Preston will try to extend the gap between themselves and the competition when they travel to Brunswick.

Prahran (18.16 – 124) def UHS-VU (2.4 – 16)

Prahran showed their class against University High School – Victory University in a dominant display away from home. In the 116-point victory Prahran controlled the game from start to finish at Brens Oval.

Prahran assistant coach Patrick Marks was impressed by his side’s defensive effort that restricted UHS-VU to the two goals for the match. Marks said, “The backline were very strong and allowed us to turn our defence into offence led by Jayden Williams and Ty Atkinson.” Marks was also impressed by the ruck duo of Harrison Cook and Rory Brodie, who were both dominant.

UHS-VU will hope to return to the positive start their season had when they face off against the Monash Blues away from home. A win for University would start to build a gap between them and the relegation bracket of the ladder. Prahran will be hosting Oakleigh, who are making a significant push towards the top two. The winner of this will take an early hold of the promotion bracket of the ladder, despite there being plenty of season to go.