MHSOB win fourth straight as Canterbury make statement — Division 2 Men’s Round 8 Review

Therry Penola 14.13.97 def Aquinas 7.5.47

A six goal to one first quarter domination from Therry Penola’s set up their 50-point victory over Aquinas.

“It was on the back of midfield clearance,” Therry Penola coach John Tate said. “Our captain Cairan Wrigglesworth and Jack Campagna got plenty of it and Jack Ivers with Ben Tarran created a lot of overlap running from defence which penetrated the Aquinas backline.”

Aquinas struggled to meet the demands of the game early. “We were just slow to start,” Aquinas coach Josh Quinlan said. “Had a few boys trying to find the pace of the game with limited senior footy games. Therry Penola made the most of it. Once we found the pace the damage was done.”

Tate described his side’s second term as poor with his side playing predictable and slow football, with the Lions’ backline saving them multiple times throughout the quarter. The Lions responded after half-time, kicking five goals in the third term. “At the main break I urged the midfield to increase their intensity, and we went back to our starting 18 as we believed it was our best-balanced side in recent weeks,” Tate said.

The Lions suffered two injuries early in the third, forcing a reshuffle. “For us to restructure and get momentum with fast, efficient ball movement was exciting,” Tate said. “Jack Viola and Patty Carracher took their opportunities and all but sealed the game.”

Since a slow start to the season, the Lions have built some momentum and become much more competitive. “Our team is very young, but cohesion is building and trust in our game style has improved since week 4, with our defence holding the opposition to low scores,” Tate said. “We believe with momentum we are going to compete with any side in the comp.”

Aquinas saw strong performances from Calum Pedretti, Jack Livingstone, Connor Lucas, Toby Box, Toby Love and Coby Law. Aquinas will look to bounce back against Whitefriars.

MHSOB 19.10.124 def Elsternwick 10.12.72

An eight-goal blitz in the last quarter sealed MHSOB’s fourth victory in a row. The first three quarters of the game were highly competitive, with multiple momentum swings.

“It was fairly contested and physical given the conditions, and when either side raised or dropped by five percent they would kick or concede goals in succession,” MHSOB coach Sean Lester said.

“I was happy with how we played in the first half, as I felt we were doing a lot of the basic things right and didn’t need to change much, just stick to the script.”

The Unicorns led by 14 points at three-quarter time after they kicked two goals late in the term.

“The contest was pretty even, but they were a bit more efficient at taking territory, which gave them the lead at three-quarter time,” Elsternwick coach Oliver Gildea said.

The last two goals of the third term gave the Unicorns the momentum they needed and catapulted them to an eight-goal final term.

“We started to move the ball better and fatigued them as they were chasing,” Lester said. “We kept it simple, which funnily enough works really well at this level. It was the same contribution from our players as the first three periods. Swenson was dominant in the ruck, captain Cardwell excellent off halfback, mids got muddy and young Felix Conboy used his youthful legs on the wing.”

The Unicorns have now won four in a row and seem to be building plenty of momentum.

“The positives are the balance of our young guys and the poise of the rest of our group who previously would’ve panicked and not regained composure as quickly,” Lester said.

“Our game style has jigsawed together with continuity of players.”

While Elsternwick didn’t get the four points, there was plenty to build on. “The positives for us were that our work in the contest remained strong,” Gildea said. “Lots of improvements needed in the coming weeks though.”

Power House 11.14.80 def South Melbourne 8.4.52

A three-goal-to-none fourth quarter secured Power House’s sixth win of the season. Power House led at all the breaks; however, South Melbourne remained in striking distance all day.

 “The first three quarters were a real arm wrestle, and the conditions made it tough contested footy,” Power House coach Nick Cox said. “South Melbourne were really good in the contest and took their chances when going forward.”

The final quarter was where Power House really got on top and showed why they have won six out of eight so far this season.

“I think we just wore them down, our midfield got on top and gave us more chances to score,” Cox said. “Our defence stood up well, which it always does when our midfield gets on top.”

“They had some great overlap run which we couldn’t contain, and they showed patience with the footy. They have a great spread of goal kickers,” South Melbourne coach Shaun Gould said.

“We also had our fair share of chances that we didn’t capitalise on.”

Cianan Doherty kicked three while Matthew Chisari, Luke Stubbs and Kieran Wotherspoon all kicked two goals for Power House. Power House also saw strong performances from Eoghain Delaney, Benjamin Circosta, Zane Westbrook and Kevin Mangan. After losing two in a row, Power House have now won two in a row and will look to make it three against a red-hot MHSOB.

The Bloods saw strong performances from Toby Bridger on his senior debut, as well as Athan Stamatelatosin his 100^th game and Jack Cotton. South Melbourne will look to bounce back against Therry Penola.

West Brunswick 7.6.48 def North Brunswick 5.8.38

West Brunswick held off a second half comeback from North Brunswick to record their third win of the season. West Brunswick dominated the first half of the game, with the Magpies kicking six goals to two.

“I thought we played some really solid football in the first half and, to be honest, probably could have taken a bigger lead into the main break,” West Brunswick coach Rick Pograri said.

“We controlled territory for long periods but didn’t put enough scoreboard pressure on them when we had the opportunity.”

After half-time, West Brunswick were restricted to just one goal. “Credit to North Brunswick, I thought they adjusted really well in the third quarter,” Pograri said. “The conditions deteriorated as the game went on and it became a real slog in the mud. They adapted to that well and made it difficult for us to play the way we wanted.”

North Brunswick’s adjustments were not enough to complete the comeback as West Brunswick hung on by 10 points. “I was really pleased with our last quarter effort,” Pograri said. “It was a tight, hard-fought contest and I thought the group showed a lot of character and fight when the game was there to be won. We were able to keep the ball in our front half for long periods and dominate territory, although we again struggled to convert that into scoreboard reward.”

North Brunswick will look to get their second win of the season against Elsternwick.

Canterbury 12.12.84 def Whitefriars 8.12.60

Canterbury put the competition on notice as they defeated Whitefriars by 24 points. Canterbury now sits alone at the top of the ladder, being the only team in the division with seven wins.

Whitefriars had plenty of opportunities throughout the course of the game as inaccuracy cost them, especially in the first three quarters where they kicked 2.11.

“They are by far the best team in the division, and they made it very difficult for us to get the looks we wanted but we also missed three or four goals we should and do kick each week,” Whitefriars coach Andrew Daou said.  

Canterbury took advantage of Whitefriars’ inaccuracy as they extended a 16-point half-time lead to a 35-point three-quarter-time margin.

“They are very good at controlling the tempo and corridor, we defensively didn’t work hard enough to stop them at their game,” Daou said. Whitefriars kicked six of their eight goals in the last, however, it was not enough as Canterbury kicked four of their own in the quarter, securing the four points.

Seb Gotch was outstanding once again for the Cobras, kicking five goals in a best-on-ground performance. Canterbury also saw strong performances from Michael Topp, Kyle Durdin, Finn Cleary, Michael Wheeler and Nathan May. Chevy Spurr, Michael Holland, Cameron Hayes and Jacob Blanck were among the best afield for Whitefriars.

After winning their opening six games, Whitefriars have now lost two in a row and will look to get back to winning ways against Aquinas away from home.