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The Upset of the Year as Snowdogs keep their season alive, adding another relegation race twist – William Buck Premier Men’s Round 16 Review
Photo: St Bernard's
The unpredictability of the 2026 William Buck Premier Men’s season was on full display as the bottom team defeated the top team to throw another curveball into the intense 5-way battle to avoid relegation.
Is it 5-way now?
Let’s take a closer look:
St Bernard’s pulled off The Great Escape in 2025 to dodge relegation with two late wins, and the Snowdogs have revived their hopes of dodging the drop once again by knocking over the league-leading University Blues at Melbourne University.
The first term was heavy sledding for both teams, with just 0.2 apiece as it quickly became apparent that the flag favourites were in for a tough slog against a determined outfit fighting for its survival. No quarter was asked for or given, with the general play stats confirming what the eye could see – a very even and honest contest.
The opening goal of the game didn’t come until the 10-minute mark of the second term, when Blues’ focal point Sam Grimley marked on the lead and converted from 45 metres out.
But the Dogs promptly responded via their own spearhead, Matthew Watson, who booted 2 goals in 2 minutes.
The first came from forward-half pressure that created a turnover, allowing Oliver Liberatore to drive it long to Watson, who ran into an open goal. The second came from the centre restart – Watson held at the back of the pack as a long kick sailed inside the Forward 50. His conversion handed the visitors a 10-point lead, and reward for 45 minutes of hard work.
The competition’s leading goalkicker, James Stewart, is a perpetual threat and, sure enough, he impacted the game in the shadows of half-time as he skirted a throw-in at left half-forward, received a quick handball and drilled a classy goal on the run from 40 metres out just inside the boundary to reduce the Dogs’ lead to 5 points at the major break.
The Blues started to gain a slight edge in contested ball in the third term as they tried to break the shackles, and when young gun Charlie Cotter ran into an open goal 2 minutes in, he tied the scores, which remained locked together until St Bernard’s own young shining light – Daniel Gilham – restored the Dogs’ lead 7 minutes later with a lovely long-range finish from left half-forward.
Gilham then doubled the visitors’ advantage to 12 points with his second major at the 15-minute mark – a tidy snap from 30 metres out after receiving a handball from a front-and-centre crumb – and the Snowdogs’ belief was starting to build.
When Finn Shannon bobbed up to boot two in two minutes during time-on, St Bernard’s had kicked the last 4 goals of the game to open a 25-point lead as they headed to the three-quarter time huddle full of energy.
All in attendance expected the Blues to respond to the challenge, and when the Blues went coast-to-coast from a kick-in, resulting in a James Stewart goal 75 seconds in, followed by Jeremy Goddard hitting the scoresheet with a quick snap from a ball-up in front of goal, the home team had slashed the lead to just 13 points only 4 minutes in.
The pressure was now on the Snowdogs as the Blues began to turn up the heat. The visitors were cracking in and getting first hands on the footy, but their Kick Efficiency of just 35% told the story as they repeatedly handed possession and territory back to their hosts, who racked up 17 Inside 50s to 6 in the final term.
But unfortunately for Matt Smith’s men, they couldn’t capitalise as the goals dried up. The Blues booted the next 3 behinds of the game to close within 10 points early in time-on. However, they couldn’t find the elusive goal that would have brought them within a kick, as the Snowdogs held their nerve and held the Blues to their lowest score since Round 13 last year.
Charlie Vague added a couple of late behinds for St Bernard’s, who pulled off the Upset of the Year to keep their hopes of avoiding relegation alive with a fighting 12-point win that moves them within a game-and-a-half of safety with two to play.
If they can continue their giant-killing form and knock off the reigning premier the week after beating the league-leaders, they could move within half-a-game of Old Trinity if SKOB do the Dogs a favour this week.
And who do the T’s play in the final round? Yep – the Snowdogs – which would set up a blockbuster Round 18 Elimination Final to determine which of them drops to Premier B next season.
Charlie Vague finished with 31 disposals, 5 tackles and 7 clearances for the winners, while Ben Overman had 27 touches and 9 Rebound 50s in a typically hard-working display.
Jack O’Sullivan was best for the Blues, finishing with 24 disposals, 10 marks and 9 Rebounds, while Geordie LaCava continued his excellent season with another 35 touches, 6 tackles, 4 clearances and 8 Rebound 50s.
Uni Blues’ 10-game winning streak is over and, in reality, the only thing left for them to play for before September is the minor premiership. Their one-game lead over Xavs has evaporated, but they remain top by just over 5%. Their focus is to finish strongly against Caulfield and St Kevin’s, then rest up and get ready for a tilt at their first top-flight flag since 2004.
THE RUN HOME:
St Bernard’s: Old Brighton (H) Old Trinity (H)
Uni Blues: Caulfield (H) St Kevin’s (A)
St Bernard’s 6.13 (49)
University Blues 5.7 (37)
GOALS:
STB: Watson, Gilham & Shannon 2.
UB: Stewart 2; Grimley, Goddard & Cotter 1.
BEST:
STB: Ben Overman, Charlie Vague, Thomas Zafiropoulos, Nico Conlan, Luke Said, Finn Shannon
UB: Jack O’Sullivan, Geordie LaCava, Joe Furphy, James Curran, James Stewart, Nick Conway
Steve Alessio (St Bernard’s): “It’s great to see some late-season momentum and belief in this group. Their efforts in the back half of the season have been fantastic, and this game was a great, contested style of footy by both teams.
“Uni Blues have so many quality players, and we just had to make sure that each of our boys played their team role to help each other on the day.
“Our willingness to win the contested ball and repeat that effort all day held us in good stead until the end.
“Our mids were formidable, our backs stood up against their twin towers, and our forwards battled hard and converted when necessary.
“All I’m asking of this special group of players is to give that same effort for the last two rounds of the season.”
Matt Smith (Uni Blues): “The game was a real arm wrestle and not overly pretty to watch. St Bernard’s were certainly the ones who set the physicality early and got to work around stoppage far better than we were able to. Off the back of that, they were able to hold territory for the large majority of the game.
“We just couldn’t manufacture ways to get the footy into our forward half for long enough to trouble the scoreboard. We had a patch early in the last quarter when we showed glimpses of getting our game going, but St Bernard’s stuck at it for longer and were deserved winners on the day.
“A shoutout to our two debutants up from the Under 19s who both impressed and looked comfortable at the level – Lachie Gilligan and Charlie Stevens.”
Old Xaverians effectively locked in the double chance and reignited the race for top spot with an impressive 39-point win over St Kevin’s at Toorak Park.
The hosts owned territory in the opening term, racking up 17 Inside 50s to 9 as they shaded SKOB in contested ball and their ability to intercept the other way. 4.1 to 1.0 was the result, with all 4 goals coming from turnovers as they opened a 19-point quarter-time lead, with Charlie Knott, Sam Fisher and Campbell Lane combining for 27 touches.
For two teams that are generally so polished, both continued to struggle to hit their targets by foot in the second term, with the ball pinging between the arcs as turnovers prevailed. But it was Xavs making most of the running by virtue of their dominance around the contest.
SKOB pulled an early goal back via Rising Star nominee Doug Kerr, before Xavs struck a double blow, with back-to-back majors from Ollie Sestan (who was having a major influence) and Ed Delany from the resultant restart after an extended scramble and desperate St Kevin’s pressure led to a floating ball to the top of goalsquare which he drifted back and marked.
Suddenly, the margin was 26 points midway through the second term and the visitors needed to respond, which they did via a mark and goal to youngster Archie Dollman, who is also playing St Kilda VFL this season. A brief scuffle ensued as St Kevin’s looked to make a statement, while Xavs refused to yield.
Their response was virtually immediate, with Julian Gangi gobbling up a clever tap from Charlie Knott to stream into an open goal, then Ollie Sestan marked at the top of the goalsquare to kick his third, and Gangi added his second, as the hosts powered away to a 40-point half-time lead.
St Kevin’s muscled up on the inside after half-time and started to win more football as a result, with Billy Coates, George Delimitrou, and Archie Dollman trying to lift their team. However, SKOB’s Kick Efficiency remained at 52%, and they failed to string meaningful possession chains together as a result.
So, despite winning more contested football and clearances, they ended up with 4 fewer Inside 50s for the third term and lost the quarter 4 goals to 2, slipping 57 points behind at the last change – Xavs feasting on their turnovers once again.
It was more of the same in the final term, with SKOB dominating contested ball (14 Clearances to 3) but unable to fully capitalise on their territorial dominance (17 Inside 50s to 5) due to their 40% Kick Efficiency. In the end, they won the quarter but lost the battle – 3 goals to 1 in the last term reducing the final margin to 39 points.
Old Xaverians’ 13th win of the season effectively seals the double chance, given they now sit 2 games (plus 16%) ahead of the third-placed Skobbers with two games to play. It also keeps the minor premiership race alive, given they rejoin Uni Blues on points, separated now by just 5.23%.
Campbell Lane was awarded the SKINS Player of the Day for yet another stellar performance that saw him finish with 30 disposals, 4 tackles and 5 clearances, while Tom Dunne had 20 touches, 8 marks and 8 tackles.
Premier defender Will Goss made a welcome return after missing 4 games with a shoulder injury – he slotted straight back into the groove with a game-high 35 disposals and 10 Rebound 50s. Ollie Sestan’s influence on this team continues to grow, and he finished with 14 possessions, 8 marks and 3 goals.
It’s not often that a player finishes with 10 disposals but is named best afield for his team, but that was SKOB’s Jack Andriske in this one, with his 10 touches complemented by 12 One Percenters in a hard-working team-first performance that pleased his coach, Anthony Lynch.
Young gun Liam Gunson was superb with 27 disposals, 5 tackles, 5 clearances and 9 Inside 50s, while Billy Coates finished with 21 disposals, 58 hit-outs and 13 clearances in his battle against Alec Spralja.
St Kevin’s are certain to finish third or fourth, so their focus will be more on process than outcome over the next couple of weeks.
They have been steadily regaining Best 22 players in recent weeks and appear likely to add to their returns with another handful this coming week as they head to Daley Oval to face the T’s, who will be fighting for survival, before a pre-Finals test against the Blues in the final round.
THE RUN HOME:
Old Xavs: Old Haileybury (A) Old Scotch (H)
St Kevin’s: Old Trinity (A) Uni Blues (H)
Old Xaverians 14.10 (94)
St Kevin’s 8.7 (55)
GOALS:
OX: C.Macisaac 4; Sestan 3; Gangi 2; Knott, Delany, Guiney, Spralja & Fisher 1.
STK: Kerr 3; Darmody & Dollman 2; Cooper 1.
BEST:
OX: Campbell Lane, Thomas Dunne, Marcus Stavrou, Oliver Sestan, Nick Guiney, Sam Hansen
STK: Jack Andriske, Liam Gunson, Archie Dollman, Jack Darmody, Sam Cameron, Jack Mahony
Dan Donati (Old Xavs): “Good game of Ammo footy on the weekend. Both sides probably not quite full strength, but both had plenty to play for with Top 2 in play.
“In the first half, in particular, we managed to get the game on our terms, which got the scoreboard ticking over whilst making it hard up the other end.
“SKOBs kept coming, like we knew they would, and had the better of the last term, but the damage had been done to ensure an important win for us.
“It was an even team performance all over the park, which is what you’re looking for coming towards the end of the season.”
Anthony Lynch (St Kevin’s): “Old Xavs were certainly the better team on the day and deserve to be in that Top 2 position, based on what we saw Saturday.
“They were well drilled and had an even contribution across all areas of the ground.
“It was disappointing that we were not able to compete at the level required in a game of those stakes, so we have a month now to work on our game, and we will reward the players who want to dig in and compete hard.”
Old Scotch could breathe easier on Saturday night after moving a game further away from relegation, courtesy of their 34-point win over Caulfield Grammarians at Glen Huntly Park.
It was a free-flowing opening term, with both teams hitting their targets and racking up Inside 50s, which made for entertaining football, given the first six scores of the game were all goals (3 apiece) inside the opening 21 minutes.
Another 4 majors in time-on (2 apiece) kept the scoreboard operators on their toes as the teams headed to quarter time with the visitors holding a slender 5.2 to 5.0 lead – Scotch with the advantage, given they’d been kicking into the breeze.
The Cardinals then took control with the wind in the second term, ramping up their ball-winning and clicking their much-vaunted interception game into gear, which they used to establish their damaging uncontested game. They took 12 Intercept Marks for the quarter and generated an incredible 11 Scores from Turnovers for the term.
While failing to take full toll on the scoreboard (kicking 4.8), it was classic Cardinals footy – intercepts and uncontested chains (33 Uncontested Marks for the term), delivering 78% Disposal Efficiency, 4.8 to 0.1, and a handy 33-point half-time lead.
As they’ve done all season, the Fields refused to go quietly and responded after half-time. Cooper Lean struck first for Scotch to make it a 39-point margin, before Caulfield tackled their way back into the game. Scotch’s Kick Efficiency fell from 72 to 61% as the Fields won their share of inside ball, and did a better job denying the Cards’ outside movement.
The result was the next 4 goals of the game to the hosts, with excellent young find Ethan Lakman contributing two of them as the Fields stormed back to within 16 points approaching time-on in the third term.
Old Scotch needed a steadier and they found two, with goals to Tom Farrer and Cooper Lean in the space of two minutes re-establishing some control. Veteran Julian Dobosz continued his excellent form with a response for the Fields, who headed to the final huddle with an outside chance at 21 points down.
But any thoughts of a stirring comeback win were snuffed out by the Cardinals booting the first 3 goals of the final term via Farrer, Will Clark and Harry Robenstone, blowing the margin out to a game-high 41 points.
Caulfield coach Paul Satterley would have been pleased with his team’s refusal to turn their toes up and allow a heavy defeat, given that percentage may still decide the relegation race.
So, while the scoring tap was turned on late, his team added a further 4 goals to 3, lessening the damage of a 34-point loss that leaves them precariously positioned just half a game clear of the drop zone.
The 7th placed Fields sit 5% ahead of Old Trinity, and half-a-game ahead of Old Haileybury who, fortunately for them, both lost on the weekend as well.
Pat Fairlie and Julian Dobosz were their best – Fairlie collecting 31 disposals, 6 tackles, 9 clearances and a goal, while Dobosz had 22 disposals, 6 clearances, 5 Inside 50s and 3 goals in an excellent display.
Tom Farrer was brilliant for the Cards, finishing with 31 disposals and 4 goals, while Charlie Cormack did what he does best – intercept marking at will, on his way to 29 touches and 8 marks as he controlled the game from behind the ball. Big man Will Clark once again made his presence felt with 27 disposals, 11 marks, 4 clearances and 3 goals.
There are going to be some nervous moments for all these relegation race clubs in the coming fortnight, and the VAFA app is going to cop a ferocious workout over the next two Saturdays as fans and officials keep a close eye on the Around the Grounds updates.
Caulfield have two very challenging opponents to deal with as they continue their fight for survival.
No such concerns for the Cardinals faithful now, given they sit two games (plus 19.01%) clear of relegation with two games to play. It would take a monumental reversal of fortune for Old Scotch over the closing fortnight, albeit they face two very dangerous opponents well capable of putting anyone to the sword…
THE RUN HOME:
Old Scotch: Uni Blacks (H) Old Xavs (A)
Caulfield: Uni Blues (A) Old Brighton (H)
Old Scotch 18.18 (126)
Caulfield Grammarians 14.8 (92)
GOALS:
OS: Farrer 4; Lean & Clark 3; Milner & Robenstone 2; Jones, Fergusson, Badr & Japp 1.
CG: Loughnan, Gibb & Dobosz 3; Lakman 2; Ellwood, Cooper & Fairlie 1.
BEST:
OS: Tom Farrer, Charlie Cormack, Will Clark, Jack Brown, Angus Jones, Cooper Lean
CG: Patrick Fairlie, Julian Dobosz, Eamonn Walker, Eddie Gibb, Archie Loughnan, Declan Reilly
Mark Gnatt (Old Scotch): “It was a great game of footy between two young sides looking to take the game on.
“I said after we played Caulfield in Round 1 that they would win their fair share of games, and this has proven to be the case. ‘Satts’ has done a brilliant job in leading his squad, and they play a positive style of footy and thoroughly deserve to be in A-Grade in 2027.
“We were really pleased to play our game for large chunks, with the second quarter being the one where we had a great reward for our system.
“Caulfield showed great spirit to come back at us in the third quarter, so our ability to absorb that pressure and then finish off the match was pleasing.
“Tom Farrer and Charlie Cormack were outstanding in their respective roles and were instrumental in the victory. Angus Jones also provided a lot of drive through the midfield and connected well with our forwards.
“We are keen to finish the season off on a positive note, so we look forward to taking on Uni Blacks this weekend.”
Paul Satterley (Caulfield): “Once again, the stats will show our pressure and tackle pressure were high, so the defeat was not through lack of effort or willingness to compete.
“Scotch was able to kick a decent score into the wind in the first quarter and maximised it again in the second quarter. 9.7 v 9.8 in the second half would suggest we were far better, but unfortunately, the damage was already done. 7 goals between Clark & Farrer were telling.
“We brought back Dec Reilly for this game, after he had retired in 2022. It was his 150th game for the club, and 22 disposals & 34 hit-outs was an outstanding effort. Patty Fairlie was a standout for us, plus Jules Dobosz and Arch Loughnan gave us targets ahead of the ball.
“We hope to settle the side down in the final two games, after 17 personnel changes in two weeks, which makes it difficult to get consistency.”
It was another ‘8-point relegation game’ at Daley Oval, with University Blacks proving too strong for Old Trinity.
The Blacks started strongly around the contest as they did last week against Xavs, booting 4 of the first 5 goals to leap out to an early 17-point lead.
The T’s got their uncontested marking game going, taking 27 in the opening term to successfully retain the football. Despite their different methods, both teams connected repeatedly with their targets Inside 50 to generate 5 scoring opportunities apiece, with Blacks slightly more accurate to lead 4.1 to 2.3 at the first change of a high-quality contest.
Goals proved hard to come by in the second term, with Blacks ultimately finding the only three of the quarter – 2 from turnover and 1 from a kick-in. They were dominating ball-ups, winning 11 to 3 for the term, but neither team was able to convert possession into score until midway through the quarter.
The first goal took 17 minutes and went the Blacks’ way when Tom St.Clair marked low down, went back and slotted a tidy acute set shot from 48 metres.
Harrison Kelly then stuck a tackle in the goalsquare to add another 25 minutes in, followed by more great front-half pressure that led to a T’s turnover that ended with Jack Drummond bending a set shot through from the pocket to make it a 26-point Uni Blacks advantage at the major break, after they added 3.1 to 0.3 for the term.
Dom Payman struck first for Old Trinity after the break, but back-to-back goals in a hurry from Tom St.Clair & Kane Loftus extended the margin to 33 points, and the Blacks were comfortably in control, dominating clearance (16 to 8 for the term), and pouncing on turnovers.
They added another two majors either side of time-on to make it a 44-point game, before late goals to Ed Chard and Dom Payman (his third) reduced the margin to 38 at the last break – the Blacks kicking 5 goals to 3, all from T’s turnovers.
Ty Palmer put the result beyond doubt with the opening goal of the final term, as the Blacks piled on some additional pain with the only 3 majors of the last stanza to extend the final margin to a game-high 56 points – their largest win since defeating the winless De La Salle by 70 points in Round 7 last year.
Ruck Sam Conway was singled out for praise by the Blacks’ coaching staff, who named him best afield for his hard-working 50 hit-out performance in the ruck. He has enjoyed a fantastic season, and will poll more Best & Fairest votes here.
Harry Broderick followed up last week’s 38 touch display with another 30 (18 contested), 10 clearances and 6 Inside 50s, while Seb McNamara, Harrison Kelly, Ty Palmer and Joel Ernest were also amongst the visitors’ best.
Lachie Mulcahy has fast become a favourite of Old Trinity’s departing coach Donald McDonald and was amongst the T’s best. Hugo McGlashan racked up another 29 touches and 7 clearances, while James Ingpen & Sam Barendregt (19 apiece), Sam Phillips (23 and 7 Rebounds), Campbell Dytor (21 and 8 tackles), and Christos Manoussakis (24 and 6 clearances) all had an influence.
The precious 4 premiership points secured by the Blacks here kicks them a game clear of the Bloods, with a handy percentage boost that sees them a game and almost 20% clear of the Bloods with two to play.
The danger is that they will face Old Haileybury in the final round, so if the Blacks can’t get over Old Scotch this week, but the Bloods upset Xavs, that final round clash will be the relegation decider.
For Old Trinity, it’s a loss that leaves them where they were before – half-a-game ahead of Old Haileybury and a game-and-half ahead of St Bernard’s. But much like the Blacks, they will face their danger in the final round – the Snowdogs at the Snake Pit.
If they fall to SKOB this week, and the Snowdogs pull off another upset against Old Brighton, that final round clash will be an Elimination Final.
This relegation race couldn’t be scheduled any better!
THE RUN HOME:
Uni Blacks: Old Scotch (H) Old Haileybury (H)
Old Trinity: St Kevin’s (H) St Bernard’s (A)
University Blacks 15.8 (98)
Old Trinity 5.12 (42)
GOALS:
UB: St.Clair 3; Grocott, Kelly & Skipper 2; Alao, Loftus, Cassidy, Drummond, Enticott & Palmer 1.
OT: Payman 3; Hindson & Chard 1.
BEST:
UB: Sam Conway, Harry Broderick, Seb McNamara, Harrison Kelly, Ty Palmer, Joel Ernest
OT: Lachie Mulcahy, James Ingpen, Sam Phillips, Sam Barendregt, Campbell Dytor, Christos Manoussakis
Dale Bower (Uni Blacks): “We certainly played with a lot of spirit and energy. I thought our work at the contest was very good and gave us good territory. The big ground at Trinity suits our running capacity these days.
“We had six changes from the Xavs game, with three guys making their debut, another playing his first game for the year, and one more playing his second game of the year. These guys all contributed well, which says a bit about our depth.
“Shoutouts to our new faces – Charlie Skipper, who is a medium-sized utility from North Launceston (via Uni Blues). Jude Enticott is a half-forward/midfielder from Lorne (via Uni Blues), and Ethan Preston is small/medium defender from Lake Wendouree.
“All three have had great form in the Reserves, and their debuts were only delayed by mid-season trips…”
Donald McDonald (Old Trinity): “It was back to an even game halfway through the second quarter after they started well. However, we did not take our chances, and Blacks did, and went to half-time with a five-goal lead.
“They showed their strength and depth in the second half by going on to a really strong win.
“We have learnt plenty as a club this season after stepping up to Prem A, and our players now know what they need to do if we want to compete consistently at this level.
“Lachie Mulcahy has really stepped up as a great leader, taking on every role we have thrown at him with a competitive attitude that sets a great example to his teammates.
“You look at the ladder and the season as a whole, and we should take enormous pride in the fact that we have shown we can compete. However, to be a finals threat, we needed to do it for longer in games and more consistently from week to week.
“This week and at this time of year, it’s about freshening up. St Kevin’s belted us last time, and since then, we’ve been very competitive, so it’s all about recovering well and being physically ready to take them on again.”
The final game of the round saw Old Brighton officially punch their finals ticket for a third straight season with a dominant 12-goal win over Old Haileybury at Brighton Beach Oval.
The Bloods got away to a handy start, booting 3 of the first 4 goals, with James Blight accounting for two of them. But we’ve seen the Tonners’ methodology so many times before – set up well behind the ball, apply pressure to the opposition ball-carriers and feast on turnover the other way.
Archi Manton got on the end of a bullet pass from Sam Flockart to goal entering time-on, then intense front-half pressure saw the Tonners win the footy back at centre half-forward, allowing Ben Pryor to release Luke Travers into an open goal, and the hosts were in front.
Hamish Dick added another in the shadows of quarter time after being taken high on the boundary line in the left forward pocket. He stepped around and snapped a magnificent goal from the tightest of angles to send the reigning champs to the opening huddle with an 8-point lead.
The early stages of the second term saw Old Brighton seize control of the scoreboard by pouncing on disputed and loose balls, then using it far more effectively. They kicked the first three majors of the second term to establish a 26-point lead, with Harry Hill, Finn Campigli and Archi Manton all adding to the scoresheet.
Full credit to Old Haileybury, who refused to drop their heads and responded with the next three goals of their own, as the game shifted the visitors’ way. James Blight was channeling Malcolm, booting his third goal, which was followed soon after by Tom Antonis and Durras Seccull as the margin shrank to just 10 points.
The Tonners needed to steady the ship, and as good sides often do, composed themselves and stemmed the bleeding before their lead disappeared entirely. Goals in time-on to Tom Burnell, Ben Pryor and Ollie Goodger saw the reigning premiers back in control with a 5-goal lead at the major break.
Then it was time for the flex.
Old Brighton rolled up their sleeves and took over from the inside in the third term, owning clearance 18-6 and winning Contested Possession 54-29 off the back of dominant ruck duo Felix Flockart and Josh Carr, who combined for an incredible 9 Hit-Outs to Advantage to 0 for the quarter.
It was a powerful yet balanced display of physical footy, with the Tonners also controlling the skies to both intercept mark then hit targets Inside 50. The result was 5 goals in 15 minutes, effectively putting the result beyond doubt, as the Bloods’ Kick Efficiency plummeted to just 43% as they struggled to retain possession under the intense heat.
Leading by 70 points at the last break, the Tonners added 2.3 to 2.1 in the final term to ultimately run out impressive 72-point winners in a performance that will please coach Marcel Bruin as his side starts its tune-up for its September title defence.
Old Brighton had winners all over the park, with Archi Manton once again reinforcing his ability to shape the finals series, finishing with 24 disposals, 13 marks and 5 goals in a brilliant performance. Tom Burnell was in everything to finish with 27 touches, 5 clearances and a goal, while twin towers Flockart and Carr gave their mids first use all afternoon.
Brede Seccull was best once again for the Bloods, racking up 26 disposals, 8 marks, 4 tackles and 3 clearances, while Max Sievers (20 disposals and 5 clearances), and Rising Star nominee Jasper Russell (32 and 9 Rebounds) both saw plenty of the Sherrin as well.
This defeat leaves Old Haileybury half-a-game from safety. They trail Uni Blacks by one game plus 20%, plus Caulfield and the T’s by half-a-game in the race to survive.
They will face the Blacks in the final round, but given their inferior percentage, will need to upset Old Xavs at Princes Park this week if they want to then get a crack at overtaking Blacks in Round 18 (should Blacks fall to Old Scotch this week).
Not only would a Bloods upset over Xavs potentially put them in a position to leapfrog the Blacks in Round 18, it might also see them jump over Caulfield and Old Trinity this weekend, given both will start as outsiders in their clashes against finalists the Blues and St Kevin’s respectively.
So, it’s far from over for Old Haileybury, but they need to win at least one and have other results fall their way.
Meanwhile, Old Brighton are locked and loaded for another September, with a couple of matches against non-finalists to come before what looks almost certain to be a cut-throat First Semi Final against St Kevin’s.
THE ROAD AHEAD:
Old Brighton St Bernard’s (A) Caulfield (A)
Old Haileybury: Old Xavs (H) Uni Blacks (A)
Old Brighton 19.18 (132)
Old Haileybury 9.6 (60)
GOALS:
OB: Manton 5; Dick, Pryor, Goodger & Brooks 2; Burnell, Hill, F.Flockart, F.Campigli, Agg & Travers 1.
OH: Blight 3; Mavropoulos, D.Seccull, Gilliam, Woodman, Hardeman & Antonis 1.
BEST:
OB: Archi Manton, Tom Burnell, Marlo Hofmann, Josh Carr, Ben Pryor, Oliver Goodger
OH: Brede Seccull, Max Sievers, James Blight, Emerson Jones, Durras Seccull, Jasper Russell
Marcel Bruin (Old Brighton): “Haileybury was a very different-looking side to earlier in the season, with a lot of injuries taking talent out.
“We wanted to continue to work on our method and build our game style, which we saw a bit of – more so through the second half. It was pleasing to kick a score, and statistically we got a lot of opportunities, but Haileybury still defended those entries effectively when we didn’t choose the right option.
“It was a much more consistent game and a pleasing result to lock in another finals opportunity.
“Archi Manton was fantastic all day and so dangerous when 1-on-1, and our mid group got going, with Josh Carr feeding the smalls consistently. Ben Pryor was a solid contributor again, as was Marlo Hoffman down back.
“Nice to get everyone through and stay healthy. We’re looking to keep building momentum into the next challenge – Bernard’s at the Snake Pit, after they just knocked over the benchmark of the comp.”
Guy Martyn (Old Haileybury): “It was always going to be a tough challenge. They’re getting most of their players back and are clearly ramping up for a finals campaign, whereas we had seven outs from the week before, including three debutants, so we knew we were going to be up against it.
“Although the scoreboard probably doesn’t reflect it, I thought we showed pretty good fight for most of the game. There was a 10–15 minute period in the third quarter where we dropped our heads a little, and our body language wasn’t where it needed to be, but outside of that I thought the boys competed pretty hard.
“I was particularly pleased with some of our younger guys who kept having a crack against a much more experienced side that looks well placed for an exciting A-Grade finals campaign.
“We’ve got two games to go, and we know exactly where we’re at — we need to win at least one of them. Hopefully we’ll be strengthened over the final couple of weeks with a few players returning from injury and some VFL seasons coming to an end.
“We’ll regroup and have a crack at getting a scalp against Xavier this week, and then we’ve got Uni Blacks in Round 18.”
WILLIAM BUCK PREMIER MEN’S – ROUND 17
Saturday, August 22 – 2pm:
Old Haileybury vs Old Xaverians 1.45pm – VAFA TV & SEN app
Old Scotch vs University Blacks 1.55pm – Kommunity TV
University Blues vs Caulfield Grammarians 1.55pm – Kommunity TV
St Bernard’s vs Old Brighton
Old Trinity vs St Kevin’s
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