A preview of week one of the 2014 WaterMarc Junior Finals Series.
In the Under 18 Girls competition undefeated South Morang takes on last year’s runner-up Diamond Creek Women’s with the winner to progress to the Grand Final. The Lions have taken all before them this season, winning 14 straight games en route to the second semi final.
Darebin Falcons and Mernda meet in the first semi final, with the Falcons only just missing out on second place and a second chance in the finals series. Last time the sides met it was Darebin who was a comfortable victor, winning by seven goals.
In the first semi final of the Under 17 Blue competition, South Morang takes on Research in the knockout clash. Both sides finished the season with seven wins and will go into this week’s clash full of confidence with both recording wins in the final round of the regular season. This match is set to be a tight one, with their last meeting decided by just three points, going the way of the Lions.
The second semi-final sees Diamond Creek and Montmorency play-off for a spot in the Grand Final. Both sides finished the season with ten wins but the Creekers will need a form reversal after they were well beaten by Research last weekend. The Magpies however will be full of confidence after finishing the season in style with an 89-point win over Epping. If previous meetings were to decide the outcome of this game, it could go either way. The Creekers won the last time they met by four points, despite registering just 15 behinds for the day.
The Under 17 Red competition pits Whittlesea and Diamond Creek in the knockout first semi-final. Whittlesea finished the season with eight wins whilst the Creekers finished with six wins. Diamond Creek heads into the game on the back of a narrow one-point loss to Yarrambat last Sunday. Whittlesea will go into the clash on the back of three-straight wins, including a 27-point victory over the Creekers which will give them good confidence.
Eltham and Hurstbridge will fight for the first place in the Grand Final when they lock horns in the second semi. The Panthers finished one win clear of the Bridges atop the table and will go into the match full of running having known they have beaten this side in their most recent outing. The Bridges will need to find some form quickly if they are to overcome a confident Eltham outfit, after they lost to Whittlesea in the final round of the normal season by a very convincing margin.
In the first semi-final of the Under 16 Blue competition, Eltham and Montmorency lock horns for a spot in the preliminary final. The Panthers finished the year with two more wins than their rivals, including a 19-point triumph when they met a month ago.
The second semi-final sees undefeated South Morang take on Mill Park for the first spot in the Grand Final. The Lions will be favourites, going through the season with 14 straight wins and having beaten the Stallions in their last clash by 15 points – their smallest winning margin for the entire season. The Stallions however have nothing to lose after winning their last four games of the season by big margins.
South Morang and Hurstbridge tackle each other in the first semi-final of the Under 16 Red competition. The Lions come in off the bye, whilst the Bridges are coming off a morale-boosting win over Mernda last Sunday. Nothing separated the two sides at the end of the home and away season, with both sides finishing with four wins apiece. However, the Lions will go in with a slight edge after beating the Bridges by 28 points in their most recent outing.
The second semi-final sees Greensborough and Thomastown compete for a place in the Grand Final. This is a mouth-watering clash with the Boro just edging out the Bears in top spot. The two times the sides have faced each other this season haven’t been decided by much. The Bears gave the Boro their only loss of the season in their first clash, whilst the Boro got their revenge in the final round, winning by three points. Thomastown will be looking to bounce back quickly from last week’s loss, after trailing by 21 points at three-quarter time and only just falling short of a great win.
In the Under 15 Blue competition, Wallan and West Preston lock horns in the knockout first semi-final. Both sides finished the season with six wins but the Magpies will go in with the slighter edge having beaten the Roosters in both outings this year, including a 22-point win last week. But the Roosters can take away something from last week’s loss, after winning the last quarter by three-goals to one.
The blockbuster second semi-final between South Morang and Epping will definitely be one of the highlights of the junior finals series. The sides have faced each other four times throughout the season, with the Pingers winning the first game before the Lions took out the next three – including a 20-point win last week. They will be sure to use this as confidence when they clash on Sunday for a spot in the Grand Final.
Eltham takes on Mill Park in the Under 15 Red competition’s first semi-final. The Panthers finished the season with seven wins, whilst the Stallions did well to jump into the top four. The Panthers will be on a high after winning their last two matches, including one against the Stallions. The other victory came last Sunday against the second-placed Yarrambat by three points.
The second semi-final pits Diamond Creek against Yarrambat. Both sides finished the season with nine wins, with the Creekers taking top spot with a superior percentage. Before last Sunday’s loss to Eltham, the Bats were on a five-game winning streak. That included a four-goal win over the Creekers three weeks ago. However, the Creekers have since responded well with two-straight wins.
Keon Park and Epping lock horns in the knockout first semi-final of the Under 15 Green competition. The Pingers definitely earnt their spot in the finals, notching up their second win of the season last Sunday over Kinglake to snatch the last spot in the finals. The Parkers however will go in as favourites, having beaten the Pingers twice this year.
Whittlesea and Bundoora Park lock horns for the first place in the Grand Final. The Eagles will go in flying high after they eased past the the Bolts last Sunday, adding to their three-game winning streak after a six-point loss to the Bolts earlier in the year. The Bolts will need to find some form quickly if they are too overcome the rampaging Eagles after some indifferent form of late.
In the Under-15 Girls, West Preston plays South Morang in the knockout first semi final. Little separated the sides on the ladder throughout the year, with the Lions winning their last encounter against the Roosters by 12 points.
In the second semi final, undefeated Montmorency will look for a 15th straight win when it meets Diamond Creek Women’s. The Magpies have been the side to beat all year and kept this week’s opponent to one behind when the sides met last.
In the Under 14 Blue competition, Laurimar Black and West Preston fight to remain in the finals in their first semi-final. The Power just missed out on a second chance but will be using that determination to produce a win over the Roosters this Sunday. The Power will go in with the slight edge, with the knowledge that they beat the Roosters in their last clash by 33 points.
South Morang and Montmorency meet in the second semi-final for a place in the Grand Final. The Lions will go in as favourites having going through the entire season undefeated. The Magpies also go into this clash with good form, after winning their last three games following their most recent defeat to the Lions.
The Under 14 Red competition sees Greensborough take on Wallan in the first semi-final. The Boro finished the year with eight wins and feel agonisingly close on percentage of a second chance, whilst the Magpies just held out Whittlesea for fourth place and a spot in the finals.
The second semi-final sees Mill Park tackle Research for the first spot in the Grand Final. Both sides will go in with confidence having won their last matches of the season. The Searchers will go in with the slighter edge however having beaten the first-placed Stallions the last time they met by 31 points.
In the Under 14 Green competition, Lalor and West Preston lock horns in the first semi-final. The Roosters take good form into the clash after beating Lalor by 15 points last week, ending their four-game winning streak. The Bloods will want to reverse that result this Sunday.
The second semi-final sees Diamond Creek take on South Morang Gold. The Lions may go in as slight favourites having comfortably beaten the Creekers the last time they met, and are also on a seven-game winning streak. The first-placed Creekers are on a four-game winning streak and will be out to produce a better showing than their last game against South Morang.
Good luck to all sides competing in the finals this weekend!
