Following some fascinating results last weekend, it’s hard to predict what Round 16 of Melbourne Greyhounds Division 1 will serve up this Saturday.
All eyes will be on Ben Frilay Oval when Hurstbridge and Greensborough meet in a season-defining contest for both clubs.
It’s a similar situation to when these two sides met this time last year, where a Round 17 triumph for Hurstbridge away from home sealed their first ever finals appearance in the top flight.
This time around, the victor of Saturday’s game can potentially end the round as high as third but regardless, will be in a great position to finish in the top five with a fortnight remaining,
Hurstbridge come into this clash off the back of an important win over bottom placed Macleod, with the 58-point triumph their largest margin of victory in a game since Round 6.
Key names in Joel Naylor, Mitch Moschetti and Cameron Wild all returned to help secure the four points, with Naylor and Wild combining for seven goals.
But this weekend marks the start of a difficult final three matches to conclude the home and away campaign, with games against the current top two teams still to come.
It means a win over Greensborough is even more crucial, despite their opponents coming off a massive upset victory over top of the table Heidelberg last week.
The Boro kicked six goals to one in the last term to run over the top of the Tigers, with Tom Brindley and Zac Hart starring in their return to the lineup, alongside Jamie Smith, Angus Seivers and Tom O’Sullivan, while Zak McCubbin added another five goals to his season tally.
Matthew Hyde’s men will look to end a two-game losing streak against Hurstbridge this weekend. Their most recent loss to Joel Cordwell’s side came in Round 7 by 55 points at War Memorial Park.
But Greensborough does boast a pretty impressive record out at Ben Frilay Oval, having only lost once at the venue since the Bridges’ return to the top flight in 2017.
An out-of-form Banyule outfit will look to return to the top five and the winners list when they welcome Bundoora to Beverley Road Oval.
It’s been a difficult month for the Bears, who have now lost three of their past four games to sit outside the top five on percentage with three matches to play.
Last weekend saw them go down to Eltham, conceding an 18-point three quarter time lead to lose by that margin at Panther Place.
With no Jack Langford or Tim Martin at their disposal, it was the likes of Reuben and Vivian Blackmore-Moore who tried to stand up for their side, while Joshua Collins impressed in just his third senior game of the season.
If they can claim the four points this weekend, a return to the top five would be certain ahead of games against West Preston-Lakeside and North Heidelberg to round out the campaign.
But the Bears will be weary of a Bundoora side who came agonisingly close to their fourth win of the season in Round 15.
The Bulls missed an opportunity to create some separation from bottom-placed Macleod, falling two points short against West Preston-Lakeside at Yulong Reserve.
Jackson Davies and Peter McEvoy’s impressive campaigns continued, with Davies named as Bundoora’s best yet again and McEvoy kicking three goals.
Whilst they are still the lowest scoring side in the competition, Heath Scotland’s men will sense an opportunity to kick a winning score against a team who have conceded 90 points or more in three of their previous four matches.
If they do prevail, they will have a two-game gap, plus percentage over Macleod, ahead of a favourable fortnight with games against the Roos and Eltham to come.
Only two points separated these two teams in Round 7, and with plenty on the line for both sides, we could be in for a similarly close contest.
A fifth consecutive win is the task for North Heidelberg ahead of their clash with Eltham at Shelley Street Reserve.
With four straight victories under their belt, the Bulldogs have gone from competing in a serious fight for a top five spot, to just being a win or two away from securing a double chance spot, the first time they would do so in Division 1 since 2019.
The most impressive of their recent triumphs came at Montmorency Park last week, when they put the Magpies to the sword in a strong 52-point win.
Parker Heatley stole the show up forward once again with another six goals, while the midfield trio of Liam Hunt, Jesse Tardio and Tom Wallis excelled to produce a comfortable victory for the Bulldogs.
Lachlan Smith was also outstanding in defence, finishing in his side’s best for the third time in seven matches.
For the winning ways to continue for Jason Heatley’s side, they’ll need to topple Eltham, who last week produced their best victory since returning to the top flight this year after prevailing over Banyule.
Led by Sebastian Molloy’s six goals along with the terrific efforts of Declan Ayres, the Panthers were able to move two games clear of the bottom of the table in the 18-point victory over the Bears.
Whilst safety is not mathematically certain just yet, their strong effort over a finals bound side almost seven days ago will give Eltham plenty of confidence against the in-form Bulldogs.
But Tim Bongetti’s men will want to at least improve on their last meeting with North Heidelberg back in Round 7, where they gave up the first 12 goals of the match before cutting the margin back to 40 points by full time.
Heidelberg will aim to quickly return to the winners list when they take on hosting duties against West Preston-Lakeside at Warringal Park.
For the first time since Round 4, 2023, the Tigers come into a match off a defeat, with their loss to Greensborough last week ending a 31-game unbeaten streak.
The match was tight all afternoon, but they were kept to just one goal in the final term, with the 28-point defeat their largest loss in a match since Round 12, 2021.
Luke Bunker still managed to finish as his side’s best player to continue his remarkable campaign while Jack Andrew keeps performing well in the absence of leading goalkicker Zane Barzen, having now kicked majors in eight consecutive matches and in nine of his 10 senior games in 2024.
Whilst this weekend’s contest looks to be a relatively easier game on paper, they won’t want to take a youthful West Preston-Lakeside outfit lightly.
Ian Aitken’s men recorded back-to-back wins for the first time this season, after holding on to defeat Bundoora by two points away from home last week.
A runner up in last year’s Division 1 reserves league best and fairest, Luke Vincitorio has slotted into the senior side well, with goals in his two matches, while finishing in his side’s best on both occasions.
Co-captain Max Dreher has also had mentions in his side’s best in the previous fortnight and is putting together his best patch of form in 2024.
But even in search of a third straight win this weekend, West Preston-Lakeside will need everything to go right to claim a win over a Tigers outfit who defeated them by 105 points at J.E. Moore Park back in Round 7.
Montmorency will aim to put a disappointing performance last round behind them as they welcome Macleod to Montmorency Park North Oval.
Despite coming into the previous round in red hot form, the Magpies were unable to replicate their efforts of previous weeks, going down comfortably to a rampant North Heidelberg side by 52 points.
It continued a trend which saw Montmorency move to a 2-5 record in 2024 when failing to score 70 points or more in a game after being kept to 8.15 in the loss to the Bulldogs.
Marcus Lentini was the most consistent player for Nick Rutley’s men last week and will be a pivotal player for his side’s top three hopes in the last few games of the regular campaign.
Regardless, the Magpies will sense a great opportunity when they take on Macleod, who currently sits on the foot of the ladder and need to claim a scalp in the next few weeks if they are to play Division 1 football next year.
The Roos were unable to match it with Hurstbridge at De Winton Park, going down by 58 points, suffering their ninth defeat by six goals or more in 2024.
The side’s up and coming stars in Darcy and Mackenzie Hogg, as well as Zachary Hudson still finished in the team’s best in what would be a positive for the club, while Jordan Corelli finished in his side’s best for the third time in the previous four matches.
Montmorency have well and truly had Macleod’s measure in recent years, winning their last five battles by an average margin of over 73 points.
You would expect more of the same in Saturday’s clash, but as we have seen in the top flight already this season, upsets are capable.
