WE’RE now one month into the 2015 campaign and there are no undefeated sides in Division 1, following Heidelberg’s defeat at West Preston-Lakeside last week.
With every side having slipped up at least once, a log-jam has already been created at the top end of the ladder with just four points separating the top seven sides in the competition.
At the bottom end, perennial finalists Bundoora and Montmorency sit eighth and ninth respectively with just a win apiece. However those two have a chance to play catch-up this week, with the top six all set to play each other in Round 5.
The highlight of the round is without question the grand final rematch between Heidelberg and Greensborough at Warringal Park. Both sides are locked in a three-way battle with Macleod for premiership favouritism and this week’s encounter is sure to provide a great insight into where these two sides sit in the pecking order early in the year.
The Tigers were finally on the wrong end of close result last weekend, falling to West Preston-Lakeside by 10 points in an upset at J.E. Moore Park. Without Paul Bower and Michael Finn, the Tigers battled throughout and managed just eight goals. Michael Looby was again in the best players, while Charles Gaylard continued his fine start to 2015.
Greensborough beat North Heidelberg by 109 points, amassing 34 more scoring shots even without key talls Josh and Nick Riddle, and Tim Atkins. Josh Grubb shot to second place on the goal kicking table with seven majors and he and Rhys Boyden have now combined for 31 goals in four matches. Matthew Hyde and Tristan Stead also ran rampant in the big win.
The second of the top-five encounters takes place at Bill Lawry Oval where Northcote Park will look to extend its unbeaten start at home when it rolls out the welcome mat for Lower Plenty.
The exceptional foot skills of Wayne Schultz and Harmit Singh, added with the grunt of Luke Svarc and finishing of Koden Colman helped the Cougars return to winning ways in last week’s 35-point triumph over Montmorency. Tom Walliss also stood out in his defensive post.
Lower Plenty is still yet to win at this venue since returning to the top flight in 2012, and will hope to end that drought with a fourth win from five starts in 2015. Vin Dattoli’s side was brave in victory last week – fighting back when it appeared it would be overrun by Eltham. Matthew Vasilevski was best, while talls Justin Raiti and Patty Flynn excelled.
Top of the table after beating Bundoora in extremely trying circumstance last weekend, Macleod makes the road trip to Eltham where it will meet the sixth-placed Panthers – a match-up which generally produces close finishes.
Lucas Hobbs again reminded everyone why he was such an important pick-up for the Roos in the off-season and produced arguably his third best-on-ground performance last week. The representative midfielder is sure to be one of the favourites for the Frank Rosbrook Trophy at this early point in the season and was well supported by Reid Brandt (four goals) in last week’s win over the Bulls.
Eltham was left to rue a golden chance to move 3-1, with a slow start and late fadeout proving costly in last week’s loss to Lower Plenty. The Panthers found themselves six goals down in the opening term and despite hitting the front in the last quarter, couldn’t hold out the Bears. That was despite another bag of six goals from James Kroussoratis.
Strengthened by the return of David Rodan, West Preston-Lakeside improved its record to 2-2 when it beat Heidelberg last week and the Roosters will now look to go ahead of the ledger when they travel to Montmorency.
Jacob Ramaekers was the standout in the win over the Tigers. His courageous mark during the dying stages exemplifed just how desperate his side was all day. Rodan was amongst the best in his second game for the season, while Luke Lirosi, Aaron Willitts and Damien Smith – in his return to senior football – also produced strong showings.
Despite a superb early goal to Patrick Fitzgerald, Montmorency never got going in its loss to Northcote Park. The young Magpies struggled to use the ball cleanly when entering forward 50m and were contained to just two goals in the opening half and six for the day. Jesse Donaldson still led by example and kicked another bag of three, while Michael Fitz-Gerald returned his 2013 form.
With just one win combined, the stakes are high when Bundoora hosts North Heidelberg at Yulong Reserve – the first meeting of the clubs since Round 16, 2011.
While struggling with on-field form, Bundoora showed it is still full of class off the field, uniting with Macleod for a moving pre-match tribute prior to the first bounce in last week’s game at De Winton Park.
The Bulls stuck with the ladder-leader for the opening three quarters but managed to kick just one of the eight final-quarter goals as they fell to a 55-point defeat. In his second game for the club Liam Byrne was again in Bundoora’s best, while Josh Grabowski produced his best game for the Bulls to finish with two goals.
North Heidelberg was always going to have its work cut out against Greensborough but went into half time just four goals behind. It was a different tale in the second half as the Bulldogs conceded 15 goals after the main break. Given Bundoora’s early-season struggles, North Heidelberg must see this week’s game as one of its best opportunities to get on the board in 2015.
