The 2019 Heidelberg Golf Club Division 3 grand final is a match-up between the runner-up from the previous two seasons, with Panton Hill to take on South Morang for this year’s premiership.
South Morang claimed its grand final spot with a preliminary final win over Laurimar at the Whittlesea Showgrounds.
The Lions led at every change – blowing the margin out to 22 points at one stage. But the Power made it a real contest and had a chance to draw level early in the final stanza before falling short by 10 points.
Mitch Kalpakis has played eight senior games for South Morang and has been in the best players five times. He was a standout again on Saturday.
Playing-coach Justin Sherman led the way for the Power with four goals and a hand in some others as well. The club will now look forward to Rosbrook Medal night, with captain Mitch Thompson a leading contender for the best and fairest.
Panton Hill also won its way into the grand final by beating Laurimar. This was done a week earlier in the second semi final, with an eight-point victory.
Based on the two grand finalists most recent matches against the Power, a thriller is on the cards.
This would have been unthinkable after Round 2, when Panton Hill defeated South Morang by 124 points at A.E. Cracknell Reserve. The Lions looked much better in Round 13 when they went down to the Redbacks by 29 points at Mill Park Lakes Reserve.
When comparing the line-ups from that Round 13 game, which was played in wintery conditions, to the likely grand final selected teams, there are numerous key inclusions for both teams.
Missing from that match for Panton Hill were Jonty Rushton, Matthew Byron, Joel McLellan and Nathan Hendry. Meanwhile, South Morang was without Jake Potter, Matthew Trim, Mitch Kalpakis and Ben Power.
The extra week’s rest after winning the second semi-final will benefit Panton Hill – which is likely to name an unchanged line-up.
Ryan Boyden suffered a corkie but is expected to be okay with 14 days to recover. The Lions may go in unchanged from the preliminary final – with Mitchell Dickson the most likely inclusion if a change is made.
Of great interest will be South Morang’s key defensive roles. Matthew Robinson looks to be the best match-up for leading goal-kicker Rhys Boyden – having blanketed him well in the most recent match-up, while Reece Jones a possible match-up for Matthew Byron.
Jake Potter has played at centre half forward for most of the year, but could be swung down back if needed.
Maybe a look at how Kilmore kept Panton Hill to three goals back in Round 8 may assist the Lions in their efforts to restrict their forwards.
Not only do the Lions need to put work into the twin towers in Boyden and Byron, the Redbacks also have useful small forwards and goal kicking midfielders in Alex Tsardakis, Cameron Jordan and Scott Conte. All three have booted over 20 goals this year.
South Morang leading goal kicker Alex Colaidis played in the midfield on Saturday, with three-time club best and fairest Luke Shelton mainly forward.
But they may swap positions this week given the strong bodies of the Redback mids. And Colaidis may prove a tricky match-up for the Panton Hill defence.
The midfield battle will be crucial and Panton Hill would seem to have the advantage there. Joel McLellan will be looking to give first use of the ball to the likes of Conte, Matthew Fowler and 2013 best and fairest Nathan Hendry.
But the Lions have Bailey Brown in good form – and Tye Hall looms as a big occasion player. Matthew Trim has struggled to get healthy in 2019 but has now played the past four games in a row and would be looking to hit top form.
James Hewson is another who has struggled to string games together recently. He missed the first semi final but played in the preliminary final. He is a highly skilled player who is dangerous when he gets the ball in space.
The last time the Lions defeated the Redbacks was in Round 7, 2018 with a 17-point win at Mill Park Lakes Reserve when Hewson slotted four majors.
With conditions likely to be heavy, the game may become more of a territory battle with less emphasis on marking targets.
When viewing the season as a whole, Panton Hill would appear to be the red-hot favourite. The Redbacks finished with 14 wins and a percentage of 235 – well ahead of South Morang with 9 wins, a draw and 113 precent.
The Redbacks have ten players in the squad of 40 for the 2019 Heidelberg Golf Club Division 3 Team of the Year, compared with five from the Lions.
Both teams have players with grand final experience – although a large number of the South Morang 2017 grand final team are no longer at the club.
From their most recent game played in the finals, the Redbacks have an average age of 25.5 and average games played at 83. This compares to the Lions average age of 22.6 and average games of 52.
The above statistics suggest that Panton Hill is well primed for a premiership. Its players will bear the burden of favouritism but would be expected to handle that pressure. But the Lions are finishing the season well and will relish the underdog tag.
The curtain raiser is also full of interest. Heidelberg West plays Old Eltham Collegians in the reserves grand final with neither team having any sort of grand final success in recent years.
LIVE STREAM: A live stream of the Heidelberg Golf Club Division 3 Grand Final can be viewed on the Northern Football Netball League Facebook page, while a broadcast can be heard on 88.6 Plenty Valley FM.
DOWNLOAD: A high-definition digital download of the grand final can be purchased at www.nfnl.sportscastcloud.com.au seven days after the game for $22.00.
PANTON HILL
15 wins – 2 losses
Points For – 1972, Average For – 116
Points Against – 858, Average Against – 50
Average Winning Margin – 77
Average Losing Margin – 18
Leading Goal Kicker – Rhys Boyden (80)
Most Times In Best – Scott Conte and Nathan Hendry (10)
SOUTH MORANG
11 wins – 6 losses – 1 draw
Points For – 1405, Average For – 78
Points Against – 1222, Average Against – 68
Average Winning Margin – 38
Average Losing Margin – 39
Leading Goal Kicker – Alex Colaidis (39)
Most Times In Best – Tye Hall (13)
HEAD TO HEAD IN 2019
Round 13: South Morang 5.7 (37) def by Panton Hill 10.6 (66)
South Morang
Goal Kickers: A. Colaidis 2, B. Brown, L. Golledge, B. Brettschneider
Best Players: M. Robinson, B. Muscat, T. Hall, L. Shelton, R. Buzzini, L. Failla
Panton Hill
Goal Kickers: D. Freeman 3, A. Tsardakis 2, S. Conte 2, R. Boyden, M. Fowler, C. Jordan
Best Players: D. Freeman, M. Fowler, B. Ryan, T. Forster, N. Parks, M. Anderson
Round 2: Panton Hill 25.16 (166) def South Morang 6.6 (42)
Panton Hill
Goal Kickers: R. Boyden 6, J. Pritchard 3, J. Rushton 3, S. Conte 2, A. Tsardakis 2, S. Parks 2, M. Byron 2, T. Johnston, T. Duckworth, M. Fowler, J. McLellan, C. Jordan
Best Players: J. McLellan, M. Fowler, R. Boyden, M. Anderson, J. Rushton, S. Montanaro
South Morang
Goal Kickers: A. Colaidis 2, J. Lansfield 2, M. Arnold-Treweek, L. Shelton
Best Players: J. Potter, L. Nicol, L. Shelton, B. Marinkovic, L. Golledge, B. Muscat
