It’s been one the most competitive home and away seasons in memory, so it comes as a great surprise that match-ups for the opening week of finals look confirmed prior to Round 18.
It’s somewhat of an anti-climatic finish given that for most of the season it looked as though the final round would determine as many as four places inside the top-half of the ladder.
Barring a host of 30-goal results in the final round of the season, it appears a formality that North Heidelberg and West Preston-Lakeside will meet in the qualifying final, while Greensborough and Bundoora will lock horns in the elimination final.
While the sides who look guaranteed to play finals football may succumb to the temptation of resting players in the final round of the season, there is certainly one game that will see all 44 players going for broke from the first bounce.
Hurstbridge hosts Whittlesea at Ben Frilay Oval in a match that will determine which side is relegated from the top flight this season.
Both sides enter the match with 2-15 records, meaning the winner will finish one game clear of bottom place. In the unlikely scenario of a draw, Hurstbridge’s superior percentage will ensure it maintains its place in Meadows Greyhounds Division 1 next season.
Despite limited success throughout the season, both sides will take renewed confidence into the game as a result of promising showings in Round 17 – where both looked to be in winning positions throughout the day.
Hurstbridge came agonisingly close to avoiding relegation last week, but ultimately came up just short in its one-point defeat to Montmorency. The Bridges led late in the game but were sunk by a Kye Declase goal at the 24-minute mark of the final term.
It remains to be seen whether the disappointment of last week’s narrow loss becomes a deterrent, or whether the Bridges can use it as added motivation ahead of their biggest game since returning to the top-flight last year.
Travis Cloke booted a season-best four goals in the loss and now has 10 in his past three appearances. The former Collingwood premiership star looms as a vital player in this week’s relegation scrap.
The Bridges will rely on his experience, as well as the wise heads of Daniel Keenan, Ryan Jackson and Brayden Shaw to guide them in the big game.
Whittlesea showed plenty of spirit in last week’s loss to West Preston-Lakeside after staring down the barrel of a massive defeat when trailing 32-0 at quarter time. The Eagles hit the front in the third quarter, before being overpowered by their finals-bound opponent.
While the final outcome was a loss, the Eagles can at least take some momentum and confidence out of the game ahead of their second-successive final round relegation battle – following last year’s similar scenario at Eltham.
The Eagles’ better players are in good form heading into this match, with Jai Robinson and Xavier Dimasi both producing strong showings last week – while Jaron Murphy kicked three majors for the second match in a row – highlighted by an outstanding running goal.
Hurstbridge was a seven-goal victor when the sides met back in Round 5 – however the Bridges have since lost their past 12 games. Mitch Burton kicked five in the win, while Tom Simpson was best afield – however the representative midfielder hasn’t played since Round 14.
West Preston-Lakeside and Greensborough will both be finetuning for finals when they clash at J.E. Moore Park.
The match had loomed a battle for third place on the ladder, however last week’s loss to Bundoora means Greensborough must now win by 176 points to leapfrog the Roosters into third place.
While both sides will be hoping to get through the match unscathed, they’ll also be wary of flirting with form heading into the finals. A win could also provide a psychological advantage should the sides meet at Preston City Oval in September.
The Roosters have won their past five matches and will be hoping to continue that winning form into the qualifying final, while Greensborough has now lost its past two games and won’t want to take a three-game losing streak into a knockout final next week.
Patrick Karnezis returned for West Preston-Lakeside in last week’s win over Whittlesea – where Ahmed Saad missed his second-consecutive match as he races the clock to be at full fitness for the finals.
The Roosters again shared the load around the ground, with Matthew Vinctorio continuing his great form with three majors, while Jaylon Thorpe also added three. Aidan Tilley, Adam Valeri and Sam Glover were also influential.
Greensborough has had issues against West Preston-Lakeside over the past 18 months, losing all three home and away matches between the sides since Rob Maiorana took over as coach of the Roosters. However, they did score an upset win in last year’s elimination final.
One major positive for the Boro over the past two weeks, despite losing both games, has been the form of Charlie Molyneux. The star midfielder hasn’t missed a beat in his return from a knee injury and was the Boro’s best in last week’s fadeout loss to Bundoora.
Having all but sewn up its 18th consecutive finals berth, Bundoora now hosts North Heidelberg at Yulong Reserve.
Similar to the West Preston-Lakeside and Greensborough game, the clash won’t have a bearing on which final the sides play in next week. However it can provide a mental edge given the two sides could meet in a first semi final, depending on how results pan out in the first week of the finals.
After trailing for three quarters last week, Bundoora produced a final-term blitz to overcome Greensborough and all but lock up the final spot in the top-five. The Bulls piled on six goals in the final term – spearheaded by Gary Moorcroft and Ricky Dyson.
With so much at stake, the performance was a timely reminder on the eve of the finals of how dangerous the reigning premier can be when it clicks into gear. It’s worth noting that the likes of Nathan Thomas, Scott Dowell and Josh Iacabaccio were all missing from action.
North Heidelberg brings a nine-game winning run into this week’s game and will lock in second place with a win. A loss could see the Bulldogs slip to third place if West Preston-Lakeside wins.
Regardless, the Bulldogs are destined for the qualifying final – an unprecedented achievement given no reigning Division 2 premier has played finals in the top flight the following season in league history.
Bundoora remains the only side in the competition that North Heidelberg has not beaten this season. The Bulldogs will join Macleod as the only side in Division 1 to have beaten all other rivals in 2018, should they get the points this week.
Liam Hunt produced a blinder in last week’s runaway win over Northcote Park at Bill Lawry Oval – booting four goals to help his side overcome a 15-point half time deficit to win by 32 points.
Northcote Park’s season comes to a close when it travels to De Winton Park to take on ladder-leader Macleod.
It’s been a difficult back-half of the season for the injury-depleted Cougars – who have managed just one win since Round 10. Their average losing margin in seven defeats since the midway point of the year is 51 points.
Despite the drop off in form, last week’s first half provided encouraging signs where a youthful side took it right up to North Heidelberg. Paul Dirago has led the club wonderfully this year and was again his side’s best last week.
However, it’s hard to make a case for the Cougars this week. They were demolished in all three encounters against Macleod last year and managed just six scoring shots in a 29-point defeat earlier this season.
The Roos ramped up their finals preparation with an 82-point thrashing of Heidelberg last week. The 15.13 (103) to 2.9 (21) result handed the minor premier their biggest win of the season and put an end to Heidelberg’s finals hopes – save for a miracle this week.
The emphatic performance came just days after Garry Ramsay announced he will step aside as coach at season’s end after six years at the helm. If consecutive grand final defeats weren’t enough of a motivation for the Roos this September, then surely the chance to send Ramsay out with a deserved second flag will be.
Liam Brandt and Lucas Hobbs were again major contributors last week, aided by great work in the ruck by Jack Langford. Justin White, Chris Long and Jack Bianchin also returned from injury layoffs.
Heidelberg and Montmorency will be looking to sign off on 2018 with a win when they meet at Warringal Park.
The Tigers are still a (very minor) mathematical chance of playing finals, albeit they would need to have 306-point aggregate turnaround on Bundoora.
That means they will need to beat Montmorency by 26 goals and then hope North Heidelberg can do a similar number on the Bulls. As such, the 2016 premier looks set to miss the finals for consecutive seasons for the first time since 2003.
There have been many positives for the Tigers throughout the season – with the emergence of players such as Matthew Cecchin and Nathan Honey, while 19-year-old Lachlan Wilson has confirmed his status as one of the competition’s best midfielders.
However, early season losses to Whittlesea and Hurstbridge will come back to haunt the club at season’s end – along with multiple percentage-deflating losses to top-two sides Macleod and North Heidelberg.
Ben Haynes will coach Montmorency for the final time this week – bringing to an end a four-year stint at the helm, after taking over following the club’s 2014 finals exit.
The Magpies started they year in a positive manner, with five wins from their opening eight games, but have since fallen away as a result of an extensive injury list to key players and a major dip in form.
The past month has been a marked improvement and the Magpies will be looking to finish the year with wins in three of their final five games if they can overcome their old rival at Warringal Park.
As they have been all season, Ben Kennedy and Ben Walton were superb in last week’s nail-biting win at Ben Frilay Oval. They will likely be locked in a two-way battle for the club’s best and fairest.
