Round 4 shapes as moving week in Meadows Greyhounds Division 1, with a host of games holding the potential to open gaps on the ladder at the end of the opening month.
No sides enter the fourth week of the season with an undefeated record, with big wins last Saturday propelling Macleod, West Preston-Lakeside and Montmorency into the top-three positions on the ladder, ahead of three other teams on 2-1.
Hurstbridge remains the only winless side. The Bridges’ form must improve soon to remain in touch with the top-five. They will be desperate for a Round 4 win – as will fellow bottom-four sides North Heidelberg, Bundoora and Whittlesea, who have each lost their past two games.
Our look at Round 4 starts at De Winton Park where two of the competition’s most in-form sides, Macleod and Montmorency, meet. Both sides have been in outstanding touch over the past fortnight and will be looking to again display their finals credentials this week.
Macleod was impressive from the opening bounce against Hurstbridge, racing to a four-goal lead at quarter time, before stretching its advantage at each change of ends in the 63-point triumph. The win followed an equally impressive 78-point triumph at Whittlesea in Round 2.
Reid Brandt got his side off to a flyer with a dominant first quarter, that included numerous contested marks inside 50. Brandt and Patrick Martin each booted four goals, while Justin White, Hamish Paynter and Anthony Doherty had strong outings, as did Kurt Manuel.
After a sluggish opening match, the Roos look to have hit their straps and will likely bolster their side further in coming weeks, with a host of key players still on the sidelines. There is little doubt that last year’s runners-up will be looking to extend their run of form in their first home game of the season this week.
The Roos’ opponent, Montmorency, issued a statement of intent to the entire competition with their 84-point drubbing of Bundoora last Saturday. Despite the pre-season hype around the Magpies, few would have predicted such a dominant showing against the reigning premier.
Montmorency coach Ben Haynes was pleased with the even contribution of his side in the 23.9 (147) to 8.13 (61) win at Montmorency Park. Despite the spread of strong performances, Patrick Fitzgerald was a major standout with eight majors, while Ben Kennedy made a huge impact.
Having scored successive home wins by a combined aggregate of 127 points over the past fortnight, the Magpies’ credentials will again put to the test this weekend. Should they score a third-successive win, it will certainly stamp the club as one of this season’s leading contenders.
Northcote Park and West Preston-Lakeside will also be in search of their third win of the season when they clash at Bill Lawry Oval.
Northcote Park scored a second-successive close win last weekend when it outlasted Whittlesea by 12 points at the Whittlesea Showgrounds. With scores even late, it was Jake Mills’ move forward that swung the game, with the utility booting two late goals.
Paul Dirago continued his rich vein of form since assuming the club’s captaincy, with the new skipper again his side’s best player. His goal closing in on three-quarter time gave the Cougars the lead and shifted momentum their way heading into the last break.
While the Cougars haven’t been at their absolute best over the opening three weeks, they have showed great resilience and a 2-1 start gives the club a platform to build upon as the season progresses.
West Preston-Lakeside overcame a slow start to claim its second away win of the season against North Heidelberg. The Roosters trailed by four goals midway through the second quarter, before rallying to win by 42 points.
The win was capped in the final term, with the Roosters booting six goals to two to run away from their host. Ahmed Saad led the charge, booting nine goals to race to the top of the goal kicking leader board.
Despite the off-season loss of Andrew Walker, Mathew Stokes and Shaun Gannon, the Roosters’ top-end is still as strong as any side in the competition. This was outlined last week, where Saad, Ozgur Uysal (four goals), Adam Valeri and Patrick Karnezis all produced big performances.
Whittlesea and Hurstbridge sit in the bottom two places on the ladder and both will be desperate to notch a win this week when they square off at Whittlesea Showgrounds.
With Andrew Fairchild, Jai Robinson and Chris McCabe all missing, Whittlesea made a strong start to last week’s match against Northcote Park. Unfortunately, the Eagles booted a wayward 4.11 in the opening half, meaning their half-time lead was only 10 points, when it could have been far greater.
Michael Brennan, Xavier Dimasi and Riley Dyson were the Eagles best players, while Clancy Bland kicked two goals.
While the result didn’t go the Eagles’ way, they did show vast improvement from their performance a week prior against Macleod. They will look to build on last week’s effort as they hunt their second win of the season, in the hope of ending their opening month at home with a 2-2 split.
While it’s not panic stations just yet, Hurstbridge’s poor start to the season continued last week, with the Bridges no match for a rampant Macleod. The Bridges managed an inaccurate 4.16 for the day – however the final margin was indicative of the gap between the sides.
The Bridges looked flat right throughout the 63-point defeat, which was their second big home loss of the season, after being downed by West Preston-Lakeside by 78 points in the opening round. Expect a response after two poor showings in the first three weeks.
Travis and Cameron Cloke kicked all four Hurstbridge goals last week and presented well throughout the afternoon, while Mitch Hymus and Sean Jellie also tried hard against the tide.
Bundoora hosts Heidelberg at Yulong Reserve, with the two sides taking vastly different form into the game.
Bundoora backed up its 46-point defeat to Greensborough in Round 2, with an even bigger loss at Montmorency last Saturday. Just four points separated the sides at quarter time, before the Magpies piled on 20 goals to six thereafter.
The Bulls have been hit hard by injuries in the opening weeks of their premiership defence, which was compounded further last week where injuries to Matthew Dennis and Brent Marshall further soured the loss under lights at Montmorency. The one positive is the club’s depth is as strong as any.
There is no doubt the proud club’s pride has taken a hit and the reigning premiers will be desperate to atone for the past two week’s performances. Their recent record against Heidelberg has been strong, particularly at Yulong Reserve.
Heidelberg’s string of close matches continued last week in downing Greensborough by 11 points at Warringal Park. The Tigers’ opening three matches have been decided by an aggregate of just 15 points.
After kicking four goals to one in the opening term, the Tigers led all day in the win over Greensborough. After controlling the opening three quarters, what would have been equally pleasing for Frank Raso was the character shown to hold tough when the Boro made their charge in the final quarter.
Michael Brunelli continued his outstanding start to the 2018 season – with the Tigers skipper again displaying the form that saw him finish runner-up for the Frank Rosbrook Medal last year. Aaron Crispe, Nathan Honey and second-gamer Anthony Fable were also among the best players.
The final game of the round sees North Heidelberg travel to War Memorial Park to face Greensborough, where both sides will be looking to return to the winners’ list.
Greensborough’s unbeaten start to the season was ended last week by old foe Heidelberg, with the result dropping the Boro from top spot down into fourth place – one of six sides with a 2-1 record.
The Boro were jumped early by the Tigers and trailed by 16 points at quarter time. They managed to close within a kick by half time before a poor third term saw the lead blow out to 22. Greensborough had its chances in the last quarter but managed a wayward 3.6 to 1.1 to lose by 11 points.
Jack Johnston was outstanding off half-back, despite the defeat, while Jacob Ireland’s goal kicking form continued, with three goals from midfield. Charlie Molyneux also impressed in his first game with the club.
North Heidelberg would ultimately be disappointed with its fadeout loss against West Preston-Lakeside and will be looking to put together a four-quarter performance in Round 4.
The signs were extremely promising early for the Bulldogs last week, with a second home win looking on the cards midway through the second term. But from there it was a complete reversal, with West Preston-Lakeside running away for a strong win.
Jake Brown, Ryan Storey and Michael Florance – who topped the Coaches MVP voting in the opening two rounds – were their side’s best, while Brent Harvey managed a four-goal haul for the third successive week.
