Two important Melbourne Greyhounds Division 1 clashes take place in the second week of the Round 14 split round, as the ladder begins to take shape in the lead up to the last month of the regular season.
An elimination final-like match is set to take place at Greensborough War Memorial Park as Greensborough hosts North Heidelberg.
Juts six points separate the two sides meaning the result will have major complications on the final five. If the Borough prevail, they’ll have a six-point gap from sixth placed Macleod and will be favourites to hold their position in the top half of the ladder with four weeks remaining.
However, a Bulldogs victory will get them within touching distance of a third consecutive Division 1 finals appearance and with Hurstbridge and Whittlesea in the next fortnight, they’ll have a massive opportunity if they can beat Greensborough on Saturday.
The Borough have had their struggles in recent weeks despite big wins over bottom three sides. Since June, they’ve had defeats to West Preston-Lakeside, Bundoora and Montmorency and they haven’t beaten a top five side since Round 4.
Still, Saade Ghazi’s men have plenty of talent and it would be a surprise to few if they were to regain form at this time of the year.
Josh Caddy has made an immediate impact since his arrival in mid-June, whilst Zak McCubbin has been huge up forward, kicking 13 goals in his last five games.
The Bulldogs have had a slightly better month but will rue missed opportunities against Macleod and Heidelberg.
Jason Heatley’s side were no match for the Roosters a fortnight ago but have had consistent performers in Coaches MVP leader Jesse Tardio and captain Kyle McDonald. Shane Harvey has also found some touch up forward with six goals in his last three games.
North Heidelberg ran out comfortable 25-point winners in their last meeting with Greensborough and more of the same could spark a meaningful finals run.
With games against Bundoora and Heidelberg to follow, it’s a must win clash for the Borough if they’re to breathe easier throughout August.
The other match sees relegation battlers Whittlesea host a Montmorency at the Whittlesea Showgrounds.
Despite improved performances in their last two games, the Eagles have struggled to find form and are yet to win a game since Round 9.
They’ll hope Saturday is a bit of a better faring than their last clash with the Magpies in Round 8. Whittlesea suffered a heavy 147-point loss in what would be Blair Harvey’s last game as coach.
There’s still been plenty of shining lights for them this season, with Paul Higgins proving to be an invaluable swingman and Xavier Dimasi leading from the front once more.
Whilst it will be difficult to picture an enormous upset, if the Eagles can take enough learnings from this match into their battles with Northcote Park and Hurstbridge in the last four weeks of the season, it could go a long way towards them avoiding relegation.
In what has been a rare occurrence this season, Montmorency will come into this match off a loss.
The week off could be the best thing the Magpies needed after a disappointing 50-point defeat to Heidelberg a fortnight ago.
But it’s certainly far from doom and gloom at Montmorency Park North Oval. Patrick Fitzgerald passed the 50-goal mark with another four-goal performance against the Tigers, whilst Liam Wale-Buxton, Sam Binion and Jai Robinson are all having big impacts across the ground.
Montmorency will still have their sights on the minor premiership despite the fact they’ll still sit two games away from Heidelberg if the win on Saturday, but regardless, Garry Ramsay’s side will want to take as much momentum as they can in the lead up to finals.
