A look at the Round 9 matches in Heidelberg Golf Club Division 3.
Wins to the top-three teams have created a gap on the ladder after Round 8 of Heidelberg Golf Club Division 3 action.
Fourth-placed Heidelberg West hosted the undefeated Banyule at Heidelberg Park and looked like causing an upset when it got the jump on its highly-fancied rival with a 5.1 to 1.3 first term.
The Bears hit back hard in the second stanza to lead narrowly at the main break and then pulled away to win by 25 points.
Banyule remains outright first, while Heidelberg West stayed in the top-four ahead of Kilmore on percentage.
Kilmore scored a comfortable 40-point win over Laurimar at J.J. Clancy Reserve. Like the Hawks, the Blues also produced a dominant first term, scoring 4.5 to nil.
The Power was better in the second quarter but never looked likely after their slow start. Cody Cullinan continued his excellent form for Laurimar after beginning his season in Round 3.
Epping travelled to Mill Park Lakes Reserve to take on South Morang, where a win would have propelled the Blues into the top-four.
But the Lions scored 3.4 to a wasteful 0.5 in the first term and then increased their lead at every change to win by 37 points.
Bojan Marinkovic was playing in South Morang’s under-19s two weeks earlier but has played the past two games in the seniors and justified his promotion with a strong performance.
Two-time competition best and fairest winner Daniel Moore performed well as he played his first game for the season for Epping.
St Mary’s extended its winning streak to five with a huge 134-point win over Reservoir at Crispe Park. Nick Dean scored five goals for the Burra, while Joel Buckley returned to the side this week and did well against his former team.
The Mustangs did well with two first-term goals to trail by a mere nine points at the first break. However, they failed to kick a major for the remainder of the game.
Despite the score line, there are some positives at Reservoir, with president Steve Bower confirming that the club has already had a number of players commit for next year.
At the Queen’s Birthday break, Banyule heads the table by a game from South Morang, with St Mary’s a further game behind. The percentages of these teams are all within 15 of each other – so ladder positions can quickly change at the top end.
Heidelberg West sits in fourth with four wins – a game and over 70 percent behind St Mary’s, while Kilmore has played one more game than all other teams and sits outside the top-four on percentage only.
Snapping at their heels is Epping – a game further back in sixth but with a better percentage than Heidelberg West and Kilmore. Mernda, Laurimar and Reservoir look to have little chance of playing finals at this stage.
However, Division 3 has thrown up some surprises in recent years, with the previous two flag winners Watsonia and Reservoir both making slow starts to their seasons.
Round 9 is highlighted by St Mary’s hosting South Morang at Whatmough Park. The Burra can replace the Lions in second place with a victory.
The teams last met in last year’s first semi-final – with South Morang winning narrowly. The tipsters will find it difficult to select a winner in this contest – which could be critical in shaping the top end of the ladder.
Epping is at home to Banyule at Epping Recreation Reserve. Due to the bye and breaks, the Blues have not won since May 6 against Mernda.
They will be desperate to avoid losing three in a row, but the Bears are likely to be firm favourites despite playing away. The Bears’ only win over Epping at this ground came in Round 13, 2015.
The pair’s recent tussle in Round 2 at R.J. Brockwell Oval resulted in a 14-point win to Banyule – the ladder-leader’s smallest winning margin for the season.
Reservoir journeys to Laurimar Reserve for the first time to take on Laurimar.
While this assignment will be easier for the Mustangs than matches against top of the table teams, the Power are expected to be favourites.
Mernda plays host to Heidelberg West at Waterview Recreation Reserve. The Hawks will be looking to consolidate their spot in the top-four.
The Demons will need to win to avoid being three games adrift of fourth place. Despite losing five on the trot, a win could put the Demons back within game of fourth place.
Kilmore has the bye, which will mean that all teams will have played eight games by the round’s end.
