We are in for a great finish to the 2024 MC Labour Division 2 home and away campaign with Round 16 set to deliver some fascinating battles.
A huge top three battle awaits at the Whittlesea Showgrounds, with Whittlesea facing South Morang.
Another Eagles triumph will see them go to 16-0, and all but secure the minor premiership. This will also be their final home game of the year and come into this contest averaging a winning margin of 52.3 points at the venue in 2024.
Their most recent performance saw a 24-point victory over Panton Hill at A.E. Cracknell Reserve, as they kept a side to 50 points or less for the fourth consecutive week.
Midfielder Taidgh Bland again stood tall in the absence of captain Xavier Dimasi, with another best on ground performance last week helping his chances of picking up some individual silverware by season’s end.
Riley Carter and Deakin Tennent are others to be in solid form ahead of the last three weeks of the home and away campaign.
Whilst Garry Ramsay’s men are flying, their Saturday opponents in South Morang have been in just as good of form, and head into this contest searching for a ninth straight triumph.
Their last loss came against the Eagles back in Round 7 to the tune of just seven points, proving the Lions will be more than up for the task of ending Whittlesea’s run.
In tough conditions, Gary Hall’s side produced the largest score of Round 15 in their 36-point victory over St Mary’s, further illustrating their status as the best attacking team in the competition.
It was Tye Hall who starred once again for his side with a three-goal, best on ground effort, and like Whittlesea’s Bland, can be in the running to pick up some awards if his form continues.
Extra motivation for South Morang will come in the form of the minor premiership, as a win will see them just four points behind the Eagles with two games to play.
Laurimar could potentially jump off the bottom of the ladder if they are to upset Panton Hill at Laurimar Reserve.
Back-to-back victories for the Power see them just two points shy of ninth placed Watsonia, as they prepare to face an opponent who have prevailed in just one of their previous six matches.
They surged past Northcote Park after quarter time to pick up their second win over the Cougars in 2024, with the likes of Kaiden Arthur and Aidan Clarke contributing strongly to the four points.
Joel Lawson also kicked another two majors to maintain his threat inside 50 for opposition defenders, but he will miss this week due to suspension, meaning the likes of Jacson Cecil and Cooper Herbert may need to step up in his place.
With St Mary’s to come before their mouth-watering clash with Watsonia in the final round of the season, another win here could be required if the Power are a chance of climbing off the bottom of the ladder.
Standing in their way are Panton Hill, who despite their poor form of late, are still only six points behind fifth placed Lower Plenty.
They were competitive against Whittlesea at home last week but were kept to just two goals after half time to go down by four goals. The side have now produced just six majors in their last two games.
It still hasn’t quelled captain Samuel Parks’ influence, as he continues to heavily impact his side’s chances of pushing their opposition, while Riley Cousins has shown promise in recent weeks.
A massive fortnight for Simon Amore’s men sees them face Thomastown and Lower Plenty and having defeated the Power by 25 points earlier this season, replicating that result on Saturday will be the perfect lead in for the Redbacks ahead of a massive conclusion to the season.
Two sides desperate to bounce back after recent poor performances are Thomastown and Watsonia, who will meet at Main Street Recreation Reserve.
Despite having their chances, the Bears were no match for Lower Plenty in their crucial Round 15 contest, seeing them move six points outside the top five as a result.
The team have now lost six straight games and have not had a streak of seven losses in a row or more since Round 15, 2010-Round 6, 2011, where they fell short in 10 straight matches.
Highlights in their loss to Lower Plenty came from Jarryd Coulson, who was named in his side’s best for the first time since Round 11, and Anthony Capeci, who was one of the side’s more consistent contributors.
The benefit David Folino and Sashe Spiroski’s men have is that they only face one current top five side in St Mary’s to finish the campaign, meaning wins in at least two of their next three games can put pressure on fifth placed Lower.
Watsonia are looking to arrest a five-game losing streak themselves, and their most recent defeat to Diamond Creek last week now puts them in real danger of a relegation battle with Laurimar.
The Saints’ star players of Daniel Annetta, Josh Boulton and Harrison Sinclair continue to stand up, and were all mentioned in their side’s best in last Saturday’s loss, however they will need a four-quarter effort from the entire squad if they are to bounce back this weekend.
Watsonia have not defeated Thomastown at Main Street Recreation Reserve since 2013, when the sides were playing back in Division 3, and whilst that is another trend they will need to break, George Lattouf’s men still can’t be ruled out of this intriguing contest.
Another two sides who will be keen to return to the winners list in Northcote Park and St Mary’s, will prepare to clash at Bill Lawry Oval.
Despite such a strong start, the Cougars couldn’t maintain the rage in their recent match with Laurimar, being kept to just one major in the final term to go down to the Power by 25 points.
It puts Anthony Palmer’s men in an interesting position approaching the final three games of the season, as they sit 10 points behind fifth placed Lower Plenty but only eight points ahead of the bottom placed Power.
They have still likely done enough to confirm another season in Division 2, but one more win would make it a certainty, which they’ll look to do against a side they fell short to by just 14 points back in Round 7.
If they are to claim another four points, more strong efforts from Jordan and Matthew Perry will go a long way to achieving the feat, with the duo playing some terrific football across 2024.
Jacob Thompson has also kicked multiple goals in three of his last four matches, and kicked two against the Burra when his side faced them in May.
St Mary’s run of losses continued last week, after being overrun by a rampant South Morang outfit at Whatmough Park and have now won just one of their last seven games.
They’ve also yet to score more than 70 points during that streak and last Saturday against the Lions, could only manage six majors.
But great performances from the likes of Ben and Jake Halewood, as well as star midfielder Rory Hanlon in the Round 15 defeat prove the side are not far away from getting back to the strong form they illustrated during the opening half of the season and will still be favoured to return to the winners list this weekend against the Cougars.
Both coming off wins, Diamond Creek and Lower Plenty’s 2:45pm match at Coventry Oval concludes Round 16 action.
The Creekers recorded the biggest win of the round last week with a comfortable 52-point triumph over Watsonia, taking their current streak of victories to six.
Andrew White was superb in the win, as was Tyler Barnes and Brenton Keating, the latter now being named in his side’s best in four consecutive games.
It also has now been seven straight matches where the side have failed to concede more than 10 goals to an opponent, this included keeping Watsonia to just two majors last week, which is remarkably the third time in 2024 that a side have failed to score more than 20 points against last year’s minor premiers.
These are all positive trends for Andrew Tranquilli’s men ahead of an enormous final fortnight against fellow top three sides in Whittlesea and South Morang.
It makes their clash with an in-form Lower Plenty team this Saturday all the more important, particularly as the Bears look to solidify a top five finish with three weeks remaining.
With Lower Plenty’s victory over Thomastown last Saturday, they now have a six-point gap from the bottom five, with excellent performances from Riley Alexander, Seth Hill and Tyler Wallace contributing to the 28-point triumph.
Although they have defeated Diamond Creek just once in their last six battles, this is the final opponent currently in the top five that Travis Stephens’ men play for the remainder of the home and away campaign.
Regardless, a competitive performance against the Creekers will give the Bears more confidence of being a threat should they reach the post-season, or at the least, confidence they can topple Watsonia and Panton Hill in the last fortnight of the regular campaign to return to the finals.
