ST MARY’S surprised with an upset win over Watsonia, while Thomastown and Reservoir recorded easy wins in the final home and away round of the 2014 Division 3 season.
St Mary’s followed up its 27-point win over the Saints in Round 15 with a 36-point victory, after leading by a mere three points at the last change.
The Saints new forward combination of Jeremy Bennett and Andrew Kidd failed to fire due to low quality supply from the midfield. Small forward Jack Larkin was their best forward option with three goals.
“Today was a wake up call in terms of backing up one week to another,” Watsonia coach Damian Zanic said, after the Saints pushed Reservoir all the way a week prior. “We need to be ready to play consistent footy if we want to do well in the finals.”
Burra forward Liam O’Donnell booted seven to make it 16 goals in his past three games. Meanwhile, Shane Derham returned from injury to be the best on ground for the Burra.
“I was very happy with our physicality at the ball and the ball carrier,” Burra coach Con Borg said. “We ran hard two ways today.”
Borg noted his disappointment at not playing finals footy, but said he was rapt with the development of about 15-20 under-19 players throughout the year. He also confirmed that Heidelberg team of the century player Shane Delanty is joining St Mary’s as an assistant coach for the 2015 season.
Reservoir trounced South Morang at Crispe Park in a surprisingly lopsided encounter. The Mustangs led by 38 points at the first break and finished off strongly, with an eight-goal to two last term to record a whopping 83-point win.
Kent Beaumont, with four majors, laid claims to a regular senior spot following two matches in the reserves.
Thomastown got off to a flier against Heidelberg West at Heidelberg Park with an 8.2 to 0.4 opening term – with the Hawks missing several sitters. But the home team fought back strongly in the middle stages of the match, before the Bears steadied in the final stanza to pull away again.
“We were blown away in the first quarter,” Hawk coach Derek Shaw said. “But it was pleasing to win the second and third quarters and to be competitive in last. We had the same amount of scoring shots at three quarter time, but Thomastown knows how to win.”
Summing up the year, Shaw said he was happy with the progression of his club’s youngsters.
“We had very few new senior players, like Mitchell Reeve and Tom Waters. But the kids have developed and those who have played in the range of 10-25 games stood up and had a go.”
Kyl Ewart held Jacob Osei-Duro goalless early in the game before being moved forward and slotting three goals. Osei-Duro finished the game well and, along with Michael Khoury, kicked six goals for Thomastown. Down back, the reliable Andrew Lozanovski was named best on the day.
The first week of finals now begins with Thomastown clashing with Reservoir at Shelley Street Reserve on Saturday in the second semi-final, where the winner will claim the first place in this year’s Grand Final.
The Bears have recorded two big wins against Reservoir during the season, split by a Mustang victory in Round 10 at Main Street Reserve.
Both teams will have tough decisions to make at the selection table. Joel Buckley will return from suspension for Reservoir. Others who weren’t playing against South Morang, including Adam Meroli, Toby O’Meara and Danny O’Sullivan, look chances to return while Ryan Keyes and Cameron Rooney are finding touch in the reserves.
Jason Abela and Steven Cadby look like possible inclusions for the Bears, while Robert Nedelkovski kicked 10 in the reserves to go to 85 goals for the year. Benjamin Fitzgerald is also in good touch in the reserves.
South Morang takes on Watsonia at the same venue the following day. Both teams were surprisingly poor in their final hit-outs before the finals. The Lions have Mitchell Hicks and Lachlan Buckley as possible inclusions, while Corey Bennett would be a handy inclusion for the Saints.
The Lions lead the head to head clashes two to one this year, with the latest result being a 37-point victory in which Ashley Hobbs kicked five goals.
