Mernda senior men’s coach Robert Fletcher believes his side’s efforts in the second semi-final will put them in good stead to again challenge Laurimar in Saturday’s Heidelberg Golf Club Division 3 Grand Final.
It will be the club’s first senior men’s Grand Final since their 2012 Division 3 premiership triumph, and it’s fair to say the Demons’ journey back to the final match of the year has been a long one.
Coming into this season, Mernda had not played senior finals since 2014 and had produced just a seven-win campaign last year.
But they turned things around from the outset in 2023, having defeated Old Eltham Collegians and Laurimar in the first fortnight of the home and away campaign, and went on to finish as minor premiers for the first time since 1997, dropping just two matches along the way.
In the second semi-final a fortnight ago, the Demons were staring down the barrel of a heavy defeat to the Power at three quarter time, as they trailed by 22 points, before they kicked the first four majors of the final term to hit the front approaching time on.
But Laurimar found another level, and two majors from Noah Mooney saw his side progress to the Grand Final first.
Mernda responded well in last week’s preliminary final, defeating Old Eltham Collegians by 36 points, but coach Robert Fletcher believes it was the experience from the first final against their Saturday opponents that will give them confidence to overrun the Power in the decider.
“I think the big thing that we found [from that game] is we had 18 blokes who had not played seniors finals before,” he said.
“So, they were a bit nervous and there was definitely a bit of inexperience in the first final.”
“But to get through that game and still be within a kick or two against Laurimar, I think the boys learnt a fair bit from it.”
The average age of the side was just 23.5 in that final, highlighting the inexperience that Fletcher stated.
He also confirmed that the Grand Final side would likely be unchanged from the preliminary final squad that defeated Old Eltham Collegians, adding that he was satisfied with the performance every player put in to hold their spot and is positive his side’s performance against the Turtles has boosted their confidence ahead of their battle with Laurimar.
The Demons win over Laurimar in Round 2 was seen as a massive upset at the time, but it’s proved to be a preview of which two sides will fight it out for premiership success in 2023; however, they have been defeated by the Power in their previous two meetings.
With the Power boasting a strong midfield group, Fletcher is under no illusions that winning the football at the source will be vital if his side are to extinguish Laurimar’s chances this weekend.
“They are [Laurimar] great around the football and around the stoppages,” he said.
“I thought we were better at that in the second semi-final, and we now just need to keep improving on that.”
