Whittlesea have locked in a double chance in finals with a 51-point triumph over St Mary’s at the Whittlesea Showgrounds.
The final scores sat at 15.11 (101) to 7.8 (50) in favour of Whittlesea as they further secured their spot to play finals as we come into the later rounds of the home and away season.
Garry Ramsay’s men remain in third place on the ladder, sitting a game behind ladder leaders Diamond Creek and Macleod
St Mary’s on the other hand remain in fourth, with yesterday’s results across Division 2 confirming an elimination final date for the Burra with Northcote Park in three weeks’ time.
Angus Smith starred in attack yet again, kicking another five goals to make it 23 goals from only eight games with the Eagles so far this season.
Jaron Murphy chipped in with two and was one of the Eagles best on the day alongside usual suspects Taidgh Bland, Matthew Atta and Mitchell Andrews.
For the Burra, Ty Kitchell continued his stellar run of form in the absence of Tane Cotter and Rory Hanlon, combining well with Huon MacGibbon in ruck.
Jack Cicitta also kicked four goals to increase his season tally to 47 and remain second in the leading goalkickers chart.
Whittlesea came out strong, scoring the first three goals of the game early on. Murphy kicked the first goal before Anderson and Smith kicked the next two.
The Eagles then kicked three goals to two after that opening burst, leading at quarter time by 24 points.
Jack Bianchin’s men then started to put up a fight in the second, holding Whittlesea to two goals and six behinds in that period.
However, the scores began to grow, and the Burra entered half time trailing by 35 points.
Whittlesea kept pushing forward in the third quarter, kicking two goals and leaving the quarter a further 46 points ahead.
The final quarter found St Marys chase against Whittlesea just out of reach, as the Eagles broke through even further to comfortably secure the win.
Despite this, St Mary’s kept the fight alive, kicking two goals in the final quarter, only one less than Whittlesea. They put in hard defensive efforts, even if the final scores didn’t reflect that.
But it just wasn’t enough as the final margin settled on 51 points in favour of the home side.
Both teams will be looking to keep a presence in the back half and more aggressive part of the year. Next week Whittlesea will take on Panton Hill at A.E. Cracknell Reserve whilst St Marys face Macleod at Whatmough Park Park.
