While many eyes will be fixated on the top of the table clash in this weekend’s slate of MC Labour Division 2 football, there are some still some crucial battles to take place in Round 8.
We could be in for an early Grand Final preview when the unbeaten streaks in Whittlesea and Diamond Creek are on the line in their battle at the Whittlesea Showgrounds.
It seemed from the early stages of the campaign that these two sides would sit near the top come season’s end and after seven matches with neither team tasting defeat, we’re about to find out which of the two will hold premiership favouritism as we approach the halfway mark.
The Eagles had to grind their way to a victory last week in order to keep their unbeaten start intact, holding on to prevail by seven points over South Morang away from home.
With inspiring performances from the likes of Taidgh Bland and Thomas Falls, as well as three crucial majors courtesy of Max Dyson, Garry Ramsay’s men did enough to stop a fast finishing Lions outfit from making a comeback.
It was the third of seven matches this season where Whittlesea have produced a winning margin of under 15 points, highlighting that even sides lower on the ladder can push the blue and gold to their limits.
The Creekers meanwhile maintained their dominant start to this year’s campaign, recording a second consecutive 42-point triumph, this time over Lower Plenty.
31 points is still the smallest margin of victory last year’s minor premiers have produced this season, but last Saturday did see Diamond Creek their biggest score of the year to date in 8.7 (55); which might not seem like much, but for a side that has only conceded an average of less than 35 points in 2024, it is something to note.
The likes of Daniel Jarvis, Dale Marshall and Andrew White have been some of multiple Creekers that have hit good form in recent weeks, and they will be keen to maintain their great performances this Saturday.
Whittlesea have won all six encounters against the Creekers since 2013, but with little separating the two sides this year, predicting the winner of this contest will be far from easy.
With a top five spot heading into the second half of the season up for grabs, Thomastown and Panton Hill’s clash at Main Street Recreation Reserve is one full of intrigue.
The Bears responded well to their tight defeat to Lower Plenty a fortnight ago with a resounding 38-point victory over Watsonia away from home, producing their biggest winning margin of the season so far.
Recruit Youseph Dib’s form of late has been excellent, having been named in Thomastown’s best in his last three matches, while kicking at least one goal in all but one of his seven games in 2024.
Meanwhile, James Lucente starred with a season-high six majors against his old side, and with 13 goals in his previous three matches, last year’s competition leading goalkicker looks set to be back to his best.
He may find himself in a shootout with Panton Hill key forward Riley Livingstone, who also kicked six goals in his side’s Round 7 triumph over Laurimar. He now has 22 majors for the season, with all his goals coming in the last six matches.
The likes of Oliver Parks and Christian Roberts have also produced some solid performances in the last couple of weeks for Simon Amore’s men.
Thomastown won the last match between these two sides at this venue in convincing fashion, however their Round 7 encounter in 2023 was one of the games of the season, as the Redbacks came from over six goals down to salvage an entertaining draw at A.E. Cracknell Reserve.
With both teams sharing a 4-3 record to start this season, there’s no reason why another close result can’t be on the cards.
Lower Plenty can be another side to return to the top half of the table by week’s end as they prepare to host Watsonia at Montmorency Park South Oval.
The Bears’ encouraging campaign continued to be on show last week as despite going down to ladder leaders Diamond Creek, they still managed to kick more points than any other side have against the Creekers this season.
While Patrick Flynn and Joshua Turner maintained their status as some of the team’s most consistent players, having others such as Jasper Collins and Billy Reardon be featured in the best will also be pleasing for first-year coach Travis Stephens.
Lower Plenty will sense a great opportunity to keep in touch with the top five over the next month of action, with four of their next five games of the season against sides that currently sit below them.
This includes Watsonia this Saturday, who are looking to arrest a run of consecutive defeats after going down in convincing fashion to Thomastown last week.
The defeat didn’t stop star duo Daniel Annetta and Harrison Sinclair having an impact, with both men standing out for George Lattouf.
The same can be said for captain Joshua Boulton, who’s efforts in the backline have been vital in Watsonia being the second-best defensive side of teams in the bottom half of the ladder so far in 2024.
Winning by an average of 51 points in their two meetings last year, the Saints will be keen replicate their recent performances this Saturday, but with Lower Plenty continuing to impress, they could be seen as the more favoured side on their home deck.
After some tight encounters of late, Northcote Park will hope their competitive performances continue when they play South Morang at Bill Lawry Oval.
The Cougars are still the only side without a victory in 2024, however they have only fell short in their last three matches by a combined 35 points, including last week when they went down to St Mary’s by only 14 points away from home.
It was a match that Anthony Palmer’s side were in control of until half time, leading by 21 points at the main break, only the second time they had done so in 2024.
The improved effort was led by Leo Amad, who has capped off a great month of football by finishing as his side’s best last week, and Ricky Fandrich, who kicked a season-high four majors, and now has 14 goals in six matches.
Northcote Park’s growth in the last three weeks can also be illustrated through their scoring, as after producing just 51 points on average in the first four matches of the season, their most recent three games have seen them boost that tally to 84 points.
But their improvement will need to go up another level on Saturday, despite facing South Morang outfit who have suffered consecutive defeats after going down by seven points to Whittlesea last week.
The Lions are still the number one scoring side in the competition but have managed totals of just 59 and 63 in the previous fortnight and will look to get back their attacking ways this week.
What might help is the inclusion of last year’s club leading goalkicker Joshua D’Intinosante, who may be available to return for South Morang with his VFL affiliate Coburg having the bye this weekend. The same can be said for defender Deacon Kalpakis, who has performed well at the higher level.
For the first time since 2018, Laurimar and St Mary’s will face each other at Laurimar Reserve.
It was a year that saw the Burra lose just one match on their way to the Division 3 premiership, while the Power booked an inaugural finals berth in the competition. Six years later, they’ll play their inaugural meeting in Division 2.
Laurimar just couldn’t get close enough to Panton Hill in their most recent encounter, going down by 25 points to Panton Hill away from home.
Jimmy Atkins would have been impressed to see Joel Lawson and Noah Mooney combining well inside 50 to produce three majors apiece.
Bailey Macleod is too putting together a strong season for the Power and has now been named in his side’s best in five of seven matches, meanwhile Nathan Andrews has been solid in recent weeks.
The Burra had to overcome a slow start against a gallant Northcote Park side in order to continue their winning ways, but their 14-point victory now moves them into equal third on the ladders, just behind South Morang on percentage.
The match saw a season high four goals kicked by Zane Costello who has now produced majors in four straight matches, meanwhile Joseph Maggio finished in his side’s best again and has now done so in all but one of the seven appearances he’s made for the club in 2024.
A win on Saturday would make it the best start to a Division 2 season after eight games in St Mary’s history, topping the 5-3 record they produced back in 2022.
While they missed finals that season, their form suggests that they will not endure the same problems this season, and should still be considered warm favourites to get the four points this week.
