After an opening round that delivered some intriguing results in Melbourne Greyhounds Division 1, Round 2 might give us a better idea of the teams who will contend in 2025.
Both Greensborough and Banyule will be looking to build on impressive wins against 2024 finalists when they meet at Greensborough War Memorial Park.
Whilst the Boro claimed the points on the road against Hurstbridge, Banyule were able to run over the top of last year’s grand finalists in Montmorency.
After getting off to a fast start, the Bears held off a Magpies charge in the second term before eventually running out the game strongly and to claim the four points in Damian Truslove’s first game as senior men’s coach.
James Kayrooz starred on his return to Beverley Road Oval, kicking eight goals and claiming five Coaches MVP Award votes alongside Jack Langford.
Riley Ormerod and Kye Yodgee also chipped in with two goals apiece, the latter getting the new campaign off to a nice start on the back off a second placed finish in last year’s Frank Rosbrook Medal.
Greensborough’s victory was a much tighter one than the Bears last Saturday, defeating their 2024 elimination final opponent in Hurstbridge by three points away from home.
Trailing by 14 points at quarter time, the Boro took the lead in time on during the second quarter and never lost it for the remainder of the match.
Nathan Howard was excellent in the ruck all day and led the Coaches MVP Award votes for the game whilst partner in crime Jamie Smith kicked four goals, a promising result after he went goalless in his previous two encounters against the Bridges.
The early season form of both sides already makes this clash a highly anticipated one, but knowing the recent history of these two teams adds to the interest.
The average margin of the team’s previous three meetings is 12 points; however, the Bears have won on all three occasions which is something to note ahead of the weekend’s contest.
Two sides looking to bounce back from opening round defeats in Montmorency and South Morang are set to meet this weekend at Montmorency Park North Oval.
Following losses to Banyule and West Preston-Lakeside respectively last Saturday, both sides will be eager to avoid going winless in the opening fortnight.
The Magpies were unable to peg back the Bears fast start and eventually would go down by 31 points in their first game since last year’s Grand Final defeat.
Despite the loss, it didn’t stop Marcus Lentini from producing a five-goal haul from midfield, with this performance seeing him claim eight Coaches MVP Award votes.
But the Magpies will need similar performances from more than just Lentini if they are to claim the points in their first home game of the season and not go to 0-2 for the first time since 2016.
Without Noah Cumberland and Tye Hall, the Lions went down quite comfortably to an improving West Preston-Lakeside outfit at home.
Davin Cameron was a solid contributor on return to Mill Park Lakes Reserve alongside Jesse Christidis, with the latter kicking two goals.
This weekend could see the return of Coburg-listed star Josh D’Intinosante for the Lions, which would be a massive boost for the Lions trip to Montmorency Park. Nathan Stefanile could also be another to return, setting up a fascinating potential ruck battle with Flynn Riley.
Although they are still finding their feet in the top flight, Gary Hall’s men face a difficult three-week patch beginning this Saturday, in which they face the Magpies, Greensborough and Heidelberg.
And although they might be out of their depth initially, the Lions will benefit from the experience of playing some of the top sides of the competition so early.
Eltham will face a big test this weekend when they welcome Hurstbridge this weekend to Eltham Central Park.
Although it will be a test, the Panthers will be in great spirits after their thrilling one-point win over Bundoora at Yulong Reserve in Round 1, banking four points that look to be vital, even at this early stage of the season.
They were well led by ruck David Evans and midfielders Jesse Donaldson and Alex Bellchambers who all comprise the top three Coaches MVP Award vote getters for the Panthers.
Declan Ayres and Mitch Green also performed well in defence, with Green on Eltham debut after making the move to Panther Place from St Mary’s.
Their opponents this weekend will have a fire in their belly having gone down for the second consecutive time to Greensborough, this time at Ben Frilay Oval.
Liam Middleton and Blake Fitzgerald picked up from where they left off at the backend of 2024 with some terrific displays while Joel Naylor kickstarted his 2025 with a four-goal outing.
Naylor had two and three-goal performances against the Panthers last season and will be tasked to lead the charge inside 50 again this weekend.
Jake Richards and Jake Wild are likely to miss due to suspension, but Joel Cordwell still has a depth of players to choose from this week, as the likes of Ethan Taylor and Joel Fitzgerald didn’t feature last Saturday.
The Bridges also defeated Eltham by 26 and 48 points in their two 2024 clashes which will give them confidence heading into the weekend, although the Panthers will be determined to make it another tight affair.
After a convincing first round victory, West Preston-Lakeside return to J.E. Moore Park this weekend to face three-time reigning premiers Heidelberg.
Ian Aitken’s men were ultra impressive at Mill Park Lakes Reserve as they spoiled South Morang’s Division 2 premiership unfurling with a 41-point win.
It was all set up in the first three quarters for the Roosters, kicking 10 goals to four en route to producing the second largest win of the weekend.
Team of the Year forward Dante Colosimo was a star up forward yet again with five goals, however Matthew Belbasis caught the eye of both coaches as he took home the full 10 Coaches MVP Award votes.
The Roosters produced their largest amount of scoring shots since Round 5, 2024 and had seven individual goalkickers in the victory, all pointing to signs of improvement under Aitken.
Their focus now moves from the new kids in the division to the benchmark, who were clinical, sublime and everything in between in their first game of the season against neighbours North Heidelberg.
From quarter time onwards the Tigers dominated the Bulldogs, kicking 22 goals and conceding just three to win by an astounding 130 points.
Half their side impacted the scoreboard on the day, with Jack Andrew and Jordan Smith kicking five goals each. Dylan Clarke yet again starred in midfield, finishing with nine Coaches MVP Award votes, while Matthew Signorello and Tom Keys were also impressive as per usual.
They’ll go in as heavy favourites yet again this weekend, having won both matches against the Roosters last year by more than 100 points. If Ian Aitken’s men can limit Heidelberg’s ball movement and slick transition from defence to attack, they can make this a competitive contest.
North Heidelberg will be aiming to put last week’s loss to the Tigers behind them in their matchup against Bundoora at Shelley Street Reserve.
With some of their stars missing, along with some new faces, the Bulldogs were unable to match a rampant Heidelberg outfit after the opening quarter, managing a total of five goals.
Some of the fresh faces in Fraser Thurlow and Jesse Wallin were the Bulldogs’ most impressive players for the afternoon, with Thurlow providing great efforts in the ruck and up forward, while Wallin’s run and dash was a highlight.
Meanwhile Jesse Tardio still managed to get plenty of the football in midfield and remained a threat in stoppages all afternoon.
Although it didn’t go to plan in Kasey Duncan’s first game in charge of the team, they’ll get a good opportunity to get back to their best in front of their faithful when they face the Bulls.
Bundoora were incredibly close to a first round victory but would fall one-point short against Eltham in a low scoring battle at Yulong Reserve.
Despite the best efforts of Ben McCarthy on Bundoora debut, along with Jesse King up forward, it wasn’t enough to get Heath Scotland’s team over the line.
However, there is still scope for the Bulls to grow and improve, with the likes of Peter McEvoy, Adrian De Sando, Liam Mallia and Joel Harris some that are able to have an impact on upcoming matches.
It will still be an uphill task for Bundoora to get the four points against last year’s semi-finalists, particularly as they were soundly beaten in the two team’s most recent meeting back in Round 13 last year.
