By Cameron Hutchison
Round 12 is done and dusted for Division 1, while Division 2 have put Round 13 behind them.
The business-end of the season is approaching; and while some clubs will not be playing finals this year, some are certainly playing for their lives come September.
In Division 1 – Wandin, Healesville, Olinda and Woori Yallock should play finals.
The only thing that will change will be positions on the ladder.
Upwey-Tecoma is holding on to fifth spot and you would expect them to stay in the five, but Mount Evelyn is right on their heels.
In Division 2, Belgrave are clear favourites and will remain in top spot.
There is real jostling for the other spots and the prime ones are second and third that are held by Seville and Powelltown.
In netball, Olinda are holding fast on top of the ladder with Wandin and Woori Yallock fighting it out for second spot.
Monbulk and Warburton share fourth spot with Mount Evelyn probably their only challenger sitting in sixth.
Division 2 has Belgrave clearly on top of the ladder and firm flag favourites.
Division 1 Seniors Football
Round 12
Wandin 9.9(63) d Gembrook Cockatoo 7.7(49)
Wandin sit atop the ladder but were not convincing in their win over a much-improved Gembrook. Wandin started fast with a 4.4 to one behind first quarter and it looked like it was going to be a long day for Gembrook. Gembrook rallied in the second term, outscoring Wandin by eight points and the margin was 19 points at half-time. Gembrook continued in the third quarter, kicking 3.1 to 1.4 and they were within striking distance, only 10 points shy at three-quarter time. Wandin regrouped in the last and kicked two straight to 1.2 and the win was theirs but not the most convincing heading into the back end of the season.
Wandin Best: B. Chapman, H. Byrne, A. Young, B. Harvey, T. Merlino, P. Bruzzese.
Gembrook-Cockatoo Best: E. Tomlin (1 goal), L. Scott (1 goal), D. Leversha, D. Welsh, P. Gramc (2 goals), M. Wills.
Woori Yallock 14.10(94) d Monbulk 10.6(66)
Woori Yallock share third spot with Healesville after a win over Monbulk. Monbulk are sitting seventh, now two-and-a-half wins out of the five and probably looking down the barrel at this stage. Woori Yallock got the jump in the first quarter and took a slim five point lead into the second quarter. They skipped away in the second term with 5.4 to 1.1 and the lead had blown out to 32 points at the main break. Monbulk fought back in the third quarter, outscoring Woori Yallock by 11 points, but the margin was still going to be tough to claw back. Woori Yallock finished the game with four goals to three in the last and earned the win by 28 points.
Woori Yallock Best: K. Thompson, J. Matthews (5 goals), L. Boontjes, A. Marsh (3 goals), C. Smedley (1 goal), K. Busoli (2 goals).
Monbulk Best: J. Major, B. Emmett, S. Williams (1 goal), S. McBride, M. Langworthy (5 goals), A. Smith.
Mount Evelyn 17.19(121) d Emerald 14.15(99)
Mount Evelyn have kept their finals hopes alive and sit in sixth spot only one win out of the five after a come from behind win against Emerald on Saturday. Emerald started off well and took the early lead kicking 6.2 to 4.5 in the first quarter and had a handy nine-point lead. Mount Evelyn showed some grit in the second term and kicked 6.5 to 4.5 to turn things around at half time and hold a three point lead. From then on, Mount Evelyn played the footy that had been avoiding them all year, kicking five goals to twin in the third quarter and their lead was 19 points at three-quarter time. Both sides kicked two goals in the last, but the win was sealed for Mount Evelyn.
Mount Evelyn Best: K. Jones (5 goals), J. Beamish, M. Martin (2 goals), T. Chalkley (4 goals), D. Kift (1 goal), J. Barden.
Emerald Best: S. Cocks, L. Sheppard (1 goal), B. Moloney (5 goals), D. Karacsonyi, H. Lang, B. Wilson.
Upwey Tecoma 29.13(187) d Warburton Millgrove 13.7(85)
Upwey Tecoma are one game clear in fifth spot after a huge morale boosting win over Warburton by 102 points. Upwey got off to a cracking start kicking 7.5 to 3.1 and the lead was 22 points at quarter time. Upwey kicked another 7.6 to 4.1 in the second term and the game was all but over at half time. The lead had blown out to 51 points and Warburton was never going to come back from that sort of deficit. Upwey Tecoma kept up the pressure and kicked another seven goals in the third quarter holding Warburton goalless. The last quarter was much of the same with an eight goal to six last quarter. Warburton certainly played some of their best footy in the last but it was all too late. Upwey were certainly consistent over four quarters of football and have probably hit their straps at the right time.
Upwey-Tecoma Best: L. Beacom, B. Oates, J. Hackett (5 goals), D. Waters (8 goals), H. Stanley (1 goal), B. Duncan.
Warburton-Millgrove Best: T. McKail (1 goal), J. Walker, L. Barnard (1 goal), B. Clinch, A. White, T. Marr.
Healesville 14.14(98) d Olinda Ferny Creek 3.16(34)
The WorkSafe Game of the Month has seen Healesville jump to second on the ladder after a somewhat surprising result in a low-scoring game on Sunday. Scoring was low from both sides in the first quarter with Olinda holding a slim lead of one point after kicking 1.4 to 1.3. Healesville made the most of the second term and kicked away with 6.4 to two behinds, and went into the main break with a 37-point lead. Olinda could not find anything in the third quarter and played well below expectations kicking 1.4 to Healesville’s 4.2. The lead was now 53 points and the way Olinda was playing they were not coming back from this. Olinda’s indirect kicking in front of goal did not help their cause in the last term as Healesville kicked 4.5 to 1.6 to finish them off.
Healesville Best: A. Davies (2 goals), N. Mende (1 goal), L. Daly, D. Anderson (1 goal), C. Warren, M. Anson.
Olinda-Ferny Creek Best: C. Beattie (1 goal), L. Hill, C. Horner (1 goal), M. Wright, D. Noorda, B. Cooling.
Division 2 Seniors Football
Round 13
Belgrave 19.16(130) d Seville 13.16(94)
Belgrave are clear leaders at the top of the ladder after their win over Seville on Saturday. Belgrave kicked 4.6 to 2.6 in the first term and took a handy lead of 12 points into the second quarter. They extended that lead to 38 points at half time by kicking 5.5 to 1.3 and it was going to be tough work for Seville to bounce back. They rallied in the third term outscoring Belgrave by 19 points and reduced the margin to 19 points. It was a high-scoring last quarter with Belgrave kicking eight goals while Seville chimed in with five of their own but the day belonged to Belgrave.
Belgrave Best: T. Marks (6 goals), J. Schill (1 goal), T. Stubley (2 goals), J. McDermott, M. Brown (1 goal), D. Loosz.
Seville Best: N. O’Keefe (7 goals), L. Casini (1 goal), J. Nolan, P. Bailey, J. Wilson, B. Penwill.
Powelltown 17.12(114) d Alexandra 10.8(68)
Powelltown are sitting one game clear of Yarra Glen in third position after a good win over fifth-placed Alexandra. Powelltown kicked 5.2 to 2.2 in the first term to take a lead of 18 points at quarter-time. Both sides kicked five goals in the second quarter and the game was still in Powelltown’s favour at half-time. Powelltown kicked three goals to one in the third term and it was all Powelltown. Alexandra would need to play some extraordinary football if they were going to get back into this game. Another 4.6 to 2.1 last quarter in Powelltown’s favour sealed the result, and the Demons deserve their third place position on the ladder. Powelltown Best: J. Rohan, J. Walker, J. Moore, T. Hallmark, R. Johnson, B. Jackson.
Alexandra Best: R. Norris (2 goals), J. Brereton, J. Purcell, B. Woollard, L. Ragg, J. Elkington.
Yarra Junction 23.13(151) d Thornton Eildon 6.2(38)
Yarra Junction has racked up their fourth win for the season after accounting for Thornton by 113 points. Yarra Junction held Thornton scoreless in the first term while they kicked 6.5 and had a commanding lead of 41 points at quarter-time. Thornton came out and kicked three goals in the second quarter but Junction kicked another nine to put the game well and truly out of reach of Thornton. The third term was a reasonably tight contest with only seven goals being kicked but the lead at three-quarter time was 87 points. Yarra Junction held Thornton goalless in the last, kicking four themselves. The Eagles shared the load well with 12 goal kickers for the day.
Yarra Junction Best: T. Armstrong (2 goals), J. Taylor, J. Swinden (4 goals), A. Chandler (2 goals), T. Boxell (2 goals), R. Bombinski (3 goals).
Thornton-Eildon Best: B. Wratten (1 goal), T. Keating, J. Ashby, J. Strachan, D. Creed (2 goals), B. Musgrove.
Yarra Glen 16.19(115) d Yea 9.9(63)
Yarra Glen is one-and-a-half games clear of Kinglake in fourth position after a win over Yea on Saturday. Yarra Glen started strong kicking 4.5 to 1.1 in the first term and took a lead of 22 points at quarter-time, and they looked like they were in for a big day. They managed to kick 3.5 to 2.4 in the second quarter and extend their lead to 29 points at half-time. Accuracy was plaguing them and the margin could have been insurmountable if they kicked straight. Yea came out full of run in the third term kicking 3.2 to a mere 1.5 to reduce the three-quarter time margin to only 20 points. Yea fought hard in the last but it wasn’t until red time that Yarra Glen finally got their team game going. They kicked away with an eight goal quarter and ended up with a win by 52 points at the final siren.
Yarra Glen Best: J. Marks, J. Clare (2 goals), T. Russell, B. Binion (1 goal), B. Ashton (1 goal), C. Tait.
Yea Best: H. Jarvie (1 goal), C. Evans, R. Aldous (1 goal), D. Webb (3 goals), Z. Pell (2 goals), E. Neilson.
Kinglake: Bye
Under 18s
Round 12
Wandin 8.2(50) d Gembrook Cockatoo 5.9(39)
Wandin Best: S. Barrand, D. Kennedy, T. Smith, K. Stokes, R. Smith.
Gembrook-Cockatoo Best: M. Frazzetto, D. Williams (1 goal), J. Mazur, J. Firrito (1 goal), D. Smith, C. Downard (1 goal).
Woori Yallock 13.6(84) d Monbulk 7.6(48)
Woori Yallock is sitting sixth after their win on Saturday and Monbulk are sitting half a game out of the eight. Woori Yallock got off to a fast start kicking four goals to 2.2 in the first term. They broke the game open in the second quarter with 4.2 to 3.1 and a lead of 17 points at half-time. An even third term only increased their margin to 18 points at three-quarter time. Woori Yallock kicked away in the last with three goals to zip in the last and a handy 36-point win.
Woori Yallock Best: T. Amarant (5 goals), M. Anderson (1 goal), P. Jenkin, C. Cameron (1 goal), J. Wall (1 goal), W. White.
Monbulk Best: K. Linde, A. Banks (1 goal), T. Wills, M. Hill, J. Graham, T. Edyvane.
Mount Evelyn 10.2(62) d Emerald 7.10(52)
Mount Evelyn Best: Z. Anderson, T. Brill (2 goals), M. Gibbons (3 goals), D. Maunder (1 goal), L. Peterson, D. Fraser.
Emerald best: Not provided.
Upwey Tecoma 11.17(83) d Warburton Millgrove 5.5(35)
Upwey Tecoma Best: D. Wilson, P. Booth (2 goals), D. Rankin-Hooper (3 goals), T. Hualer, A. Bartils (3 goals), L. Sholer.
Warburton Millgrove Best: T. Mon-Aphai, L. Winter-Annette, B. Thomson, T. Wappett, M. Read, M. Leeds (4 goals).
Healesville 15.11(101) d Yarra Glen 3.5(23)
Healesville Best: K. Brown (1 goal), C. Wright, E. Muke, C. McInnes, C. Fulford, M. Minney (3 goals).
Yarra Glen Best: L. Coulson, C. Berry, B. Archer, Z. Capuano, D. Whelan, M. Kikidopoulos (1 goal).
Division 1 A Grade Netball
Round 12
Wandin 106 d Gembrook Cockatoo 20
Wandin Best: Tash Halton, Kathleen McMahon, Jackie Cullimore (88 goals).
Gembrook-Cockatoo Best: Caitlyn Dullard, Jessica Mitchell (1 goal), Ashleigh Frost.
Woori Yallock 56 d Monbulk Hawks 40
Woori Yallock Best: Mia Sudomirski (36 goals), Casey Barnes, Emily Allwell.
Monbulk Hawks Best: Olivia McPherson, Sophie Stubbs (9 goals), Paige Whitworth.
Mount Evelyn 60 d Emerald 55
Mount Evelyn Best: Lauren Woodgate (38 goals), Cate Garlick, Laura Black.
Emerald Best: Jazmyn Wray, Meagan Baguley (31 goals), Rebecca Sayers.
Upwey-Tecoma 57 d Warburton Millgrove 42
Upwey-Tecoma Best: Angela Wuttke (22 goals), Sasha Byrnes, Bianca Moffatt.
Warburton Millgrove Best: Selina Fotia (14 goals), Tatum Summers, Binaca Daniels.
Healesville 13 v Olinda Ferny Creek 105
Olinda Ferny Creek best: Peri Stewart (87) goals.
Division 2 A Grade Netball
Round 13
Belgrave won by forfeit by Seville.
Alexandra 47 d Powelltown 43
Alexandra Best: Caitlin Haggis, Rebecca Wallis (12 goals), Latoya Wards.
Powelltown Best: Shae Berriman, Jessica Coffey, Georgie Haynes (12 goals).
Yarra Junction 56 d Thornton Eildon 28
Yarra Junction Best: Jessica Sweet, Ashley Ula, Abbey Bentley.
Thornton Eildon Best: Alesha Davison, Danni Lowerson, Kayla Bowcher.
Yarra Glen 43 d Yea 42
Yarra Glen Best: Chelsea Birchall, Georgia Taylor (33 goals), Kali Fraser.
Yea Best: Nikki Watts (21 goals), Brooke Lloyd, Sophie Stares.
Kinglake: Bye.
