PORT Melbourne captain John Baird will notch his 150th Peter Jackson VFL match this Sunday, fittingly against his old side Box Hill, when the teams meet at Box Hill City Oval, as Samantha Landy reports.
The Borough will be looking to win their 25th straight game for their stellar skipper.
The Hawks, for whom Baird played 29 games in the early 2000s, while be hoping to break their second streak in two weekends after ending their 20 year losing run at Avalon Airport Oval with a 40-point victory over Werribee last Saturday.
Box Hill raced out of the blocks against the Tigers, piling on 10 goals to two by half time. Tom Schneider was best on ground, booting three goals, while Daniel Pratt slotted two, despite receiving some unwanted attention from Kangaroos big man Majak Daw. Clinton Young, Kyle Cheney and Adam Pattison were also among the best.
Baird was best on ground in Port Melbourne’s hard fought 28-point win over Bendigo at the Queen Elizabeth Oval last Saturday, leading a superb midfield in Shane Valenti and newbie Dean Grice. Sam Pleming starred in defence, while Dean Galea (five goals) Chris Cain and Billy Bustin (three goals apiece) ran rampage up forward.
Adrian Bonaddio tried hard in the ruck in support of Wayde Skipper, but was generally outplayed by AFL-listed Gold ruckman Tom Bellchambers, forcing the Borough to rely on its strong midfield to gain clearances around the ground.
Box Hill will no doubt try to exploit the reigning premiers for height, led by the likes Adam Pattison, Sam Grimley and Luke Lowden. The Borough will be hoping Ryan Gale and Bonaddio can provide Skipper with enough support to counter this attack.
Borough coach Gary Ayres said his side's ability to get the best out of its not quite full strength list is key to continuing its remarkable winning streak.
“We have to make sure we isolate each game, because we haven’t got our best personnel available at the minute," he said post-match last weekend.
“We have to make sure that our winning puts a lot of heat on the opposition, because the competition is just so even.”
Port Melbourne bested Box Hill by 24 and 20 points when they met last year, efforts the Hawks wouldn’t have been too upset by considering the Borough’s extraordinary dominance throughout that season.
Gary Ayres’ boys look to have retained much of their supremacy from 2011 this year, despite a significant turnover in players between seasons, currently sitting atop the ladder the three wins and no losses to their name.
Box Hill’s prospects for this season are difficult to tell at this early stage, with the Hawks preceding their commanding win over Werribee with a 54-point loss to Sandringham in Round 1 and a bye in Round 2.
The Hawks have the home ground advantage and renewed confidence on their side after its landmark victory last weekend.
But the Borough will be desperate to win for their inspirational skipper.
It’s hard to see the Port Melbourne juggernaut coming to a halt this weekend, but the home side are every chance to create an upset. After all, they did just that last week, and quite comfortably to boot.
Last Modified on 14/04/2012 19:43