Article and Photos by Michael Shillito
We’re in the home straight for the 2014 home and away season. The finals are in sight, and our final five are all but confirmed. The minor premiership looks decided, but the last double-chance spot is still up for grabs.
An important clash in the context of the race for the double chance was fought out at Weldon Oval on Saturday afternoon, as third-placed Wests travelled to the home of top side Manly.
Keen to retain their third place on the ladder, and to have the double-chance in the finals, the Magpies took the fight up to their more fancied rivals early. It was hard-fought, physical, hard-tackling football as the Giants found themselves put under plenty of pressure. And as the quarter unfolded, the Magpies gave themselves every chance of producing an upset as they scored three goals to one in the opening term to lead by ten points at the first change.
The second quarter got underway and the Giants had to absorb plenty of pressure from their visitors during the second term. But as the clock ticked further along in the quarter, the run of play eventually shifted to the home side; and slowly but surely they pegged back the lead that the Magpies had built up. And with moments to go before half time, the Giants took the lead; a four goals to two quarter seeing the Giants leading by five points at the long break.
It had been a bold first half by the Magpies; but the class of the Giants would prevail. There wasn’t much in it around the ground in the third term, plenty of fight and spirit by the Magpies. But the Giants had the answers and the means to create the scoring chances; and with three goals to one for the third term, the margin was out to 17 points at the last change.
Manly had ridden out the danger, and kept the ball in their forward line in the last quarter to prevent any chance of a Magpie resurgence. Peppering the goals with regularity and keeping the scoreboard ticking over, the Giants found winners all round the ground in the final term. Inaccuracy would plague them, as they kicked a wayward 5.10 in the final term; but with the Magpies only able to come up with two goals in the quarter, the final margin was extended to 43 points.
Lachlan Kilpatrick, Connor Pettersson and Ryan Wearne were pivotal to the Manly success on the day; while the Magpies found solid service in Kristian Ericson, Yannick Milligan-Saville and Levi Sands. 
The Giants have only dropped one game this season, and find themselves top of the ladder; a game clear of Pennant Hills and with a vastly superior percentage. They have matches against Campbelltown and Sydney Uni to come, and only if they drop both those games and Pennant Hills win both of their last two will they not take out the minor premiership.
Wests’ loss sees them drop to fourth place on the ladder, a game behind St George with a similar percentage. They have matches against UNSW-ES and UTS to come, matches they should win; but will need to win both of those games and hope St George drop one of theirs to regain the double-chance in the finals.
St George leap-frogged Wests into third place, doing it in style with a convincing 91-point win over bottom side Sydney Hills Eagles in a comprehensive display at Olds Park on Saturday afternoon.
The Dragons were on top early, with a run of four goals to two in the opening term and a 14-point quarter time lead. But it was in the second quarter that they really got going and asserted their clear superiority over their under-manned opponents. Runners through the midfield were creating space with ease, defenders were forcing turnovers and forwards were creating space and opening up scoring chances at will. Eight unanswered goals for the quarter saw the home side holding a 59-point lead at half time.
It had been a dominant display, and the Eagles had been powerless to stop the Dragon juggernaut. By half time, the game was safely won; and the Dragons seemed happy to put their cue in the rack through a lacklustre third quarter, a term in which the Eagles at least offered some resistance. But the Dragons still won the quarter, three goals to two, leading by 69 points at three quarter time.
It had been a mismatch around the ground, and the last quarter would offer no respite to the Eagles, as the Dragons were in complete control. Six goals to two in the final quarter saw the margin head close to three figures; and although St George didn’t quite get to the 100 point margin, it was still enough for an easy win; one which sees them not just pull a game ahead of Wests but bridging the percentage gap with the Magpies.
Dominic Killworth, against his former club, and Bryce Addison, spearheaded the charge on the forward line to finish with four goals apiece. Around the ground, Ben Jones, Alex Wynn and Killworth were prominent performers. It had been a tough afternoon for the Eagles; but Aaron Savage, Thomas Rivers and Stephen O’Connor kept working hard all day. 
St George have away trips to come against North Shore and Campbelltown, games they would be expected to win. Victories in those games will ensure third spot, but if the Dragons drop one of those games, they would be hoping that Wests also go down in one of their remaining games to keep the double-chance.
The Eagles, with just two wins for the year; would need to win both their last two games and hope UTS drop both of theirs to avoid their second wooden spoon in a row. But thoughts in the Eagle camp are already looking to 2015. With the Eagles unlikely to field a NEAFL team next year, there’s likely to be an injection of talent set to bolster their Premier Division side.
Sydney Uni’s mission to become the first NEAFL-aligned side to play Premier Division finals is nearly accomplished; after the Students dominated from start to finish to record a 65-point win over UTS at Blacktown International Sportspark on Saturday afternoon.
Looking to make an impression on the contest early, the Students burst out of the blocks and put in a dominant opening term that saw the Bats already looking out of the contest by quarter time. Seven goals to one was a reflection of the one-sided nature of play around the ground; and the Students were 40 points to the good at quarter time.
The Bats had been shell-shocked by the opening term onslaught; but attempted to fight back in the second quarter. It was much more tightly contested, as the Bats lifted their work-rate. But they were unable to make any dent in the deficit, as the Students had the answering goals to any challenge the Bats would mount. Three goals apiece in the second term, and the Students led by 42 points at the long break.
There would be no relief for the Bats in the third term, as the Students again tightened the screws and locked UTS completely out of the contest. An imposing seven goals to one quarter extended the margin to 78 points at three-quarter time. The game was effectively over, but the Bats at least managed to salvage something out of the contest by kicking four goals to one to win the last quarter.
The Students were spearheaded by a two-pronged forward setup that the Bats had no answer to. Edwin Smith finished with seven goals and Oliver Wetzlar contributed five. Around the ground, Mitchell Thompson, Jack Caspersonn and Lachlan Maples were the Students’ best. Justin Kenna, Michael Murrell and Adam Baker were tireless workers for the UTS cause. 
With two rounds to go, the Students hold a six-point lead over UNSW-ES. The only way they would miss the finals is if they were to lose both their remaining games and the Bulldogs win both of theirs. The Students have a nightmare last two rounds, with clashes against Pennant Hills and Manly; but should have enough of a buffer to hang on for a finals berth.
UNSW-ES kept their mathematical finals hopes alive, and ended North Shore’s, after the Bulldogs prevailed by 11 points at the Village Green on Saturday afternoon. In what was probably the most entertaining contest of the season, it was a high-scoring shootout with a display of accurate finishing, numerous lead changes and a finish that would go down to the wire.
After an even opening to the game, North Shore got on top late in the first term to complete a quarter of five goals to three and lead by ten points at quarter time. But it was in the second quarter that the free-flowing and high-scoring nature of the game became apparent. The forward lines of both sides were having the better of their defensive counterparts, and the scoreboard operator was kept busy through a quarter of non-stop scoring action. The Bulldogs won the quarter but only just, with seven goals to six, cutting the Bombers’ lead back to three points at half time.
The see-sawing nature of the game continued in the third quarter, as the lead changed hands numerous times. After not kicking a behind through the first half, the Bombers had their first scoreboard blemish early in the third quarter; but both sides were creating plenty of goal-scoring opportunities and converting most of them. Four goals apiece were scored in the third term, and the teams went into the three quarter time huddles with the Bombers leading by two points.
When North Shore kicked the first two goals of the final term, they looked to finally have shaken off the Bulldogs. But the Bulldogs had the fresh legs and dug deep in the final stages of the game when the match was there to be won. With five of the last six goals, the Bulldogs turned the deficit into a lead and hung on grimly in the final stages of the match to take a hard-earned 11-point victory.
Jeremy Kiel and Troy Luff kicked four goals each, and along with Peter Kefalas were among the Bulldogs’ best. Doug Hadden bagged six goals for the Bombers and Daniel Roberts 5; with Hadden, Jake Veale and Zac Fyffe getting plenty of the ball around the ground for the Bombers. 
The Bulldogs have a challenge to make the finals. Their remaining two games are against Wests and Sydney Hills; the Magpies game in particular being a tough matchup for them. They will need to win both of those games and hope the Students drop both of theirs to be a part of the playoff action.
Pennant Hills sit comfortably in second place, but they didn’t have everything their own way on Saturday afternoon when they travelled to Monarch Oval to take on Campbelltown.
The Blues invited many of their legends from bygone eras to return to the club, and the past players would have been impressed with the fight that the present players showed in the first half as they took the fight up to their more highly-fancied rivals. Three goals apiece in the first quarter, and scores were level at quarter time. And it wasn’t until late in the second term that the Demons got on top around the ground; but a run of five goals to three in the second quarter gave the Demons a 16-point half time lead.
But in the premiership quarter, the superior class of the Demons team shone through; and the Blues’ stubborn resistance was unable to hold them out. Players who had been quiet in the first half began to have a greater influence. And the scoreboard began to reflect the Demon drive around the ground, as they kicked five goals to one in the third term to extend the lead to 40 points at the last change.
The Blues had tried hard, but in the end they didn’t have the firepower to match it with the finals-bound Demons. And so it would be in the final quarter, as the Demons pulled away with five goals to two. In the end, the Demons took the match by 60 points; a contest that looked set to be much closer in the first half before the Demons stepped up another gear when it was needed.
Ted Widmer was on fire for the Demons, finishing with six goals in a best-on-ground performance. Sam Zikman scored four goals, while Matt Thomas and Kieran Wright were also prominent around the ground for the Demons.
The Demons have such a break over third that they can’t finish lower than second. Their remaining games are both at home, taking on Sydney Uni and North Shore; but the Demons will need to not only win both those games but depend on Manly to drop both of theirs to get the minor premiership.
Last Modified on 11/08/2014 10:53
