There were upsets aplenty as Round 1 proved to be a tipsters nightmare with North Shore and UTS putting their case forward to be the ladder jumpers this year.
Manly-Warringah v Pennant Hills- Weldon Oval at 2.30pm
The Grand Final replay doubles as the AFL Sydney Match of the Week as Manly-Warringah look to retain their recent dominance over their Demons rivals.
Last year, Manly-Warringah defeated Pennant Hills on four occasions including in the corresponding clash at this time last year by a whopping 90 points.
It is a new year and Pennant Hills surprised many with their come from behind win against St George at Mike Kenny Oval. They were slow out of the blocks (something they can’t afford this week), trailing by five goals at the first change before completely dominating the remainder of the match to run out 29-point winners.
Without a host of stars, it was the half-forward line led by Theo Moraitis and Michael Talbot who shone for the Demons. Tom Angel was best afield in a forward pocket as again the Demons managed to kick over 100 points in the night-time conditions.
It is often an area of strength for the Demons. No doubt their midfield will be pivotal this weekend. Damian Dell’Aquila and Tom Edmonds will be important in lock-down roles on the star Manly midfield which boasts 2014 Phelan Medal runner-up Connor Pettersson and James Brain.
Dan Witt lined up at full-back last week and is likely to get the big job on Brayden Fowler who was below his best last week with only one goal.
Manly-Warringah just don’t know how to lose. They trailed by 40 points into the final quarter but were obviously diligent in their pre-season as they steam-rolled premiership fancy East Coast at Kanebridge Oval. Tom McCaffrey lived every footballers childhood dream with a set shot to win the game after the siren.
It capped a big game for the big-bodied winger who I think is set for a big year. He has all the attributes to add some power to the GIANTS forward thrusts, and hit the scoreboard himself.
Wils Brassil was a shining light in the ruck and will battle with Lachlan Urwin to give their respective midfield first use on the weekend.
Can Pennant Hills go another level to challenge the GIANTS after a super start to the season where they claimed wins across all grades? My concern is the pace of Manly-Warringah over the Demons which they have exploited in recent outings.
It might be a mountain too high this week.
Danny’s Prediction: Manly-Warringah by 40 points
Western Suburbs vs East Coast- Picken Oval at 2.10pm
Two narrow losers from last week will be hell-bent to open their 2015 account at Picken Oval this Saturday afternoon.
No doubt East Coast should be coming into this match with a win under their belt. They came to a grinding halt after doing the hard work in the second and third quarters, restricting Manly-Warringah to 2.8 while booting 9.2 themselves.
They say football is predominantly a mental game and it will be interesting to see how they bounce back this week.
They have class all over the ground with Trent Stubbs top of the pile. He kicked five goals and racked up the touches across half-forward in a dominant display.
Damian Charleston and Jack Dimery lead arguably the best half-back line in the competition, with Dimery registering his 100th game last weekend and finds plenty of the ball. Expect Magpies’ coach, Kevin Eynaud to charge a negating player with quelling his influence.
An area for improvement for the Magpies is in the ruck. Hugh McLean manned the post last game but divided his time between Division Two and Premier Division last year. The acquisition of Campbelltown’s Cameron Gordon should bolster the stocks but will have a tough job against Andrew Browning who imposed himself on the contest last week.
Western Suburbs went down to North Shore by a straight kick and will be bemoaning their third quarter where they conceded 4.7 to 0.1.
It was pretty evident however that Jake Ross will be a suitable replacement for Taylor Williamson with the Crib Point recruit taking the early lead in the Stan Milton Medal race with six goals. They will be looking for more avenues to goal with there only being three other goal kickers.
Paul Bevan was heavily marked by the Bombers and can expect another hard day at the office against the Eagles. As well as Gordon, fellow Campbelltown recruits Mitch Hogan and Aidan Bell should be better for the run given they were late additions to the Western Suburbs side.
In another good sign, Yannick Milligan-Saville was the best for the Magpies to further claims for he being one of the under-rated players of the competition.
Danny’s Prediction: East Coast by 23 points
St George vs Sydney University- Olds Park at 2.10pm
This match shapes as a bit of an unknown given St George’s Jekyll and Hyde performance last week and that it is Sydney University’s first match of their campaign on Saturday.
With the bye last week, we will be much the wiser as to where the Students sit after a clash with who many claim to be a premiership contender.
There are some talented players in the Students list if they line up with their Premier Division as opposed to their NEAFL outfit. Olly Wetzlar demands the ball down forward, while Tom Elkington will be looking for a full campaign after only managing 11 games last year.
The Students will be looking for further growth from Luke Freemantle who has enjoyed a strong pre-season, and MJ Figg who can hold down a centre half-back or centre half-forward post. Jack Caspersonn will also be important in the defensive half.
St George were arguably the most disappointing last weekend after promising many with the quality of their list. Matt Petering will be their most valuable recruit but word is he is a couple of weeks away from his first game with the Dragons due to injury.
As noted above, they fell away badly against the Demons- the side they were knocked out by in the Preliminary Final.
Alex Wynn was again best for the red and whites in the midfield working well with Travis Martin (two goals) who impressed in the ruck after crossing from Balmain. Obviously the step up in class didn’t daunt the big man.
Maybe the best news was the performance of Declan Donohue who has been cruelled by injury in recent seasons. At full fitness he is one of the most imposing inside midfielders in the competition but will likely spend most of his time in the forward half as a power medium sized forward starting deep.
The pressure is on St George to perform in front of their home faithful.
Danny’s Prediction: St George by 22 points
North Shore vs UNSW/ES- Gore Hill Oval at 2.30pm
This final Premier Division game of the weekend sees North Shore again at home, this time against UNSW/ES coming into the match off an eight-day break.
North Shore were impressive after a season to forget with a win against a fancied opponent in Western Suburbs. They withstood the Magpies who were coming home with a wet sail to register a six-point victory.
It was obviously a round for the forwards with pocket, Ryan Hezlett best afield for the Bombers. The soon-to-be 21 year old will look to start the celebrations early with a win in front of the Bomber fans. It was young talent time for the Bombers with Victorian recruit Tom Harvey, himself only 19, earning a Rising Star nomination with his efforts around the ground.
It looks a pretty balanced side with some potential for excitement with a much younger side this year. Keep an eye on young Alex Jalloh in the forward line, he has the skills and pace to excite.
UNSW/ES were the biggest losers on the scoreboard from Round 1, courtesy of a 68-point beat-down by rivals, UTS.
Things worsened after quarter-time with UTS proving too big and too skilful. It will be up to the experienced heads to pick up the Bulldogs in what shapes as another winnable encounter. It is these games they have to win to keep their noses in the picture, even this early in the season.
They are actively seeking some Campbelltown talent to bolster their list which makes sense as last Friday there appeared to be some deficiencies in their first 22.
Young Kane Latham can offer a bit around the ground as can winger, Kirk Lower, both of whom are from Danny’s old stomping ground on the North Coast.
Ryan Farrelly had one of his better matches as a Bulldog at centre half-forward with two goals. Tim Widmer was the shining light for the Bulldogs in the opening round by dominating the ruck but needed more assistance.
Ryan Plant and playing coach, Josh Parmenter are good users of the ball and need the footy in their hands to help the Bulldogs control the tempo.
It could be closer than many predict, mainly because North Shore don’t appear to have the forward line to kick a massive score.
Danny’s Prediction: North Shore by 10 points
Last Modified on 17/04/2015 09:07
