It all comes down to this Sunday.
A season of highs, lows, inspirational victories and heartbreaking losses will all end this weekend, with the best team in the Peter Jackson VFL to take home the 2016 premiership trophy, as James Szabo writes.
The Casey Scorpions and Footscray are the powerhouse clubs doing battle for the ultimate prize, with both parties heading into the Grand Final following impressive seasons.
CASEY SCORPIONS
Casey finished on top of the ladder after the home-and-away season with 14 wins and four losses, defeated only by Williamstown, Collingwood, Geelong and their upcoming opponents Footscray.
The club’s biggest loss came in the Round 3 clash against last year’s premiers Williamstown, by 44 points. The disappointing defeat seemed to spark the Scorpions into life, who responded by going on a six-game winning streak.
Following a seven-goal loss to Collingwood in Round 10, they won another three games on the trot before going down to Footscray by a point in a thrilling contest.
Casey then strung five consecutive victories together before a loss to Geelong in Round 20, although the team responded by finishing off the home-and-away season with a 30-point thumping of the Box Hill Hawks to head into the finals with confidence.
The finals provided another opportunity for the Scorpions to flex their muscles, as they disposed of Footscray by 70 points before securing a spot in the Grand Final with a seven-goal win against Williamstown. The two finals games contributed to an overall tally of 16 wins for the year, which included a number of outstanding victories.
Casey’s biggest win came in Round 1 when it defeated Frankston by 144 points. The victory was one of three games the side won by over 100 points this season. The Scorpions also recorded the impressive tally of winning seven games by 70 or more points.
The successful campaign was helped by the efforts of their key players, who stood up in key moments throughout the year. Alex Neal-Bullen, Jack Grimes, Viv Michie and Tim Smith were among the most consistent performers, regularly appearing in the team’s best players. Smith also made an impact on the scoreboard with 28 goals, while Liam Hulett booted 28 of his own and Sam Weideman kicked 23.
FOOTSCRAY
Footscray finished three spots below Casey in fourth, winning 12 games and losing six during the home-and-away season. The Bulldogs lost to Richmond, Sandringham, Werribee, Williamstown, Coburg and the Northern Blues, but defeated every other top-eight side except for Sandringham at least once.
Their biggest loss came at the hands of Williamstown in Round 9 by 72 points, while their smallest losing margin was six points when they went down to the Northern Blues in Round 16.
Footscray’s longest winning streak was four games, with wins over Box Hill in Round 17, Williamstown in Round 18, Werribee in Round 20 and Collingwood in Round 21.
The streak ended with a 70-point loss to Casey in the Qualifying Final, before the Bulldogs bounced back with comfortable wins over Essendon and Collingwood to book a place in the Grand Final. Footscray beat the Bombers by four goals in the Semi Final, before recording their biggest win of the year by thumping Collingwood by 119 points in last week’s Preliminary Final.
The side’s biggest home-and-away win came in Round 5 with a 105-point defeat of North Ballarat. The Bulldogs also produced a couple of other memorable performances, including a 49-point victory over the Northern Blues in Round 1 and an 11-goal win against Werribee in Round 20.
Footscray was blessed with a spread of key contributors throughout the year, including Jordan Russell, Mitch Honeychurch, Jed Adcock and Lukas Webb, who were the most consistent. It also boasted a good spread of goalkickers, with Bailey Dale and Nick Jamieson kicking the most with 19 each. Mitch Hannan also chipped in with 18 majors of his own.
Last Modified on 21/09/2016 17:46
