We take a look at each of this weekend's matches for round 10 of the Peter Jackson VFL, with what will be a super Saturday of action.
GEELONG VS NORTH BALLARAT
It is milestone central as the Cats and Roosters go head to head in an AFL curtain raiser game. Nth Ballarat captain Marc Greig will notch up VFL game 200 – not too bad for a player that spent a couple of seasons away from the competition coaching at local level mid VFL career. Joining him with a milestone on the day will be Geelong VFL assistant coach Dom Gleeson, who will play game 150. The new Cats recruit for 2012, Gleeson played all but a handful of those 150 games with Werribee, a side he captained for three seasons before taking up a coaching role with the Cats. This game is very important for both sides, wanting to honour their milestone players, but also to influence their ladder position. Geelong have dropped from the top four to seventh in recent rounds, having dropped their last two games to sides that now have taken their spot in the four in Sandringham and Casey. Andrew McLean has returned to the Cats line up in recent weeks, and may get the job on Lachie George or Paul McMahon. McMahon and Billy Driscoll will be key targets for the Roosters with Aaron Black given his chance last week for North Melbourne. Down the other end the Cats will enjoy the return of their leading goal kicker Mitch Brown from AFL duties, but in his absence the likes of Josh Walker and Shane Kersten have held their own up forward. If attending the game, click HERE for ticketing information.
BENDIGO VS WILLIAMSTOWN
The ABC TV cameras head to Windy Hill this weekend for the top 8 clash between Bendigo and Williamstown. It is the Gold’s first venture to Windy Hill this season, this year only playing three home games down in Melbourne with Queens Elizabeth Oval being utilised for the majority of their home games in season 2012. One sight Williamstown will not like seeing on the Bendigo team list is one David Hille returning from injury, especially with their depleted ruck stocks in the last round which saw James Walls getting a run on the ball in the big mans role. Having said that, despite being down in the hitouts his workrate around the ground helped them topple Coburg against the likes of Angus Graham and co. The battle of the defences will be a key to this game, with young Stephen Witkowski keen to show his ability after missing selection in the final 22 for the State game, likely to be used with James Mulligan to try and stop the likes of Scott Gumbleton and Justin Maddern. Bendigo will aim to use the reliable Trent Shinners and Josh Freezer on Matthew Panos and Liam Jones. The Seagulls will be aiming to create a gap between the top four and the lower regions of the 8, whilst Bendigo will be trying to consolidate their top 8 position.
PORT MELBOURNE VS FRANKSTON
The battle of the standalones will take place this weekend, being the first repeat game of the VFL fixture so far in 2012. These two teams met in round one with Port running out 42 point winners. Plenty has changed for both sides since round 1 – Frankston has won a game and Port have lost a game, a rarity for both sides over the last 12 months. Both sides were well represented in the State team last weekend, and these players will be the key to this game. Think of the matchups Khan Haretuku vs Sam Pleming, Leigh Osborne vs Billy Burstin or Chris Cain and Kyle Martin vs Sam Dwyer or John Baird. The young Dolphins line up will be bolstered by the return of Toby Thoolen and Shaun Marusic this week, and it will be interesting to see whether Sam O’Sullivan from Port is rewarded with his first senior game of the year after kicking 7 goals in the Foxtel Cup before the State game break.
NORTHERN BLUES VS CASEY SCORPIONS
Whilst form and ladder positions do not portray this game as much of a contest, the Northern Blues proved in the last round that they cannot be underestimated. The two teams are exact opposites this year with Casey Scorpions sitting in third spot having only dropped the one game, and the Blues sitting in 12th having only recorded the one win for the year. Casey were the kings of the close game early in the season, but they have gone from a 4 point average winning margin in the opening rounds of the season, to having a 50 point winning margin in the last two rounds accounting for finals contenders Box Hill and Geelong. They have been strengthened by having a core group of Melbourne listed players in the line up each week – this week with Matthew Bate, James Sellar and Cale Morton - but the likes of Michael Fieldsend, Rian McGough, Luke Tynan and Evan Panozza have been the key to their early season form. The Blues are fielding a very young and inexperienced side, but Robert Hyde is getting games into these young players, and the likes of Luke Visser, Josh Burgess and Tim Totevski are benefitting.
WERRIBEE TIGERS VS COLLINGWOOD
With PM Julia Gillard likely to be looking on in the crowd on Saturday, her VFL club Werribee will be looking to impress on the weekend against Collingwood. The Tigers know what the Magpies are capable of, and will not be taking their opponents lightly, especially with a number of experienced players in their line up. Chris Tarrant will continue his return from injury, and if playing up forward like he did in round 9, Kyle Hartigan or Brad Mangan would love to test their skills against the forward come defender. Down the other end Kris Pendlebury impressed in the State game, and there would be no better test for his that inform defender come forward Robbie Tarrant who is coming off four goals and 11 marks last match. Nathan Ablett has again been named on an extended bench, but it will be hard for his to break into the sides’ forward line with the likes of Ben Warren, Ben McKinley and Tarrant performing up forward. In the middle, the battle between Ricky Ferraro, Paul Seedsman and Lachie Head vs Ben Ross, Ben Sharp and Travis Tuck could go a long way to deciding the result.
Last Modified on 01/06/2012 12:00