Campbells Creek v Harcourt Sunday
The second Castlemaine Derby for the Season is to be played at Campbells Creek on Sunday and Harcourt will be seeking revenge after the Creekers defeated the Lions earlier on the season. This was Creek’s first win for 20 games and the celebrations were long and strong after that win.
Both teams have only won three games each to date and this is a game that is a must win for bragging rights of the two Castlemaine teams.
Campbells Creek was only competitive for one quarter against a rampaging Newstead team on Saturday and will need a four quarter effort from the likes of Gary Bradford, Joel Smith and Jordan & Mitch Gilboy if they are to repeat the match winning perforamce of Round three.
Harcourt go into the match after a weeks rest and this may provide the lift that they need to come out victors. There recent form has not been good with losses to Maldon and Newstead, but they did have a good win over Talbot in Round 12 and if they can play to the same form as they put into play on that occasion, then it may be enough to get them over the line in a very close contest.
In a game that could go either way, Harcourt are tipped to return to the winners list.
Natte Bealiba v Carisbrook
One of the matches of the round is expected at Natte Yallock on Saturday when the reigning premiers in Natte Bealiba who are currently in sixth position, host Carisbrook who are placed second on the ladder. The Swans, who have not been defeated since Round eight and are on a roll similar to last season, while Carisbrook has also hit form at the business end.
The Swans have been hit by injuries late in the season, with goal sneak Matt Stagg going down with a leg injury and outstanding ruckman Lachlan Cameron was stretchered from the ground last week with a suspected achilles injury, and young Tom Douglass’s season is also over with a broken leg.. The loss of Cameron is a big blow as he has been a key link up man through the middle for the Swans and his loss will be difficult to cover, while Stagg and Douglass have been very good up forward.
After a number of early season injuries, Carisbrook is heading into the final series very confidently as there playing list is nearly at full strength and will be confident of getting over the Swans. Since losing to Navarre in Round twelve, Carisbrook have methodically disposed of Avoca and Royal Park and if they can take this form into the game should be able to retain their hold on second spot on the ladder and win a tight contest.
Dunolly v Maryborough Rovers
With both teams playing for pride, Maryborough Rovers travel to Deledio Park to take on the Dunolly Eagles.
Rovers won a close contest when they met back in Round two when Rovers stormed out of the blocks to post a big early lead, but the eagles fought hard to bridge the gap and only went down by a goal at the final siren.
Both teams entered the season with high hopes and would be disappointed with only four wins apiece to date.
Despite the low position on the ladder of both teams, this is a game that could be one of the matches of the round, as a close contest is expected with both teams coming off good performances in which they were both very competitive against teams that are premiership contenders.
Dunolly was right in the match against Natte Bealiba until Stephen Ross took control of the game in the final term with a dominant running display, while Rovers pushed Navarre until three quarter time, but could not sustain the challenge as Navarre kicked away in the final term.
Rovers go into the game refreshed after the bye last week and this could be a deciding factor in a game that both teams will be expecting to win. Rovers to win by the narrowest of margins.
Lexton v Royal Park
This weekend’s Round 15 of Bendigo Bank MCDFNL action will see top of the table Lexton take on bottom team Royal Park in the battle of the Tigers.
While it looks to be all one way traffic on the scoreboard there will be great interest in Lexton full forward Matt Brown’s attempt to surpass the 100 goal mark for the Season.
Brown has been a powerhouse for the Tigers this Season with his regular hauls of goals being a major factor in his Club’s major tilt towards their first MCDFNL Premiership.
He sits on 92 goals and barring injury looks set to produce another big bag and place himself in the record books.
Royal Park could do well to puts some plans in place to cut the influence of the star forward with the likes of the Tigers prime movers Jimmy Templeton, Steven Tung and Nic Locandro likely to be sending plenty of ball in the direction of Brown.
Royal Park themselves will be hoping to provide some opportunities for their talented forward Zac Stewart who against the odds has been a regular multiple goal kicker for the team.
Lexton do look set to add to that bulging percentage of 365.21% in this match and celebrate what has been a brilliant season to date by Matt Brown.
Lexton to win by 135 points.
Navarre v Newstead
Finals bound teams Navarre and Newstead meet for what is set to be a cracking contest this Saturday in Round 15 of MCDFNL action.
The Steaders sit in third position while Navarre occupy fourth position and this match acts as the perfect opportunity to entrench themselves in the double spot zone.
The Grasshoppers are coming fresh from the bye and first year Coach Daniel Parkin said he hoped that the rest would spark their best football.
‘’Coming off the bye it will be interesting to see how the team comes out to play, either the players will come out refreshed or it could have a negative impact and makes us sluggish so we will need to be focussed’’.
Parkin the Barry Powell Medallist last season had a delayed start to this Season and indicated that he was pushing himself hard to continue to lead the Grasshoppers midfield. ‘’I’m looking forward to the end of the Season as the body hasn’t enjoyed the week to week contact of football, It’s been good to get games in my legs and improve each week but still feel as though I’m running at about 75% with the niggles that I have’’.
He noted that they would have to dig deep to cut the influence of Steaders prime movers ‘’ They have quality tall’s like Christmas, Ramsey and Conn that can play anywhere and be dangerous so we will have to cut them out somehow’’.
The potential to score a confidence building victory whilst confirming a spot in the top four is an attractive path for both these teams to take this weekend. Newstead if they can get a big performance out of their midfield group led by Nathan Webster should be well placed with their stars at both ends to record victory.
The Steaders to win by 10 points.
Talbot v Avoca
Talbot and Avoca are due to meet this weekend in what looms as a hard fought contest in Round 15 of MCDFNL action.
The Bulldogs despite an unimpressive 6-8 win/loss ratio are set to dry the ink on a finals position if they can come up trumps in this contest.
A finals appearance would represent some healthy improvement on their sluggish 2011 Season and lay the foundations to next year and beyond.
The Hawks parked on just the two victories have delivered some cheeky performances against some of the competition pace setters this season.
Their best brand of football with the talented Brandon McRedmond and Coach Troy Cunningham will put them in a winning position in this clash.
Avoca on the other hand will look to skipper Lachie Edwards who is a skilled speedster and key target in attack, Coach Adrian Pilgrim to lead the way.
It should be a real arm wrestle and the supporters of both Clubs’ could well be set to witness a thriller. Avoca to win by 6 points and confirm their return to the finals fold.
Maldon v Trentham Sunday
Trentham has eyes on fifth position and to do so they must travel to the Bill Woodfull Reserve on Sunday and defeat Maldon, while relying on Carisbrook to topple Natte Bealiba.
This is a game that promises to be a hotly contested match just as it was back in Round three. Trentham was slow out of the blocks on that occasion, and were very competitive for the remainder of the game but could not bridge the gap that the Bombers set up in the first term, and lost by three goals.
Trentham were pushed by Avoca until midway through the third term but broke free and finished the game on top of the Bulldogs who tried valiantly bit could not stop the likes of Dion Lawson and Nathan Montague who sere very good for the Saints.
Maldon are coming off a break and will be fully refreshed after their last match in which they completely dominated Harcourt from start to finish.
The week’s rest and a full list to pick from will be enough for the Bombers to get the points though, as they look to maintain their position on the ladder.
Last Modified on 16/08/2012 23:11