Two Netball premierships and a second-consecutive Finals series in season 2024 for the ever-developing Oakleigh District FNC.
Senior Men’s
Ladder Position: 5th (8-10, 86.25%)
Best and Fairest winner: Frank Bonacci
Leading Goalkicker: Mark Stevens (58 Goals)
Summary:
After a breakthrough 2023 season under Blake Pearson, Oakleigh District had a similar season in 2024, playing off in a second consecutive Finals Series.
9-9 in 2023 had them finish fourth, needing to win in the final round of the season to guarantee their finals position. 8-10 in 2024, the same scenario faced them in the final round of the year.
If Ferntree Gully had defeated Oakleigh by five or more goals in the last round of the year, they would have lost their spot in the five. However, the home side put away the Gully early and had a convincing win to secure another finals birth.
Unlike last year’s fairytale finish at Jubilee Park in the first week of the finals against Silvan, Oakleigh District were blown out of the water by a rampant Coldstream outfit.
Key Players:
You can’t go past the Senior Coach Blake Pearson when speaking of key players. Another great year on the field, the former Chandler Medallist averaged 24 disposals, 5 marks, 5 inside 50’s and 5 rebound 50’s per game. Depending on the game and the way it’s being played out, he can move himself into almost any position.
Pearson finished Runner-Up in the club’s Best and Fairest to Frank Bonacci. A very consistent season, Bonacci averaged 22 disposals per game as well as six clearances and four tackles.
Connor Cochrane celebrated a strong season, as a member of the Team of the Year Squad. Cochrane finished with 32 goals in 2024, also averaging 7 marks per game for the season.
Finishing in the top five for goals kicked in Division Three was Mark Stevens with 58 goals. Experience was on show throughout the year, his biggest tally coming against the Cats in Round Four when he booted eleven!
Best Win: Round Seven – Oakleigh District 12.14 86 def. Knox 12.12 84 @Knox Gardens Reserve
The three-point win in tough conditions against Upper Ferntree Gully was an honourable mention but sticking with the impressive two-point win over Knox earlier in the season.
Away from home, Oakleigh held their nerve for a very impressive two-point victory.
A high-scoring first quarter saw ten goals kicked between the two teams, Oakleigh kicking the last three, two from Mark Stevens, to tie things up at the first break. They managed to control most of the second term but never extended their lead more than 14 points.
A see-sawing third term set up an intriguing final quarter. Knox’s Braeden Barlow kicked the last two goals to bring the margin back to just four points. Two misses in the final five minutes from the Falcons saw Oakleigh hold on for a memorable victory.
Mark Stevens finished with five goals, Blake Pearson was at his usual best and Luke Del Pra stood out for his efforts over the afternoon.
Off-Season Focus:
They’ve done well to consolidate the team as a constant finals team in Division Three but they’re still a few steps away from challenging for the flag.
The depth has improved with the Reserves also playing off in an Elimination Final this year which was great for the club to have.
Will need to spend a bit of time on the recruiting front this off-season to match it consistently with the likes of Donvale, Knox and Coldstream.
Having someone like Blake Pearson as senior coach is the perfect advertisement for the club in attracting new players. Committed to going again in 2025, Blake has shown his incredible ability on the field, but also his leadership off it and the ability to develop those around him.
They aren’t far off the mark, they’ve set the expectations, important for the senior group to take another step forward.
Netball
Oakleigh District (Premier): 2nd (9-3, 123.13%)
Oakleigh District White (One): 8th (3-11, 75.25%)
Oakleigh District Black (Four): 1st (10-1-2, 123.28%)
Oakleigh District Silver (Six): 9th (0-12, 42.60%)
Oakleigh District Grey (Nine): 7th (1-13, 47.64%)
Quickly becoming one of the strongest Netball programs in the league, growing to five teams this season. From that, they took home two premierships from two Grand Finals in high divisions.
The Premier Division Grand Final saw Oakleigh District hold on in a nailbiting finish with Croydon. Having Emma Ryde join the side this season, boosted their power in the goals, Emma finishing with 486 goals from ten games of Netball. She took out both the club’s Coaches Awards and Best Finals Player while Jade Finn won the side’s best and fairest.
The second side to win a Grand Final was the Division Four Oakleigh District Black team. Simply an outstanding season for the Division four side, Minor Premiers and eventual Premiers.
They finished on top of the ladder after two losses and a draw in the first three games. They then went on a ten-game winning streak before defeating Silvan in both the Semi Final and Grand Final.
Holly Saunders capped off a great season with the Blue Ribbon Medal for a best-on-court performance as well as the team’s best and fairest.
Other team’s best and fairest winners were Sarah Leahy (Division One), Brodie Capron (Division Six) and Kim Miles (Division Nine).
