Back-to-Back premierships for the Hawks Senior Men, a Division One Netball flag and a jump up into the Premier Division for the Senior Women in what was a colossal year for the club.
Senior Men’s
Ladder Position: 1st (17-1,253.37%)
Best and Fairest: Mitch Mellis
Leading Goalkicker: Josh Begley (54 Goals)
Summary:
An almost identical season to 2023 for Boronia, with a Home and Away record of 17-1, a Semi-Final win, followed by a Grand Final victory and the Division Two premiership. The one key difference is this year’s premiership comes with the promotion that the club has been seeking over the last six years which has seen three Division Two premierships in that time.
The Hawks' season started where they left off in 2023, with five wins from the first five rounds, including 100+ point victories over Mulgrave and East Burwood.
Their first and only loss of the season came in Round Six at the hands of the Blues at Croydon Oval by eight points. For the remainder of the season, they went undefeated with another three games decided by triple digits.
The number one ranked attacking and defensive outfit in the division, with an average score of 106 points per game, the most of any side in the entire senior men’s competition.
Their Home and Away season form translated into finals success, a 34-point win over the Lions in the Second Semi, followed by a 63-point Grand Final win over the Blues.
Key Players:
There wasn’t much that Mitch Mellis didn’t achieve in 2024. The league's best and fairest winner for the second consecutive season in Division Two, claiming the club’s B&F as well. An incredibly consistent season saw Mellis average over 31 disposals per game, including a 31-disposal performance in the side's Grand Final win over Croydon.
Josh Begley's 54 goals across the Home and Away and finals series earned him the Division Two leading goal kicker award. The former Bomber averaged over 20 disposals per game alongside his average of three goals per game.
From just eleven games, Ben Robertson averaged over 3 goals per game, finishing with 43 goals for the year, third in the division. Yet another massive Grand Final performance saw the key forward boot five on the big stage.
Also averaging consistent numbers across the year, Max Brasher, Damon Fairchild and Jayden Collins all whom averaged more than 20 disposals per game in 2024.
Key defensive figures, Harry Burgess and Jarrod Lake were both recognised in the Division Two Team of the Year, alongside Josh Begley, Mitch Mellis and Damon Fairchild.
Best Win: Grand Final – Boronia 13.14 92 def. Croydon 4.5 29 @ Walker Park
A dominant display on Grand Final Day saw Boronia earn not only the premiership but also their promotion to Division One.
The game was decided in the first half with the Hawks kicking seven goals to one to set up a commanding 40-point lead. A competitive third quarter by the Blues, saw them cut the margin within five goals but a lot of their hard work was spoilt by a last-minute blunder with Robertson stretching the margin back out to six goals.
The final term saw an avalanche of goals from the Hawks, including two of the goals of the season coming off the boot of Josh Begley, going on to win the best on-ground medal for his four-goal, 23-disposal performance.
Off-Season Focus:
Massive for the club to have their chance to compete in a new division, having won 38 of their last 40 games in Division Two. Certainly, going to be challenged in Division One by the likes of Park Orchards, Beaconsfield and South Belgrave, proven Division One finalists.
Have done well on the recruitment front, adding some key players to the line-up and extending their depth.
One of the big names returning to the club is Jake Godwin, coming off a three-goal premiership performance with Morningside after three seasons in the QAFL. A valuable member of the 2018 premiership Hawks side, it’s a massive inclusion ahead of 2025, boosting their premiership chances.
Mitcham premiership defender Daniel Houeix adds plenty of experience to an already strong defensive line-up. Houeix is set to add plenty of pace and attack off the half-back, averaging 15 disposals and six marks in the Tigers Division One side this season.
Ferntree Gully's best and fairest winner and Team of the Year member Jordan Church joins the club, the son of former Bob Henry Medallist, Russell Church. Averaging 21 disposals and five marks per game from the half-back, Church has also spent time this pre-season, training this pre-season at VFL side, Casey.
The two most recent sides to be promoted into Division One has been Mitcham and South Belgrave. The Tigers have won back-to-back premierships to move to Premier Division while the Saints have played off in a Grand Final and two finals series. There's no question that Boronia have the playing list that can see them follow that trajectory with their promotion and be one of the leading premiership contenders in 2025.
Senior Women’s (Premier)
Ladder Position: 8th (2-12, 34.04%)
Best and Fairest: Rachael Slater
Leading Goalkicker: Rachael Slater (8 Goals)
Summary:
After the 2023 Division One Premiership, the Senior Women moved into the Premier Division alongside their Grand Final opponent, The Basin.
A great challenge for the group as they challenged themselves against the best senior women’s sides in the league.
Boronia finished with two wins for the season, the first coming against Vermont in the opening round of the season. It was the side’s highest score of the season as they held off a fast-finishing Eagles side to win by six points.
A second win came later in the year against Mount Evelyn who were competing for a finals spot at the time.
Key Players:
Rachael Slater’s 2024 season was one to remember, listed by the Port Melbourne Football Club for the 2024 VFLW season. Slater played four games with Port Melbourne including two finals against Box Hill and the Western Bulldogs.
Playing just the eight games this season with the Hawks, Slater starred in all eight games, was selected in the Premier Division Team of the Year as well and winning the club’s best and fairest award.
Amanda Cellante’s season was another big highlight in 2024, finishing as the runner-up in the Boronia best and fairest award. Nine times featured in the best from 13 games, a reliable player all season for the Hawks.
Breaking onto the scene in 2024 was Cleo Smith, spending time at the Eastern Ranges as well as the Hawks. In her first year of senior football, Smith was named as the leading Ruck in the Premier Division Team of the Year.
Best Win: Round 13 – Boronia 3.7 25 def. Mount Evelyn 3.6 24 @Miller Reserve
A massive turnaround from their Round Three Friday Night clash where the Rovers were eleven-goal winners.
In tough conditions, the Round 13 encounter was a tight tussle between the two sides. Mount Evelyn needing to win to keep their finals chances intact, but they came up short by a point against the a spirited Hawks outfit.
Boronia took control of the contest in the third term, keeping their opposition goalless while hitting the lead. They managed to hold on in the fourth term for a memorable victory.
Boronia star Rachael Slater was listed as the side’s best player on the ground. Collins, McLennan and Perrett all hit the scoreboard with one goal each.
Off-Season Focus:
Plenty to learn from and take away from the 2024 season.
At the end of the season, Scott Nicholas announced he would be stepping down from the role of Senior Coach. Difficult to summarise just how significant his time has been as the senior coach. Leading the group to a premiership in 2023, he’s been vital to not only the success on the field but the promotion of Women’s football and the development of Boronia's Women's football program.
Nicholas will still remain with the club as an Assistant Coach for the senior side. He'll work closely with Sean Buncle, appointed the next Senior Coach. A fantastic appointment, a great resume, most notably at Port Melbourne VFLW, leading to squad to the 2023 VFLW premiership.
Boronia Gold
Senior Women’s (Division Four)
Ladder Position: 8th (2-9, 50.16%)
Best and Fairest: Bec Carpenter
Leading Goalkicker: Mackenzie Suppa (10 Goals)
Summary:
A sign of the strength of the Senior Women’s program at the club has been Boronia’s ability to consistently have numbers for two teams each season.
The Boronia Gold side improved in 2024, winning two games, both by 100 plus points.
Scoring over 300 points for the season, the side also began to close the gap on the teams above them such as The Basin and Nunawading with competitive clashes.
Key Players:
A fantastic season from Bec Carpenter saw her take out the club’s Best and Fairest award. The recognition came off the back of a strong 2023 season where she finished as the Runner Up in the award. A Co-Captain, her leadership is outstanding on the field, playing in both defence and on-ball.
Spending time in both the senior and development sides, Paige Deane was influential in all seven games she played in.
From just five games, Mackenzie Suppa was impressive up forward with her ability to hit the scoreboard. Suppa kicked a haul of six goals in the final round of the season against Upper Ferntree Gully.
Best Win: Round Three – Boronia 17.26 128 def. Upper Ferntree Gully 0.0 0 @Tormore Reserve
Incredible performance on their home deck, a 128-point win at Tormore Reserve. The goals were spread around on the day with eleven players all kicking at least one goal for the season.
Paige Deane and Mackenzie Suppa both finished with three goals each, while Jacqueline Phillips and Rhiannon Crompton both kicked two majors each.
After two competitive losses in the first two rounds, this was a well-deserved win for the side.
Off-Season Focus:
After a season with a significant amount of development and improvement, the club will be eyeing another season with two women’s sides.
Greg Hall has been announced as the Development Head Coach for the 2025 season. Hall has played a central role at Nunawading in launching their Senior Women’s program over the last four seasons.
Netball
Boronia Hawks - Division One:
Boronia Gold - Division Four: 6th(5-7, 93.92%)
Boronia Brown - Division Eleven: 7th(4-7-1, 91.35%)
This year, three sides competed for the club, in the New Balance Netball competition.
The Boronia Hawks played off in Division One and had a phenomenal year, going on to win the premiership. Throughout the season, they remained on top of the ladder, finishing with twelve wins and a draw. The side’s only loss of the season came against Heathmont who they would meet in two finals.
Falling short to the Jets by one point in the Semi-Final, they bounced back a week later with a Preliminary Final victory over East Ringwood to book a rematch with the Jets in the Grand Final. Rhiannon Crompton starred with 31 goals on the night for the Hawks as they took out the flag by nine points.
Crompton finished the year with 392 goals across the year, the club’s best and fairest winner.
Rebecca Subbiah was celebrated at Chandler Medal Night with the league's best and fairest for Division One. Subbiah was also named the Captain of the Division One Team of the Year, Crompton also featured in the side at Goal Attack.
Boronia Gold competed in Division Four this season, finishing with five wins and a sixth spot on the ladder at the end of the Home and Away season. Ruby Cameron was outstanding for the Hawks, winning the side’s best and fairest award as well as the Kellie Newton Club award. Alisha Clark finished the season as a Team of the Year member for Division Four, the starting Centre for the division.
Boronia Brown was the third Netball side competing in this year’s competition, finishing the year with four wins and a draw. From just eight games, Mackenzie Suppa scored 120 goals for the season, top scoring for the Hawks. In defence, Jess Mulholland finished the year with the side’s best and fairest as well as the league’s best and fairest for the division. Mulholland also featured in the Division’s Team of the Year in Goal Defence.
Vets and Veteran Women’s
One of just three clubs in the Eastern Football Netball League to have both a Veteran Men’s and Veteran Women’s team in the competition.
The Veteran Men’s side finished 8th with two wins for the season against Endeavour Hills and South Belgrave. Luke Allison took home the club best and fairest, with the runner-up Kristan Wood.
For the Veteran Women’s side, a great success to have a side in the competition for a second consecutive season. Alix Penny who also played in the Division Four Senior Women’s side was crowned the side’s best and fairest.