Will Division 3 once again take the title of the Leagues closest?
From the outside it looks that way, with Wantirna South progressing into Division 2 the door opens for both Mitcham and Templestowe who, were both tantalisingly close to a premiership in 2014.
Behind them a chasing pack that consists of most of the Division, looking at most teams around that mark there are a number of sides who will be competing for just a few finals positions.
Boronia – Last year: 4th, 13 Wins 5 Losses
The Hawks have consistently managed to book a finals berth each year for the last five, only missing finals twice since 2007. However, for a club so competitive have only managed to win four finals in that time.
2015 is the chance to take the next step for Boronia. They open the season with a relatively easy run, and then meet Templestowe (Round 4) and Mitcham (Round 5) in consecutive weeks. The Hawks have a nice run of four home games in five weeks through the middle part of the season, most against sides around the middle of the Division.
Verdict: Some very winnable games on home turf for the Hawks will become dangerous if the nest becomes a fortress.
Round 1: v Chirnside Park (Away)
ANZAC Day: v Upper Ferntree Gully (Away)
Round 18: v South Belgrave (Away)
Chirnside Park – Last year: 11th, 2 Wins 16 Losses
The Panthers have be teetering on the edge of relegation for a number of years, no more than six wins in any season in Division 3 since promotion. Panther faithful will be hoping yet another new coach; Lachlan Tindal will be able to bring life back to the Football Club.
First hurdle for Chirnside will come in Round 2 when the Panthers take on Whitehorse, if the status quo remains, this may be a very handy four points come seasons end. Bonus for Chirnside is the final two games of the season at home, Silvan in Round 17 and Park Orchards in Round 18.
Verdict: Start to the season will tell the tale, seems like too many sides are 10-15% better at this stage; but only time will tell.
Round 1: v Boronia (Home)
ANZAC Day: v Templestowe (Away)
Round 18: v Park Orchards (Home)
Heathmont – Last year: 9th, 7 Wins 11 Losses
The Jets were a realistic finals chance for the first half of the season. Through the second half of the season they were riddled with injuries to key personnel. With a new season brings new hope and for the Jets and new key forward, Darren Sheen making his way back to the hanger in 2015.
He will be crucial in Round 1 when the Jets pay their respects to Simon Minson in a tribute game for their former team mate against Upper Ferntree Gully. The next two weeks after that will be crucial as the Jets battle the old enemy Ringwood (Round 2) and The Basin in Round 3. Make no mistake, for Heathmont, games against Ringwood and The Basin are key victories and will set up the season.
Verdict: Play Templestowe twice and Mitcham once, If they can beat the sides around them they should be in the hunt come seasons end.
Round 1: v Upper Ferntree Gully (Home)
ANZAC Day: v The Basin (Home)
Round 18: v Templestowe (Away)
Mitcham – Last year: 2nd, 15 Wins 3 Losses
I’m sure it wasn’t the way Mitcham intended to go out, a 107 point turn around and a 2-goal loss seeing them out of finals, one week shy of the big dance. Many at Mitcham will be looking forward to Round 1; many more looking forward to what will be a huge clash in Round 2 when the Tigers travel too hostile territory (Templestowe Reserve).
Given their high finishing last season there is no shock for Mitcham who will play the other three top teams in the first month of the season, a challenge that a lot at Walker Park will be looking forward, in particular new coach Neil Winterton.
Verdict: Rumours flying wild about the possible demise of the Tigers, a number of players said to be leaving. Should still be too strong for most; expect to see black and yellow come finals time.
Round 1: v Whitehorse (Home)
ANZAC Day: v South Belgrave (Home)
Round 18: v Ringwood (Home)
Park Orchards – Last year: Runners Up (Division 4), 14 Wins 4 Losses
Performer of last year’s Division 4 finals. The Sharks had to win their way into Division 3 the hard way. After going down to a Silvan side that were convincing in the final term of the Grand Final they will be prepped and ready to make an assault on Division 3.
They may not have played against each other but The Sharks meet Ringwood in Round 1 in a vital game for both clubs. Nothing better than seeing a Grand Final Re-Match, Park Orchards will play Silvan in Round 3.
Verdict: Should be competitive, would equate them to a mid-range side in Division 3, will know after first three rounds (Ringwood, Boronia and Silvan)
Round 1: v Ringwood (Home)
ANZAC Day: v Silvan (Home)
Round 18: v Chirnside Park (Away)
Ringwood – Last year: 8th, 7 Wins 10 Losses and 1 Draw
The Redbacks experiment , Ringwood continue to try and work outside the box to find success, six coaches in six years. The core group of Ringwood player’s changes year to year and the boys in red, black and white will be hoping that Patrick Bowden will bring some much needed stability to the club.
Rivalry games in the first two weeks of the season, Park Orchards in Round 1 and then Heathmont in the Parker Cup in Round 2, set to be two mouth-watering encounters that will go a long way to setting up Ringwood’s season. They finish the year with an away game to Mitcham, weeks 14-17 will put them in contention.
Verdict: Play last year’s finalists in successive weeks (7, 8, and 9), would want to turn, after nine rounds, with 5 wins, and hope to steal one against the top three.
Round 1: v Park Orchards (Away)
ANZAC Day: v Whitehorse (Home)
Round 18: v Mitcham (Away)
Silvan – Last year: Premiers (Division 4), 15 Wins 3 Losses
2014 – The year of the Cat.
Silvan was on the hunt for most of the season, out played Warrandyte in the Semi Final and then was too good in the late stages of the Grand Final against Park Orchards.
“King of the Mountain” game will test the new boys first up, taking on a strong South Belgrave outfit will be a challenge. Much like Park Orchards, we will know where Silvan is at after the first three weeks, South Belgrave, Upper FTG and Park Orchards.
Verdict: Home wins are key! Confidence may carry them through if they get early wins on the board.
Round 1: v South Belgrave (Home)
ANZAC Day: v Park Orchards (Away)
Round 18: v The Basin (Home)
South Belgrave – Last year: 5th, 10 Wins 8 Losses
The Saints are coming…..
Lots of talk coming from the mountain as the Saints looks to make their mark in 2015, with a new coach and a handful of new players it may be this year when the Saints announce themselves as the contender.
Finishing fifth last season, they will have to hold all the sides below them at bay as they will face a tougher draw in 2015. In the final month of the year they play last year’s finalists, including a final round match against Boronia, the side the knocked them out of finals this season.
Verdict: Best of the Rest? Will beat majority if not all the sides below them, may struggle to get over to top couple.
Round 1: v Silvan (Away)
ANZAC Day: v Mitcham (Away)
Round 18: v Boronia (Home)
The Basin – Last year: 6th, 9 Wins 9 Losses
One less win than last season, still a competitive effort from the Bears, who up until the last couple of weeks, were looking like playing finals in 2014.
The Bears were 2-7 against top 5 sides this season, a clear indication that they were essentially the best of the rest. The Basin weren’t fair away, of those seven games, three were lost by less than 20 points. If the Basin can make the cave a fortress once again they may be able to take the next step in 2015.
Verdict: A number of sides around them are shaping up well, they will need to ensure they are beating those sides; Park Orchards, Heathmont and UFTG will be main players.
Round 1: v Templestowe (Home)
ANZAC Day: v Heathmont (Away)
Round 18: v Silvan (Away)
Templestowe – Last year: Runners Up, 15 Wins 3 Losses
One thing that a Grand Final loss should do is make you hungrier the following year. If that’s the case, Templestowe should be chomping at the bit after their final term of 2014.
New faces in 2014 led the way, new faces in 2015 look set to be the key as well. Leigh Murphy heads to the Dockers from Doncaster East, reportedly joining him is former Vermont and Mooroolbark forward Kire Talevski who may be making a return to EFL football in 2015.
The Basin will put up a fight in Round 1 and won’t want to give up four points at home. Templestowe will need to get past the Bears even though some may already have their minds set on Round 2 against Mitcham. There is still a lot talent in this Dockers outfit, should turn at Round 9 without a blemish.
Verdict: Will still be kicking themselves, Grand Final losses hurt but they will do whatever it takes in 2015.
Round 1: v The Basin (Away)
ANZAC Day: v Chirnside Park (Home)
Round 18: v Heathmont (Home)
Upper Ferntree Gully – Last year: 7th, 7 Wins 10 Losses and 1 Draw
The return back to Division 3 was probably a bigger drop than many expected. 7 1/2 wins for the season is nothing to write home about but it does give the Kings a solid grounding to work with into the future. They are in the hunt, part of the chasing pack moving forward.
Heading to the Hanger in Round 1 won’t be easy, Heathmont are a side that like the ground hard under foot and will want to make a statement on what is a big day for the club.
Verdict: Over the course of the first four weeks the Kings will play a lot of 50-50 games, come out 4-0 or 3-1 and they may just set up their season.
Round 1: v Heathmont (Away)
ANZAC Day: v Boronia (Home)
Round 18: v Whitehorse (Home)
Whitehorse – Last year: 10th, 6 Wins 12 Losses
The Pioneers were on a roll early and looked to have turned a corner, they followed a 2-0 start with close losses to South Belgrave and Boronia and at 2-2 still looked like they may challenge in the Division.
After that wins became hard to find, a habit that will need to change should the Pioneers want to escape the hammer for a sixth time. A local derby against Mitcham greets them Round 1, followed by an important Round 2 game against Chirnside Park, if either side has concerns about relegation, they may be quelled with a win here.
Verdict: First box to tick will be avoiding the “R” word… after that it will be up to Ben Russian and his boys to make their mark after five years.
Round 1: v Mitcham (Away)
ANZAC Day: v Ringwood (Away)
Round 18: v Upper FTG (Away)
