By Tash Gunawardana
Women’s footy is back this weekend after two weeks due to lockdown, so get yourself reacquainted with our Round Nine preview!
Premier Division:
Donvale Black vs Vermont: Will Donvale Black cause a massive upset over the third placed Vermont on at Donvale Reserve? It is probably Donvale Black’s best chance of defeating Vermont on their home deck, but they will need to play high quality football as Vermont will want to get back on the winners list after two consecutive defeats before lockdown. Tip: Vermont
Chirnside Park Black vs South Croydon Blue: South Croydon Blue will have their work cut out for them when they come up against the might of Chirnside Park Black at Kimberly Reserve. Expect this clash to be close, as South Croydon Blue are coming off a solid 11-point victory over the third best team in the Premier Division, Vermont. Tip: Chirnside Park Black
Blackburn Black – Bye
Division One: Park Orchards vs North Ringwood: With only a win separating Park Orchards and North Ringwood on the ladder this match looks like it will do down to the wire. Park Orchards will have the slight advantage because it’s at their home ground, Domeney Reserve, but do not be surprised if North Ringwood run over the top of Park Orchards. Tip: Park Orchards
Berwick vs Ferntree Gully: A blockbuster clash awaits us in the second match of Division One with the second placed Ferntree Gully travelling down the freeway to compete against the third placed Berwick at the Edwin Flack Reserve. In the opening six rounds, Berwick have been the talk of the league, as no one really knew what to expect after a 10-year stint away from women’s football. Berwick have produced impressive performances and currently hold a win-loss record of 4-2. The clash will be close but expect Berwick to edge out Ferntree Gully on Saturday and go equal second with the Eagles. Tip: Berwick
Rowville vs East Ringwood: The first six rounds of the season were a disaster for the 2019 reigning premier Rowville. They are yet to post a win and linger at the bottom with a measly percentage of 52.34. East Ringwood will be heavy favourites to win this contest despite losing their last match pre lockdown to Berwick, as they strung two wins together in round four and five. Will Rowville be able to pull off their first win of the season at Eildon Park? Tip: East Ringwood
The Basin vs Whitehorse Suns: The undefeated, The Basin will look to continue their winning ways against the Whitehorse Suns at Batterham Reserve, a side that only has one win to its name. Whitehorse Suns defensive stocks will need to stand up strong, so they can stop the impact of goal kicking leader Julia Baker who has 18 goals, Michaela Holford-Moss (nine goals) and Candice Carroll (eight goals). If Whitehorse Suns achieve all of this, they will have a huge chance of becoming the first team to topple The Basin. Will The Basin keep their unbeaten record intact? Tip: The Basin
Boronia Brown vs SBL Wolves: Boronia Brown are on a two-game winning streak after they edged out Park Orchards by three points and disposed of North Ringwood easily by 44-points. In round two, Boronia Brown won by 10-points at the Belgrave South Recreation Reserve
Boronia Brown coach Scott Nicholas said, “we’re looking forward to playing South Belgrave again, we played them in round two so it will be interesting to see how both teams have developed since then.”.
“Last time we played was at South Belgrave in slippery conditions on a smaller ground and I think playing at Tormore on a much bigger ground, it will be interesting to see how both teams adapt,”
“I know that our team will probably look quite different from when we played them last and I’m sure South Belgrave will look different as well, Nicholas continued.
“They’ve got a couple of really quick players and a few strong players as well, so it will probably be both teams trying to settle into the games and get matchups right and go from there.”
SBL Wolves coach Simon Mehegan is looking forward to this weekend’s game coming out of lockdown and has a good friendship with Boronia coach Nicholas, and knows a couple of the Hawks players.
“They are probably one of the better improvers from 2019, so certainly looking forward to it and I know last game there was only 10 points in it, but I think we have settled down since then and looking forward to one, the challenge and two, to see how we go and hoping we will do alright,”
“We have settled our backline and a challenge for us at the start of the season was settling all our new players into their positions.”
“What we have found from our last couple of rounds is those players who are new to the club have settled in.”
“Bailey Withers as captain has stepped up as a leader and as a player, Carmen Schuster also has stepped up and can play back and forward and has a good burst of speed, so they are a couple of players who have really stood up in the last couple of weeks.”
Mehegan explained that a couple of other players from other teams mentioned Schuster has a power acceleration and is a fast runner. “Carmen is powerful through the legs, so not only is she quick but she has that burst and speed that she can go from standing still to flat out quickly in a few steps, Mehegan continued. “She is powerful and with her penetrating kick and run as well, she is certainly an asset.”
SBL Wolves will be boosted by three returning Hawthorn VFL players, Matilda Hardy, Nikki Cormack and Olivia Flanagan.
“I will be more confident in us playing our game rather than worrying too much about matching up on them,” Mehegan said. “I know they have quite a strong ruck, but I am pretty happy with our ruck at the moment, but certainly the bolstering inclusions of Hardy, Cormack and Flanagan I am pretty confident where we are at going forward.” Tip: Boronia Brown
Division Two: Ringwood vs Heathmont: Undefeated Ringwood host the third placed Heathmont at Jubilee Park (Top Oval). Heathmont’s back line will need to bring their best foot forward if they stand a chance of causing a massive win over Ringwood, as they will need to stop four of the top five goal kickers in Division Two. Ringwood has the goal kicking leader Olivia Ashcroft (11 goals), third on the goal kickers list, Georgia Fairbairn and Nicole Stagg (five goals), and fifth on the goal kickers list Caitlyn Tayleur (four goals). Tip: Ringwood
Kilsyth vs Surrey Park: The second on the table Kilsyth will face the second last Surrey Park at the Pinks Reserve. It is hard to see Surrey Park getting up in this match, as Kilsyth have only dropped two matches all season and Surrey Park only have one win in the bag.
Tip: Kilsyth
Montrose vs Knox: Montrose hosts the bottom placed Knox at Montrose Recreation Reserve. The clash will be a close encounter but expect Montrose to have the upper hand and get their third win on their home deck. Tip: Montrose
Division Three: FairPark vs South Croydon Red: South Croydon Red will face off against FairPark at FairPark Reserve. If FairPark are any chance of giving South Croydon Red its first defeat of the season, they will need to halt the scoring impact of Jordyn Dehnert (nine goals) and Alana Prendergast (eight goals). Tip: South Croydon Red
Blackburn Red vs Coldstream: Blackburn Red will look to get their fifth win over Coldstream at Morton Park. If Coldstream want to come away with the victory, they will need to find avenues to scoring goals, as they average 10.8 points from the opening six rounds. Coldstream’s highest score of the season came in round two, they scored 8.7.55 and if they are a chance of overcoming Blackburn Red, they will need to rehash that goal scoring form from round two. Tip: Blackburn Red
Chirnside Park Gold vs Croydon North MLOC: In arguably the Division Three match of the round, the second placed Chirnside Park Gold will tackle Croydon North MLOC at the Kimberley Reserve. Division Three goal kicking leader Meghan Stephens currently has 12 majors, so Croydon North’s defensive structure will need to stand tall defensively to stop her influence on the match. For Croydon North MLOC, they will be hoping for a strong forward display from Hailee Stokes and Martina Jurkscat who have eight goals and sits equal fifth on the goal kicking leader board. Tip: Chirnside Park Gold
Boronia Gold – Bye
