By DAVID NAGEL
SOUTH EAST FOOTBALL NETBALL LEAGUE
PREVIEW – ROUND 11
CRANBOURNE v BERWICK
FORGET the Labor and Liberal parties at Saturday’s Federal Election – because there’s a footy party about to hit town between two of the primary candidates in the South East Football Netball League this season.
There will nothing conservative in this balance of power as Cranbourne and Berwick fight for the safest of seats at the top end of town.
The climate has changed since this time last year, with Berwick – since its campaign was launched in early April – having no opposition at the polls.
The Wickers have ticked all the boxes so far this season.
It’s Minister for Defence, Mr Ash Smith, has his bureaucrats all in line, with Michael Riseley, Jayden Joyce, Luke Sheppard, Michael Johnson, Ryan Hillard and Jo West fending off all of their scrutineers.
That back six have an immigration policy of not letting anyone in … and they’re bloody good at achieving it.
But let’s get serious for a minute, there’s a hell of a lot more than just the four premiership points on the line this weekend.
Berwick beat Cranbourne in Round 5, not just on the scoreboard but, in a physical sense, which has been a hot topic of conversation at Casey Fields ever since. That’s Cranbourne’s brand of footy right there, their signature move – toughness – and it was taken away that day.
Berwick skipper Madi Andrews flawed Mat Fletcher in an action that is still to go before the tribunal, while Berwick’s hunt at the ball was much harder and tougher than the Eagles that day.
Cranbourne coach Simon Goosey said there was a lot to play for this weekend.
“These are the games you look forward to, the big games, and there’ll be some urgency on the track this week for sure,” Goosey said.
“Our group has a lot of pride and deep down we were very disappointed with our efforts the last time we played them. We weren’t hard enough with our tackling and our hunt at the ball, that’s the most important thing for us this weekend, our intensity at the contest.”
Goosey said he realises he is up against some sturdy opposition.
“Their list is pretty good, we’re fairly evenly matched, and we’ve come a long way since that last game. Not so much in a style sense, but I think our mindset and ability to dig deep for each other has really improved in recent weeks.”
That mindset was clearly evident in the dying stages of last week’s game against Pakenham.
Already six goals ahead, midfielder Max Gearon ran 50 metres to apply a shepherd for Shaun Sparks, who missed the goal but was given an open run to the goal square.
It was brilliant teamwork from Gearon, who has almost taken over the spiritual leadership role from skipper Marc Holt.
Gearon and his fellow midfielders Ryan Davey, Shaun Marusic, Fletcher and Luke Bee-Hugo, will have their hands full this weekend against a quality centre-square unit.
Michael Harold, Jake Wilson, Andrew Morozoff, Jake McLardy and Jayden Goumas combine sizzling skills with a ruthless mindset. It will be a key battle of course.
But both teams are awesome around the periphery.
Smith, Sheppard, Riseley and Johnson provide plenty of run from the back half, while Lucas Jellyman-Turner and Tom Brennan are speed machines through the midfield.
That transition from defence to attack, where Ben Kearns, Tim Gunn and Mark Weekes await, can be breathtaking to watch at times.
But Cranbourne has really bolstered this area as well. Anthony Vella has emerged as a leading running half-back, while Aaron Bower, Zak Roscoe, Ryan Jones and Bee-Hugo can turn on the afterburners at will.
And then there’s Holt, the leviathan full-forward who can turn a game of footy at will and has built Cranbourne’s signature spirit into what it is today.
This is going to be cracker of a contest.
Berwick has developed a real habit of lifting for these big occasions, their average winning margin against sides in the top-five is 42, while it’s combined wins over Tooradin (24), Officer (40) and Pakenham (25) have averaged out at under five goals.
It’s that ability to lift for the big occasion that will see the Wickers scrape home with a goal after the siren to win by five points.
DOVETON v PAKENHAM
PAKENHAM’s season has had a lot of second chances lately, but surely the final stand occurs when the Lions travel to Robinson Oval on Saturday to take on Doveton.
There are no second chances this time, either win and become a twenty per cent chance of playing finals or lose and kiss the season goodbye.
The good news for the Lions is that it’s Doveton’s spot that is up for grabs after last week’s loss to Beaconsfield.
But can the Lions finally grab an opportunity and get on a roll?
They have played some very competitive football against the top three teams in recent times and will go in confident that their best footy will suffice over the coming weeks.
They are coming from a long way back, granted, but games against Doveton, Officer, Hampton Park, Tooradin and Beaconsfield are all winnable and could bring the Lions right back into contention.
Sure it’s a longshot, but if they can win all five they’ll probably end the season on 36 points, meaning Doveton, with an inferior percentage, will need three more wins to stay ahead.
The Doves have Cranbourne, Tooradin, Officer, Narre Warren, Hampton Park and Berwick on the way home – there’s no certain three wins there.
The last game between these two was a high-scoring shootout, Doveton 20.11(131) to Pakenham 18.14(122), the only game in SEFNL this season where both teams have scored over 100 points.
If that happens again, you’d back the Lions, with Ryan Hendy, who kicked six that day, likely to miss for Doveton through injury.
The Lions need their stars to stand up, Kym Jones in particular needs to quell the influence of Russell Gabriel in the ruck and the Lions’ free-wheeling midfield needs to be more accountable at the stoppages.
They’ve lost four games by single-digit margins the Lions – they’ll turn the tables and keep their season alive by a thrilling two points.
TOORADIN v NARRE WARREN
TOORADIN can puff out its chest and have a free swing at Narre Warren on Saturday when the two sides collide on the banks of Western Port Bay.
Improved performances in their last two outings have stamped the Seagulls as the likely big improvers in the second half of the season.
They’re starting to gel, have players returning to full fitness, and have had an injection of confidence after their first win in two months against Officer last week.
Nathan Page, Nick Lang, Josh Muling and Matt Livermore can match it with the best -it’s just a matter of getting the best out of themselves as a team.
“We’re absolutely rapt with our new players, they’re all fantastic inclusions to our club and very good footballers, we just need to get the balance right,” said coach Lachie Gillespie.
“We just need to perfect a few things, respect our opponents, and I think we can have some fun in the run home.”
Gillespie has a massive challenge on his hands this week.
While Berwick is the clear trend-setter this year, for many number of reasons, the Magpies must be equally as hard to coach against right now.
Heath Black has been open and honest in saying that he has the advantage of being a stay-at-home dad. He has the time to run through video and run the fine tooth comb through every opposition he confronts.
Black wants certain match-ups in his forward line, and his players are prepared to sacrifice their own personal glory for the betterment of the team.
They’re just very versatile right now – but the core group remains.
Players like Dylan Quirk, Josh Tonna, Col McNamara and Michael Collins have had two seasons without a premiership, that’s unheard of at Magpie-land, and they’ll chomping at the bit to correct that stat.
It’s the Magpies by 36 points.
OFFICER v HAMPTON PARK
EVERY single goal will count towards Officer’s finals hopes on Saturday when the Kangaroos host Hampton Park at Starling Road.
The ladder is really starting to constrict around the four, five, six and seven area right now, meaning every ounce of percentage will be crucial when the final grid positions are drawn.
It’s an area the Kangaroos are lacking in right now, it needs to improve – and it needs to improve now.
The Kangas were brilliant in rounds three to six, defeating Pakenham, Tooradin and Hampton Park, but have now gone three rounds without success.
Berwick and Narre Warren were tough tests, but last week’s loss to Tooradin was the first danger sign that their clear progression may be slowing down.
The Kangas need to learn to be ruthless in these games.
Winning is never guaranteed, but do it this week by 50 points and the Kangaroos will be up around that ninety-percent mark alongside Doveton and Pakenham.
Every goal on top of that is a bonus.
Matty Clarke, Travis Woodfield, Ilan Osman and Brenton Hillard should set their sights high this week and aim for a convincing win.
But Redbacks like Nathan Allen, Luke O’Brien, Sean Winsall and Billy Thomas will be keen to hang tough in one of the few games their side can be competitive in this year.
But it’s the Kangaroos by 52 points.
