By DAVID NAGEL
SEFL PREVIEW – ROUND 5
BEACONSFIELD v NARRE WARREN
SO WHAT is the real story when it comes to Beaconsfield and Narre Warren?
We’ll find out more when the Eagles and Magpies collide in a replay of last year’s second semi-final at Holm Park Reserve on Saturday.
Flick back through the pages to September 6 last year and you’ll find a storyline that was almost impossible to predict. The Magpies went in as a short-priced favourite to advance to a fifth-consecutive grand final, but lost Kain Baskaya early as the Eagles held firm to win a controversial thriller by a point.
What a turnaround that was, after the Magpies had handed out 98 and 114-point thrashings to the eventual premier earlier in the year.
So where do we start in the build up to this one?
At three and one, the Eagles have the better record this season but their form has hardly been outstanding. An 11-point win over an unsettled Berwick, a lacklustre 51-point victory over Hampton Park, and a 25-point triumph over Doveton were the pre-cursors to last week’s battle with Cranbourne.
Beacy’s pressure went missing last week in the third-quarter, and it was very quickly given a stark reminder that only a 100 per cent effort, for 100 per cent of the time, is going to cut it this year.
They’re reputation has not been built on talent, it’s been built around teamwork, and coach Clint Evans was quick to remind his side of such… and in no uncertain terms.
He berated his side at three-quarter time in one of the great sprays of all time!
There are key battles everywhere in this one, with rival skippers, Beacy’s Daniel Mislicki and Narre Warren’s Michael Collins, set to go toe-to-toe in the midfield, while Beacy full-back Daniel Battaglin will renew acquaintances with the in-form Kerem Baskaya.
Beacy’s forward line is really dangerous this year, with Beau Dowler, Taylor Joyce, Chris Worner, Troy McDermott and, if need be, Shaun Pollard, going forward to provide many headaches for opposition defenders. Ryan Morrison, Ben King, Lee Boyle and Ben Giobbi will need to be on their toes this weekend.
It will be a hot-start to this one, the Eagles looking to bounce back from the disappointment of last week, while the Magpies… well, they wouldn’t want to succumb to a third premiership contender in their last four games of footy.
In a flip of the coin… it’s the Eagles by a point!
PAKENHAM v CRANBOURNE
PAKENHAM, the only side to remain undefeated in the South East Football League this season, will have its record put to the test by an in-form Cranbourne at Toomuc Reserve on Saturday.
The Lions have surprised many with their start to the season, highlighted by a magnificent win over Narre Warren in Round 2 that stamped their papers as ‘genuine’.
The Lions have been settled, with coach Steve O’Bryan forced to make just one change in three rounds of footy, a far cry from the Eagles’ delicate situation where they have six legitimate guns still waiting on the sidelines set to return from injury.
Pakenham seems to have the balance between attack and defence just right this season.
It leads the way in scoring power, piling on 120 points per game, two goals better than next best Narre Warren, and has the most frugal defensive record alongside this week’s opponent Cranbourne, and Berwick, conceding just 71 points per match.
The Lions have a good mix up forward, with Daniel Fry, Jason Fisher and Steve O’Bryan providing the marking options, while Jake Smith and Jake Barclay are fleet-footed and clever at ground level.
The Eagles defence has been frugal over the years but, if there’s one type of player that Matt Rus, Nick Barker, Brandon Osborne and Nick Morrish don’t like, it’s the Smith and Barclay type that can crumb and be dangerous.
The midfield battle will be crucial this week with both sides very proficient at locking the ball in, once inside 50.
Nathan Brown calls the shots for the Lions, setting up structures from centre-half back, while Rus and Barker do likewise for the Eagles.
Russell Lehman, Dean Blake and Damien Holmes have been fantastic for the Lions this year while Max Gearon, Mat Fletcher and Luke Bee-Hugo won’t be content to just draw even at the stoppages… both midfields are full of class.
Pakenham hasn’t played since Anzac Day, so will it be fresh, or will a 20-day break, and the unknown associated with an unfortunate accident at the club this week, see them vulnerable and ripe for the picking?
It’s Cranbourne by 13 points.
TOORADIN-DALMORE v ROC
TOORADIN and ROC will take centre stage at Westernport Oval on Sunday for the WorkSafe AFL Victoria Country Game of the Month. One of only eight games to be played under the WorkSafe Game of the Month banner this season, the Seagulls and Kangaroos are sure to provide a tight contest for the dignitaries in attendance, with both sides desperate to get their first win on the board.
ROC’s big names have failed to fire with Blair Allan down ion his form of last year, while Sean Roach and Matthew Ford haven’t delivered anything like their best since arriving from Mooroolbark. It’s been left to familiar faces like Ben Tivendale, Matt Clarke and Matt Rogers to deliver, while Nathan Brewster has been impressive off half-back. Tooradin has Kyle Van Der Pluym and Adam Splatt in good form, but just can’t hit the scoreboard, averaging just 52 points per game, the lowest in the competition in its first three rounds of footy. This one’s tough to call… but the home-ground advantage will get the Seagulls home in a thriller.
HAMPTON PARK v BERWICK
HAMPTON Park will need to fine-tune its defensive structures to breaking point if it’s to be any chance of causing the upset of the round against Berwick at Robert Booth Reserve.
The Redbacks, under Matt O’Neil, remain winless, but are having their most competitive start to a season since playing finals in 2011.
Their percentage in 2012 fell away to a poultry 16.25, which rose to 27.27 in 2013 before climbing further to 33.54 last year. Already the Redbacks have jumped over the 50 per cent barrier this season, with more avenues to goal and some sound team defence providing the key planks for improvement.
We’re not being disparaging here, but simply highlighting how far the Redbacks had slipped, and how far they still have to go if they want to be a serious threat.
And the signs are good.
Nathan Carver has really straightened things up at centre-half-forward, combining with Andrew Shipp to give the Redbacks’ midfielders some much-needed target practice when going forward.
Luke Nunan and Kane White have been rocks in defence while Bryce Keyser, Nathan Allen and Lionel Beniot have had their fair share of the pill coming off half-back and through the midfield.
The trouble for the Redbacks this week is how they quell one of the most potent running machines in the competition.
Berwick has a sound engine room, with Madi Andrews and Michael Harold at its core, and they need to be stopped to limit the influence of runners like Luke Sheppard and Ash Smith off half back. Luke O’Brien will likely get one of the defensive half-forward roles for the Redbacks, trying to make Sheppard or Smith accountable… the defensive mindset needs to start deep forward, and work its way back for the Redbacks this weekend.
Berwick’s depth is improving, with James Phillips emerging as much more than just a good two’s player, Hayden McLardy and Ryan Hillard are showing some real grit, while Tim Gunn, Jo West and Jayden Joyce get big roles to play each and every weekend.
It’s Berwick by 10 goals plus.
