By Hayley Wildes
DANDENONG STINGRAYS TAC CUP FINALS PREVIEW
It’s TAC Cup finals time. After what was a dominant home and away season, the Dandenong Stingrays head into finals as the team to beat, boasting a stunningly consistent group of players.
The Rays won 15 of their 16 games; three more than the second-placed Gippsland Power, and finished the season with the massive percentage of 210, some 60 per cent more than their nearest rival.
Dandenong claimed the minor premiership and will kick-off its 15th consecutive finals campaign this weekend against the Greater Western Victoria Rebels – all in search of what would be an historic maiden TAC Cup premiership for the club.
Coach Craig Black has his team flying and it’s their willingness to take the game on and work for one another – rarely does a player record huge disposal numbers, rather a total team effort is required – that makes them so great to watch.
Having ticked off their initial goal of finishing top four, there are now much bigger objectives on the agenda.
“We wanted to finish top four, which is a goal the players set at the start of the year,” Dandenong Stingrays talent manager Mark Wheeler said.
“We know our best football is competitive against any of the teams in the finals, we look forward to the challenge in a weeks’ time in a hope to stay alive for another week.”
Dandenong hasn’t lost a game since April, so the pressure is certainly on to deliver at the business end of the season, but this squad has shown all season long that it’s not afraid of the big moments.
The Rays were challenged by the Geelong Falcons in their second last game of the season, but found another gear when it mattered most, powering away to an 18-point win after two clutch goals from Sam Sturt in the final four minutes of the game.
Dandenong’s depth has been the difference between it and the rest of the competition – it boasts bonafide stars on every line, combined with a unique mix of players who understand and relish their role within the system.
The backline – led by Matthew Gahan, Matthew Cumming, Lachlan Young, Hayden Young and Will Hamill – has stood tall all season. They routinely beat their opponents one-on-one, but also launch many of the Rays’ attacking forays with their slick ball movement out of defence.
Their defensive system is smothering and the want to help each other out is visible every time they play.
In what was a massive pre-finals boost, co-captain Mitch Riordan returned to action in the final game of the season – his first game with the Rays since 7 April – and he will be one to watch this finals series.
He fitted back into the team seamlessly against Sandringham and a big finals campaign will see his already high draft stocks rise even further. His ability to win his own ball and take strong intercept marks will be key to the Rays’ September dreams.
The midfield engine room runs deep, but is led by the tireless work of co-captain Campbell Hustwaite. Hustwaite – who came equal third in the 2018 Morrish Medal (TAC Cup best and fairest) – is one of the hardest workers in the competition, highlighted by being top five in clearances and tackles. In the Rays’ final game of the season against Sandringham, he laid a whopping 15 tackles and was involved in everything.
Alongside Hustwaite, there is plenty of class that rolls through the midfield with the likes of Sam Fletcher, Zac Foot, Toby Bedford, Jamie Plumridge, Matthew Cottrell, Jake Frawley and Jai Taylor all spending time in the middle.
The Rays’ tall stocks are led by Bailey Williams (18 goals) and Riley Bowman (13 goals) – both possible first round draft selections – who, along with Bailey Schmidt (13 goals), drift forward when not in the ruck. The trio routinely causes headaches for opposition defences, which struggle to cover three highly-skilled talls on the ground at once.
With Williams, Bowman and Schmidt either clunking big marks or bringing the ball to ground, the mid-sized and small forwards have gone to work.
The play of Sam Sturt – a draft bolter who has kicked seven goals in three games since his TAC Cup debut in August – alongside Finlay Bayne (10 goals) and Lachlan McDonnell (12 goals) has been just as crucial to the Rays’ success.
The one suspect aspect of Dandenong’s game has been its inefficiency in front of goal. Since the beginning of June, the Rays have kicked 116 goals and 134 behinds in their nine games played.
With the entries coming in thick and fast, it hasn’t cost them yet, but it is one of very few question marks surrounding Dandenong.
The TAC Cup finals are brutal and unforgiving. Despite having finished on top of the ladder, the Rays don’t have the luxury of a second chance. One slip up and it can all be over.
With history on the line, the Stingrays will kick off their finals campaign this Saturday at IKON Park from 12pm.
Dandenong will head into the contest against the Rebels with plenty of confidence, having beaten them comprehensively in their two meetings this season. In April, the Stingrays claimed a 97-point win and in June, they were 59-point victors.
