Streak breakers in Premier B

By David Chalmers – @DAChalmers81

Round 12 was the ‘Streak Breaker,’ with two of the season’s biggest streaks coming to an end. Old Haileybury snapped their seven-game losing streak with a win over Monash, while St Bede’s/Mentone lost the game and top spot when their seven-game winning run was cut short by Old Brighton.

Beaumaris hosted the Vultures having lost their past two games and found themselves off the top of the ladder for the first time since Round 2. The Vultures, on the other hand, were in some form and were looking for three wins in a row. The Sharks won their previous encounter in Round 2 by 34 points and went into quarter time with a 13-point lead. The first ten minutes of the second quarter produced four goals, with Parkdale’s Tom Redmond kicking two, while Lachlan Boyd and Josh Ward struck for the Sharks. The next ten minute period produced two behinds to each side before Stephen Milne kicked truly, allowing Beaumaris to maintain control of the match. There were no goals kicked in the last ten minutes of the quarter, meaning the Sharks went into half time with a 16-point buffer. The second half yielded just six goals and the Vultures were unable to gain any ground, and when the final siren sounded Beaumaris was back on the winners list and back on top of the ladder with a 32-point victory.

Old Scotch visited Ajax looking to regain some form, having lost three of their past four games, while the Jackas hoped to bounce back from their 52-point defeat to Old Brighton the previous week. The two teams met all the way back in Round 1 and the Cardinals got up by 67 points. It was a tightly contested first half, with both teams having the same number of scoring shots. Slightly better accuracy meant the Cardinals went into half time with a 10-point lead. They had the better of the play early in the third quarter, with Brett Borland and Andrew Hummerston both kicking goals before Ajax got on the board thanks to Jake Lew who was the beneficiary of a 25m penalty from a Cardinals indiscretion. Tom Havers scored next for Old Scotch after he worried his opponent out of the contest with good forward pressure, then Damian Di Donato took two bounces and finished with a long running goal. From the final stoppage of the quarter the ball finished with Daniel Cohen, who kicked truly after the siren to give Ajax something to hang their hats on. Facing a four goal deficit, the Jackas won the final term but it wasn’t enough, with Old Scotch claiming an 18-point victory.

Monash Blues had every right to enter their encounter with Old Haileybury full of confidence. They had spent two weeks in the top four on the back of a three game winning streak, while the Bloods hadn’t tasted victory since beating the Vultures back in Round 4. The Blues won their Round 5 showdown by 23 points but it was the Bloods who made the better start in this contest, leading by eight points at quarter time. They continued the momentum into the second term, with Shane Valenti roving a throw-in early on and kicking truly. Three behinds were kicked in the next 13 minutes of play before Monash finally got on the board. This was followed by two more goals to Old Haileybury, including one from Daniel Harrison. Darcy Bibby got one back for the Blues right near the end of the quarter after getting a free then receiving a 25m penalty because a Bloods player couldn’t hold his tongue. Holding a 14-point lead at the main break, the Bloods extended the margin in the third quarter. Despite being goalless in the last, they finished with a 16-point win and walked away with the sweet taste of victory.

Fitzroy has been one of the form teams over the past couple of months, seeing them jump from 10th in Round 4 into the top four a couple of weeks back. However, the tight competition in the middle rungs of the ladder means that one loss can send a team tumbling. In Round 12 they came up against the struggling Hampton Rovers. The Roys won their Round 5 contest by 56 points and started with a blitz, but could only manage three behinds and an out-of-bounds. Despite their defence being in disarray, once the Rovers got the ball up their end they managed to goal first thanks to Sam Bradford. Jack Dalton got the next clearance and replied for the Roys with a long goal, followed by Sam Baker. Nathan Smith provided a highlight for the day with a true ‘contested goal’, trying to gain control of the ball while dodging a few defenders and kicking truly. The Roys finished with three of the last four goals through Julian Turner and Daniel Bisetto, while Christian Carnovale contributed for the Rovers. While Fitzroy led by two goals at quarter time, there was little indication of the slaughter to come. They piled on 18 goals to four after quarter time and recorded the third biggest margin and the third highest score for the season so far. The win puts the Roys back in the top four.

After spending the majority of the season so far in the shadow of Beaumaris, St Bede’s/Mentone finally landed in top spot after Round 11 with a seven game winning streak combined with two losses to the Sharks. Conversely, Old Brighton had just ended a seven game losing streak the previous week with a 52-point win over Ajax. The Tonners won their Round 2 match-up by 25 points. The Tigers had the Tonners stretching early and ran to a 15 point lead before Dan Anthony found Michael Slater in the square to get the visitors on the board. Anthony kicked two more goals himself as the Tigers held a three-point lead at the first break. The second term was a rollicking contest and Old Brighton peppered the big sticks, adding 4.8 for the quarter and taking an eight-point lead into half time. The first five goals for the third quarter were goal-for-goal. Michael Barnes and Mitch Coen kicked truly for the Tigers while Alex Mastromanno and Tom Delaney scored for Old Brighton. The Tonners finally got two in a row twenty minutes in through Mastromanno, before Brett Denton and Lachlan Mirams struck back for the Tigers late in the quarter. Stewart Hooy had the final say for the Tonners and they maintained a seven point lead at three quarter time. The Tonners started the final term well enough when Michael Dewar whipped a hand-pass to Tom Fisher who snapped accurately from close in. Harry Hill slammed at the sticks but missed and a couple of other chances were forced behind but they had worked to a twenty one point lead when Jarrod Sargent snapped a goal from a stoppage in close. Then suddenly, the Tigers hit back. They found room through the middle and on the overlap goaled three times in as many minutes and looked dangerously like running over the Tonners. However, they steadied with goals to Jarrod Sargent and Tom Delaney, before Alex Mastromanno booted his fourth to seal the Tonners second win in a row, knocking the Tigers from the top of the ladder.

Tips:

Hampton Rovers v AJAX

Old Brighton v Fitzroy

Old Scotch v Monash Blues

Parkdale Vultures v St Bedes Mentone Tigers

Old Haileybury v Beaumaris