Lions & Tonners, De La & T’s, who you got?

Jake Morris

A blistering first quarter of play from Old Brighton has pushed the Tonners to a monumental 60-point victory over Old Xaverians in William Buck Premier, keeping themselves in the finals race with Collegians for fourth. Bursting out of the gates with the first 10 goals of the afternoon, Brighton demonstrated why they must be considered a serious threat to the William Buck Premier flag, blowing the doors off the second placed Old Xavs in a mesmerising show of strength. Leading the Tonners with another masterful display was Nic Pavlou, gathering 30 disposals to go along with three majors and 14 inside-50s, while Levi Otto also bagged himself a season-high three goals in the rout. Brighton will need to down Old Carey in Round 18, while also hoping Xavs take care of Collegians, if they wish to feature in September. Matt Merlo led his side with 30 touches while Michael Batten kicked three in a disappointing afternoon that almost certainly rules Xavs out of minor-premiership contention.

Despite the Tonners sitting right on their tail, Collegians did their September aspirations no harm as they limited De La Salle to just five-scoring shots en route to a one sided 104-point victory. Using a steady balance of scoring led by Julian Eimutis with four and 11 different goal-scorers, the Lions secured their largest margin of victory since Round 16 2015, and conceded their lowest score since Round 4 2016. Viv Michie (33), Frederick Sullivan (32) and Taylor Hunt (32) all had ball dominant afternoons, leading Collegians to a 159+ disposal count. The victory keeps the Lions in fourth spot but sets up a must-win clash with Old Xaverians at Toorak Park, with a win cementing their finals position. De La, who were led by Ryan O’Meara and his 26 touches on this occasion, will now face off with Trinity in Round 18, with the defeated joining Old Carey in relegation to Premier B for season 2020.

Much like Old Brighton and their electrifying first quarter, Old Melburnians did much the same as they held St Bernard’s scoreless in the opening term and booted the opening nine goals of the day to cruise to a 39-point victory. Prior to a Luke Di Lizio major in the eight-minute mark of the second, the OM’s held a commanding 58-0 lead, with Al Armstrong booting three of his six goals before the Snow Dogs could get on the scoresheet. Josh Freezer led his side to the convincing win with 29 touches and nine marks, while Gus Borthwick accumulated 22 disposals. St Bernard’s were led by Jack McNamara with three majors, Connor Riley with 15 tackles and Harrison Kennedy with a game-high 31 disposals.

Paired with Xavs defeat and a second half dominance which saw them kick 14 of the last 18 goals of the match, University Blues have moved into the box seat to claim the minor premiership with a convincing 64-point victory over Old Trinity. Led by Cam O’Shea (28 disposals), Dan Batarilo (3 goals, 24 disposals) and Josh Carr’s 17 second-half touches, eight different Blues accumulated over 20 disposals to help their side to their seventh consecutive victory. Alex Polidoros booted four for the T’s while Jack Hunt (23) and Austin Hodge (22) were the main ball-winners in the defeat, setting up a ‘win and you’re in’ Round 18 special with De La Salle.

Despite some late-season hiccups against Old Brighton and Old Melburnians, St Kevin’s OB returned to form as they took down Old Carey by 99 points. Much like the Tonners and OM’s, SKOB used a first-quarter tidal wave to overwhelm the Panthers, piling on the first nine-goals of the game to at one stage hold a 63-1 lead midway through the second term. Goal-scoring dynamo Jarrad Waite collected his second six-goal haul for the year, while Philip Edgar, Shaun Kennedy and Jack Holden each kicked three. Billy Lloyd (35), Sam Critchley (33), Michael Pisker (32) and Mitch Brown (30) also had days out to lead their side to their biggest margin of victory since Round 8 2015. Marc Lock was the Panthers best with 28 disposals, who will end their 2019 campaign at home against the Tonners.