La Trobe beat the unbeaten as the Tigers roar and the Falcons soar

Billy Bolch

Box Hill North hosted Masala in an important clash for both teams with the Demons needing to get some momentum going and the Tigers wanting to continue what has been one of their best seasons in club history. The game started competitively with Box Hill holding a one-point lead at quarter time. With both teams even, one needed to take the lead and it was the Tigers who piled on 7 goals to 1 in the second quarter to take a 34 point lead into the major break. 

The third quarter saw the Demons make the margin slimmer but failed to capitalise on their scoring dominance having 7 more scoring shots only managing to kick 3 goals. The fourth quarter became a scrap with only three goals kicked for the term. It was the Tigers who ran out winners by 23 points in a well-contested clash. 

Up forward for Masala, it was Declan Fowler and Zac Pahos who led the way combining for seven goals, whilst midfielders Tom Williamson and Brandon Kelly also hit the scoreboard. Goalkickers for the Demons include Peter Cassidy-Marsh, Beau Parthenides and Cameron Liston. Masala’s best players included Matt Decarne, Buom Koang and the previously mentioned Tom Williamson and Brandon Kelly. The best for the Demons included Marcus Lorkin, Rowan Lawrence and Beau Parthenides. 

Box Hill North will now play Albert Park in what will be an extremely important matchup whilst the Tigers play host to the JOCS in what could be round 8’s match of the week.

It was set up to be one of the biggest games of the season between Swinburne and La Trobe, however what we saw turned out to be quite the opposite. Despite being a dominant force, the Razorbacks are accustomed to slow starts, only kicking a goal in the first wouldn’t worry their faithful, however, the main concern is La Trobe kicking 8 goals to hold a 44-point lead at quarter time. A change was needed in the second, but the Razorbacks struggled to get the game on their terms. La Trobe added another five goals holding a 64-point lead at half-time. 

La Trobe brought the same energy in the third term and piled on another six goals whilst keeping Swinburne to two, extending their lead to a whopping 90 points. The final quarter saw the Razorbacks put together a great quarter doubling their score as they kicked five goals. The day belonged to La Trobe kicking nine goals and running out winners by a mammoth 115 points, and in the process ending Swinburne’s undefeated run. 

For Swinburne, Benjamin Cox and Joseph Zambelli kicked three goals each. For La Trobe, Riley Alexander kicked a mammoth 10 goals, staking his claim for the best forward in the competition. He was not alone though as Bryce Dowler and Tate Spiteri kicked five and four goals respectively. Swinburne’s best included Bradley Field, Brent Hodson & Zachary Cooke whilst the best for La Trobe were the previously mentioned Riley Alexander, Connor Mccredden and Riley Keath. 

Swinburne will look to regroup and rebound as they face an always game opposition in Eley Park. La Trobe will have the bye before they travel to Elgar Park to take on the Demons. 

In the final game of the round, Eley Park and Albert Park would face off with both teams looking to end their winless runs however only one team was able to snap the streak. 

The game started fairly competitive with Albert Park taking a 2 goal lead into the first break. 

Similar to Masala, the Falcons turned on the jets in the second quarter and added seven goals to their tally to the Sharks two to take a 50-point lead into half-time. It was a relatively even second half with the margin staying beyond 7-goals for the afternoon. In the end, it was the Falcons that ran out winners by 52 points, putting themselves in a good position to chase down a spot in the top four. 

Tom Johnston put together a good game for the Sharks kicking five and teammates Sebastian Krivohlavy and Jarrod Newton kicked two goals each. For the Falcons, the goal kicking load was shared with nine goal kickers however the two in charge were Jack Lee and Ryan Skeen who combined for eight goals. Eley Park’s best were Jesiah Mcgarvie, Daniel O’Shea and the previously mentioned Tom Johnston. Albert Parks’ best were Jack Twite, Jack Amies and Brett Tottenham

Eley Park will look to hand the Razorbacks another loss in what will be a big game for the Sharks whilst the Falcons host the Demons in what is a big game for both teams.

St Johns who had the bye will now face Masala, a team they managed to defeat fairly convincingly, less than a month ago.