Ormond on the board as Devils get stronger

Liam Cole

Finding the Premiership fancy in the division 1 men’s competition is a difficult challenge in the 2024 season. A mixture of close encounters and dominant results prove the competition is wide open for the taking.

The Parkside Devils continue to get stronger this season after an impressive 27-point win over Prahran away. Parkside were on from the get go, leading by four goals in the first term after Prahran struggled to connect inside 50. The engine room of Benedict Douglas, Micheal Romano and Corey Mckay proved too good as Prahran remained scoreless in the first half. Two goals in a minute got Parkside away to a flyer in the second term thanks to some great forward pressure by Mitch Lawson and Ciaran Cotter.

Meanwhile, it was a 50 metre penalty given to James Musster which gave Prahran their first major in the third term as their midfield lifted. Two goals to none gave some belief for Prahran going into the last quarter trailing by only 24 points. It wasn’t to be for them as Parkside’s Luciano Logozzo and Max Balassone took some big intercept marks in the last term to ruin the party.

UHS-VU found a way to get over the line against a hungry Old Yarra Cobras side. It was a scrap for the first three quarters with ruckman James Fleming and midfielder Nicholas Zappala having great games in the midfield for the Cobras. UHS-VU led the whole game but couldn’t quite connect inside 50 to what they would have liked.

Seven points separated the two sides in the last quarter but with four quick consecutive goals for UHS-VU the game was put to bed. Sam McSweeney was superb across half-forward applying great pressure around the ball whilst Tom Rocke was a standout in defence.

Ormond proved too strong against Therry Penola defeating the emerging side by 107 points to record their first win under new coach Kyle Pinto. It was a handy day out for 18-year-old Will Drummond who starred up forward for Ormond alongside teammate James Tsakonas who both kicked six goals, as well as Aidan Soria with four.

The domination in contested ball and the heat applied around the ground was too hot for the Lions to handle. Ormond owned the territory battle in the last term resulting in the side scoring 10 goals to one.

Meanwhile, it was not an ideal start for Old Peninsula as key player Jake Williams was concussed in the warm up after getting hit by a ball. The Preston Bullants defeated the Old Peninsula by 69 points as the Pirates continued to struggle with injury this season. The Bullants’ execution was a highlight as the side kicked 20.9 in front of goal.

The midfield battle was even between the two sides all day but Preston’s ferocity around the ball and elite ball movement overwhelmed the opposition’s highly rated defence. Sean Calcedo excelled in the midfield again as he continued his superb start to the season.

The best game of the round was no doubt the Kew’s win over a gallant West Brunswick side by three points. Kew showed their scoring power as the Bears were off to a flyer helped by Ned Waters who kicked three goals and William Liewelyn having another day out with four goals. William Llewelyn has 11 goals already to his name this season and is the leading goal scorer so far.

With only a 21-point deficit beginning the last term, the Magpies were hungry for their first taste of victory this year. You could tell Kew were just hanging on in the final minutes of the game and the composure from the likes of Jack Delbridge and Max Poletti helped them hold on.

Round 4 entails some games which could be one sided and on the other hand be must-win opportunities for two sides who are looking for their first win of the season.

West Brunswick will no doubt take a lot of positives out of their close loss to the Bears, as they take on Prahran. Prahran will be looking to lift their defensive work rate and their efficiency going inside 50 at Ransford Oval.

Old Peninsula will be looking to get their second win on the board as they take on the undefeated Kew at home. The Bears will be looking to have a four quarter performance after falling away in the last term.

Parkside are facing the young Therry Penola as the Devils look to push into the top 4.  The Lions defence will have a huge challenge ahead of them. Parkside talls Jack Hamilton and Brody Smith are threatening to become a strong duo in the forward line this season.

The Old Yarra Cobras who were extremely competitive against UHS-VU have another big task ahead of them as they go up against Ormond. The evidence from round three suggests the battle in the midfield and the importance of composure under pressure will decide who prevails here.

The game of the round this week is the Preston Bullants who are improving each week coming up against the prelim finalists of last year UHS-VU. Tom Hill’s Bullants side are looking for two in a row while UHS-VU are setting their sights on top spot.