Round 15 William Buck Premier Men’s Preview

The competition’s two hottest teams collide in a Round 15 William Buck Premier Men’s blockbuster!

We’re heading for the business end of the season and another piece of the September puzzle will fall into place on Saturday when perennial contenders St Kevin’s (2^nd: 11-2-1) hosts Old Scotch (3^rd: 10-4) at TH King Oval.

The third-placed Cardinals started the season 3-4 but haven’t lost since, with 7 straight victories stretching back to May 25. And the team that knocked them off in Round 7?

Yep, it was SKOB in a 2-point thriller that has whet the appetite for this mouth-watering re-match, given they haven’t lost either, posting 7 wins and a draw on their current run!

TH King Oval has largely been a graveyard for visiting teams in modern times, but Old Scotch will arrive full of confidence after their brilliant 25-point win over the ladder-leading Tonners last weekend.

Their game is in great shape, except for one glaring area – their starts. In the past 3 matches, they’ve been held to a single first-half goal twice, then trailed Old Brighton by 20 points at quarter-time last week.

There’s no questioning their resilience and resolve to fight back and overcome adversity but you can’t afford to continually give high-quality teams a head start and expect to keep prevailing.

Anthony Lynch and his SKOB line-up are aware of Scotch’s sluggish starts and will be hellbent on capitalising early, so the opening term in this one is going to be fascinating (and potentially pivotal).

Buoyed by the wonderful news that injured team-mate Michael Pisker has emerged from his coma and will be sitting in his hospital bed listening to the game on SEN, St Kevin’s have refocused their attention on the task at hand – another premiership.

Can they make a statement against the competition’s Number #1 Disposal team by denying them the footy they crave? Can they then navigate OId Scotch’s Number #1 Defence to find the league’s leading goalkicker Patty Kerr? SKOB are #1 for Marks Inside 50 and Kerr is the main reason why.

Last week we said that Old Scotch can prove they’re a genuine contender. This week they can prove they should be the PREMIERSHIP FAVOURITE.

But St Kevin’s will have plenty to say about that.

Two powerful, in-form and supremely confident teams. What a game this promises to be!

Catch every moment of our VAFA SEN MATCH OF THE DAY LIVE on the SEN app, SEN.com.au & VAFA.com.au from 1.45pm Saturday.  

Two teams stuck on the outside looking in will clash when University Blues (6^th: 6-8) host Collegians (5^th: 8-6) at Melbourne University Oval.

Both teams were jostling for fourth until Old Xavs beat them both in the past two weeks to grab an advantage.

Entering Round 15, the Lions are still alive, one game plus considerable percentage behind Xavs so they must win and keep winning, then hope that their rival clips a couple of hurdles, which is entirely possible given their final two matches are against Old Brighton and Old Scotch.

The reigning champs had to come from behind to ultimately get over St Bernard’s last week with a fighting win in Luke McCleary’s 100^th game.

They will enter as favourites against a Blues outfit that has been cruelled by injury in recent weeks and humbled by Old Xavs to the tune of 99 points last start. But Guy Martyn’s team are a proud bunch and, wounded or otherwise, will be determined to show some grit and make a stand, despite their finals dream being over.

Injury to star forwards James Stewart and Sam Grimley have robbed them of their biggest weapon in recent weeks and their scoring has understandably fallen away as a result and they’ve slotted just 13 goals in 3 weeks.

But against Collegians, the Blues need to begin at the source. They have struggled to win Clearances and give themselves opportunities to get the ball moving their way.

If they allow the Lions to control the football via Intercept or Clearance and then play their devastating brand of high-possession keepings off, it could turn into another long afternoon for the hosts.

It’s a must-win for the Lions’ premiership defence. Can the Blues shatter their back-to-back dream?

Catch all the action live on our VAFA TV double-header – UNI BLUES vs COLLEGIANS from 11.40am Saturday (Reserves) into the Seniors from 1.45pm, streaming live & free at VAFA.com.au.

Old Melburnians (9^th: 3-10-1) host Fitzroy (10^th: 2-12) in one of the most important games in the relegation race this season.

The bottom 2 teams have a decent shot at rising out of the drop zone, but the task becomes significantly harder if they drop this game – for the Roys, it’s virtually a must-win.

Their Round 5 clash at Brunswick Street was one of the most memorable and emotional games of the 2024 Premier Men’s season, as Fitzroy came from behind to win its first top-flight match in front of a deliriously raucous home crowd.

OMs have the home-field advantage this time around though and they also have the more impressive lead-in form, given their draw with St Kevin’s a fortnight ago which temporarily lifted them out of the relegation zone before Blacks snatched 8^th spot back again with a 4-goal win last week.

The Roys have just completed their toughest stretch of the schedule, facing Old Xavs, Old Brighton & St Kevin’s, which means their run home is significantly easier than their relegation rivals. So while they are currently 6 points behind OMs, they can close within half a game of OMs if they can knock them off again.

Then they’ll face the two University teams in successive weeks at Brunswick Street and will fancy their chances in both match-ups, so their season is far from done. But they MUST win this weekend to set up a storming finish.

The relegation race is far from over, but this game may ultimately prove decisive.

Are we in for another spirited classic? Let’s hope so.

Old Brighton (1^st: 12-2) host St Bernard’s (7^th: 4-10) in an important fixture for both sides at Brighton Beach Oval.

The Tonners will be keen to bounce back after their fadeout against the Cardinals and know that another loss could potentially cost them top spot. But it would also create some doubt and chip away at the aura they’ve built throughout the year – reputations take a long time to build, but a short time to lose.

Marcel Bruin’s team have been consistently superb all season, delivering a powerful brand of football week after week. Their challenge is to keep that rolling. Maybe the loss to the Cardinals last week is the challenge they need to spark them again late in the season – not that they’ve shown any real signs of tapering off.

Must of the Tonners’ success has been built around Contested Possessions (#2 in comp). They win the hard ball but so do the Snowdogs (ranked #3 for Contested Possession). The inside battle will be one to watch!

Whilst only winning 4 games so far, St Bernard’s have been a handful for most teams this season. They are the Number #1 Pressure team in the league and then employ a direct method of ball movement (#8 Disposals but #1 for Inside 50s).

However, this style does come at a cost – they are first for Turnovers and last for Disposal Efficiency. And if there’s one team who loves to make you pay for turning the ball over, it’s the Tonners. St Bernard’s must protect the football in this one or they will be punished the other way.

Can Steve Alessio’s team pull off the upset on the road? It would be a huge step towards avoiding relegation.

But it will be anything but easy.

The final clash of Round 13 sees Old Xaverians (4^th: 9-5) host University Blacks (8^th: 4-10) at Toorak Park.

Xavs have been re-energised in recent weeks by the arrival of former AFL star Dan Hannebery and the return of popular stalwart Denis Symeopoulos. This added depth from fresh reinforcements has given them a much-needed lift and the genuine belief that they are good enough to compete with anyone in the league after knocking off their main rivals for fourth spot – Collegians and Uni Blues.

Their 99-point obliteration of the undermanned Blues was a sight to behold and they should keep on building, given they have Ed Delaney returning this week after missing the last 3 games, plus Shaun Cross returning after missing 4, along with Ben Bilston-McGillen, Charlie Whitehead and Oscar Duncan all back from overseas and pushing for selection.

Coach Dan Donati knows there’s a long way to go and no easy games in this competition. But he also knows he’s quickly closing the gap on the pacesetters. Momentum is key from here for Xavs, so they will be keen to keep it rolling.

But University Blacks have finally generated some positive momentum of their own after their fighting 4-goal win over OMs snapped their 5-game losing streak and lifted them out of the drop zone.

It’s been a frustrating season for Blacks, whose glimpses of greatness have been too few and far between. Generating scoring opportunities has been their main problem, but last week they managed to create 45 Inside 50s and boot double-digit goals for the first time since Round 8. Matthew Grocott booted 5 as he stepped up to provide the additional forward target they’ve been crying out for.

Xavs’ defence will provide a much sterner challenge but first the Blacks need to put their Pressure Game to good use (#1 Tackles) against the #1 Clearance team in the competition.

They cannot allow Xavs to dictate terms around the stoppage and dominate territory off the back of that if they are to generate enough opportunities for forwards like Grocott & Ayui Makieng to kick a winning score.

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Join the VAFA SEN MATCH OF THE DAY call team for our live coverage of ST KEVIN’S vs OLD SCOTCH from 1.45pm Saturday on SEN.com.au & the SEN app.

Catch our WILLIAM BUCK PREMIER MEN’S double-header between UNIVERSITY BLUES & COLLEGIANS live streaming on KOMMUNITY TV from 11.40am Saturday (Reserves) into the Seniors from 1.45pm.

Keep up-to-date with live scores and the latest news at VAFA.com.au