SOUTHERN FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Division 2 – round 4
A BITTERSWEET draw summed up a tough day at the office for Springvale Districts.
In muddy conditions better suited for ducks and pigs, The Demons fought through the slop to keep in contention with Hampton.
Down seven points at the final break, Springvale Districts’ resolve was energised through an early goal to Dandenong-area football legend Gavin Vassallo, his second for the afternoon. David Ford was next to strike to erase the margin, before Matt Thompson helped bring the tally to 8.6 (54) – the very same as Hampton as the final siren blew.
Aidan Jolly kept the Demons in the hunt with a pair of goals up to three-quarter-time while Brodie Snow relished the conditions to earn a best on ground nod alongside Matt Thompson, Chris McTaggart and Daniel Wilson.
The seventh place Districts face ladder leading Mordialloc away on Saturday.
Division 3
LYNDALE claimed crucial points over the recently-demoted South Yarra, edging out the visitors in a 12-point victory. The hard yards were fought in the guts as Chris Egan, Ben Cox and Dale Tormey all pounced on any football that came near. Trevor Kumetaitis (3 goals) and Matt Stuart (2) were the best of the goal kicking Pumas.
Narrowly downed by premiership hot-favourite Mount Waverley, Sandown performed ably in the soggy conditions to only concede an 11-point loss. The Mountain Lions mostly kept the Cobras off the scoreboard throughout the first half before Jake Chapman (3 goals) and Jesse Tregea (2) started rattling off a comeback. Sandown’s driving force was John Frenken, Lee Robinson and James Hewitt.
Dandenong was belted by 85 points as Black Rock flexed its muscles in Division 3. Jarrod Lapthorne added a brace to his goal kicking stats while Ryan Forsyth, Stephen Young and Warren Kairns put some muscle back into the Redlegs effort.
CASEY CARDINIA FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Seniors – round 5
A BURRA-SHAPED bruising was the only thing left of Keysborough following a 6.10 (46) to 24.17 (161) pumping by premiership contenders Berwick.
Keysborough’s contribution on the weekend was to witness the awesome power of Berwick; a young side emerging as a serious premiership contender that handed the Burra a 115-point belting at Rowley Allen Reserve.
The Burra were competitive in the first quarter, but a super-efficient Berwick forward line saw the margin blow out to four goals by quarter time. The visitors flexed their muscles in the second term, a 10.2 to 1.3 flurry opening up a 75-point margin at the main break.
To Keysborough’s credit, it hung tough in the second half but was simply outclassed by a fitter, slicker, and clearly more talented combination.
Glen Hawthorn was once again a standout for the Burra, continuing great from that should see representative honours come his way in the coming weeks, while Tyson King, Geoff Humphreys and Michael Downie were other experienced campaigners to show their younger team mates the way.
For Berwick, Paul Vanschilt was dynamic through the midfield, kicking four goals and having a hand in many others, while Michael Manley and Jordy Andrews kicked five and four goals respectively.
The Burra, who have been battered from pillar to post over the last four weeks, now enter a five-game stretch where they should be aiming to notch a win or two on the board. That run starts this Saturday when the ninth-placed Burra roll out the welcome mat for eighth-placed Tooradin.
