With the local football finals well and truly underway for many local sides, there are other clubs who now get the chance to ponder what went wrong as they watch on from the sidelines.
In the Journal’s football wash-up, NICK CREELY takes a closer look at how the season panned out for the teams who missed out on coveted finals positions.
SOUTHERN FOOTBALL LEAGUE
DIVISION 2
SPRINGVALE DISTRICTS
POSITION: 10th (6-12)
BEST WIN: The Demons defeated finalists Skye in a five-point thriller at home in Round 9, 12.6 (78) to 11.7 (73).
After trailing by 14-points at three quarter time, the Demons stormed home off the back of four goals by Stefan Feehan.
LEADING GOAL KICKER: Stefan Feehan (42)
B&F CANDIDATES: Todd Wills, Matthew Thompson, Tom Cooper
COMMENTS: 2017 was always destined to be another tough season for the developing club, but they managed to win one more match than they did last year. In a major positive, they were competitive in every game bar one against premiership favourites Chelsea Heights despite finishing second last. With a little more luck, who knows what they can achieve.
DIVISION 3
DANDENONG
POSITION: 12th (0-18)
BEST WIN: The Redlegs failed to win a game in 2017, but came within six-points of Sandown in a bottom-of-the-table thriller. Failed to get that close in a match again.
LEADING GOAL KICKER: David Barrie (17)
B&F CANDIDATES: Stephen Young, Scott Moody, Bo Freeman
COMMENTS: Despite not being the worst side statistically, the Redlegs won three in 2016 and none in 2017 so the season hasn’t been successful at all. Nothing quite worked all season and Dandenong was competitive in very few matches. The team needs to find more experience while the youngsters develop. The list is inexperienced so the turnaround isn’t going to be easy.
LYNDALE
POSITION: 7th (9-9)
BEST WIN: Can’t go past the Round 1, 163-point demolition of Sandown at home, in which the Pumas were clinical with 44 scoring shots.
LEADING GOAL KICKER: Trevor Kumetaitis (65)
B&F CANDIDATES: Jordan Toole, Liam Toole, Trevor Kumetaitis
COMMENTS: Despite having finals ambitions heading into the season, the reality is the Pumas couldn’t better their 10-8 record of 2016. Despite a mountain of goals from Kumetaitis and some handy inclusions such as former Cora Lynn pair Jordan and Liam Toole, they were unable to capture a finals spot. But it wasn’t a complete disappointment, with some terrific performances at different stages of the season.
LYNDHURST
POSITION: 8th (7-11)
BEST WIN: A ripping Round 4 win over finalists Black Rock away from home by three-points was one of the highlights of the season for the Lightning.
After a tight affair all day, the Lightning pulled away in a three goal to two final term.
LEADING GOAL KICKER: Hamish Browning (37)
B&F CANDIDATES: Charlie Gardiner, Matthew Spargo, Cory Willshire
COMMENTS: Improvement was the key going into the season, and improvement is what they got.
They had more wins and fewer losses than last year, so the developing club is tracking well.
If they can attract some more experienced talent, they have every opportunity to surge into the finals in 2018.
SANDOWN
POSITION: 11th (1-17)
BEST WIN: The club’s only win of the year came against Dandenong by six-points at home. It was a great day for the struggling club who are doing everything they can to rebuild.
LEADING GOAL KICKER: Jamie Proctor (11)
B&F CANDIDATES: Matthew Dickson, Josh Hurford, Lucas Ligt
COMMENTS: The Cobras – under new coach Ange Sammaratino – have certainly freshened things up, and it was unlikely they would be able to be competitive for some time. Although they climbed off the bottom of the ladder, three 200-plus losses suggests they haven’t quite bridged the gap.
They conceded the most points by almost 400 and scored the least amount of points. The talent is there, it’s now up to them to take the next step.
EASTERN FOOTBALL LEAGUE
NOBLE PARK
POSITION: 7th (10-8)
BEST WIN: The Bulls dispatched premiership fancy Balwyn by 37-points in their own backyard, and made them look second rate.
It proved to be the last win they had for the season with the Bulls failing to qualify for finals after losing their last two matches.
Their incredible record away from home against Balwyn continues into another season.
LEADING GOAL KICKER: Tim Harper (36)
B&F CANDIDATES: Kyle Martin, Tim Harper, Jackson Sketcher
COMMENTS: The reality is that the Bulls entered the 2017 season as one of a bunch of clubs who could contend for a premiership after finishing fourth in 2016. But they failed to fire in the second half of the season and subsequently couldn’t find the momentum to find a spot in the finals.
They possess a uniquely talented list but one that underperformed most of the season. The inconsistency would be the biggest concern for the coaching staff and players. But there were great seasons from the likes of Kyle Martin, Tim Harper, James Gwilt, Jackson Sketcher and the development of highly prized former TAC Cup star Tommy Glen means a bounce back is very possible.
ROWVILLE
POSITION: 10th (5-13)
BEST WIN: A fantastic win over finalists South Croydon by 22 points only a matter of weeks ago was the Hawks’ best win of the season.
They managed to kick an impressive 108 points in their biggest scalp.
LEADING GOAL KICKER: Lachlan McDonald (26)
B&F CANDIDATES: Daniel Zajac, Steven Georgiou, Jordan Bastinac
COMMENTS: Rowville finished in the top three in 2016, and then the bottom three this season. Despite having a talented list, they were arguably the biggest underperformer of the year. They can easily bounce back next season, but need to work on maximising the talent they have.
