By Jonty Ralphsmith
Overview:
So the NAB League season comes down to this.
Nick Cox’s Dandenong Stingrays taking on the esteemed Sandringham Dragons.
Getting to the grand final is a remarkable achievement for the Rays given they played with so many 17-year-olds, underagers making up more than half their team at different stages of the season – they will play with seven on Friday.
The tight-knit culture of the 2023 crop complemented by the leadership of the top-age players has driven this 10-3 season and run to the grand final.
Cooper Simpson is the pick of the youngsters, but there has also been Sam Frangalas, Kade De La Rue, Kobe Shipp and so many more prospects with still a year left in the NAB League system that have contributed heavily and make the 23.
Yet, despite the youth, the Stingrays have created a reputation this season for standing up in close games, and finishing teams off, winning six of eight games by under two goals.
Nick Cox’s men have been challenged throughout the season and always stood up, undoubtedly instilling a steely maturity into the club. The return of Sybkowski, Hustwaite and Taj Campbell-Farrell bolsters the midfield and they have a good mix of aerially capable and ground-level players in defence, with the ability to pounce when there is opportunity to rebound.
Up forward, Harrison Jones has shown he can kick bags, Ziggy Toledo-Glasman reads the ball well and positions himself well, Hugo Nosiara runs all day and Kade de La Rue and Sam Franagalas are good inside 50, so there is a vast skillset and multiple avenues to goal.
They come up against Sandringham, always a powerhouse of the NAB League competition, fed by the ultra-strong local junior southern metro junior football league (SMJFL). The program always produces several draft prospects, with the eighth-placed finish with a 7-6 record belying the underbelly of star-power, many of which have missed the majority of the season with schoolboy footy.
The NAB league promotes fast footy where prospects can showoff their offensive skillset and both teams like to move the ball quickly, with the Stingrays particularly looking potent when they can transition from defence. Whether straight from a stoppage, turnover or kick ins, Dandenong likes to get it up the field quickly and back their forwards against the direct opponent.
Their ability to do that will be limited by the pressure that is sure to accompany the big occasion but if they can stick to it, the brand is one which you would back to stand up in a final.
Sandringham, meanwhile, is strong on every line, with several interceptors and reliable defenders, a strong inside and outside midfield game and plenty of avenues to goal.
Finals series
By finishing in the top three, Dandenong had the first week of finals off before two do-or-die matches. The first of those was against Western Jets and the Stingrays easily accounted for them, well on top in general play all day in a 73-point routing. Jaxon Binns, Simpson and midfielder Luke Bailey, playing his second game for the season, were the big performers that day. The following week, playing on a smaller Port Melbourne ground, Dandenong won by a point against Tasmania. Neither team ever completely got on top, with the margin never going beyond 12 points. It required gritty defence in the last minute to hold on. Meanwhile, Sandringham has comfortably won its three finals.
The Dragons staved off a late fightback from Murray to win by 10 points, backing that up with 61 and 34 point wins against Calder and Gippsland respectively.
Specific details:
Where and when: first bounce at 5.10pm, Ikon Park.
How to watch: AFL.com.au or the NAB League or AFL app
Last time they met:
Dandenong pummelled Sandringham. Based on that alone, the Stingrays would go in as hot favourites, but there has been plenty of changes from that night with all of Sandringham’s schoolboys returning. In miserable conditions for football, Dandenong looked the better team throughout the first half and essentially had the match wrapped up before the start of the third quarter, leading by 27 points at the main break.
Sandringham came at them and were able to close during an early third quarter charge but Dandenong showed they were up to it, resisting the comeback to win by 21 points. With just 11 players from that game playing on Friday for Sandringham, it might be a slight mental edge for Dandenong, but it is hard to get a good gauge on the teams’ head-to-head from that battle.
KEY PLAYERS:
Mitch Szybkowski: The Rays skipper averages almost 25 touches from his six NAB League appearances and his round 16 appearance against Gippsland – his first after schoolboy footy – proved his ability in the wet by getting first hands on the ball and feeding the Rays’ users. Watching him against Sandringham captain Ashcroft will be an interesting proposition, and their respective effectiveness will go a long way to deciding the midfield battle.
Henry Huswaite: Has been likened by AFL draft expert Kevin Sheehan to Scott Pendlebury. He steps through traffic and finds a way not to get tackled. Has missed the past two games with an ankle complaint but will step back into the midfield and will add a hard edge, a pinpoint kick and a big body. He’s the sort of player that can turn the momentum of the game and you can expect him to see plenty of the footy.
Harrison Jones: Sandringham has plenty of interceptors who can cut off the predictable high ball inside 50 so it will be incumbent on the Rays midfield to be smarter with their delivery. But if the ball movement does get stagnated, or space inside 50 is closed down, Jones will be relied upon to get the ball to ground. Before being held goalless on the weekend, he had three bags of five and a bag of three from his past four games. With teammates Luke Bailey and Hugo Nosiara, Jones goes to school at Haileybury with Sandringham prime movers Olli Hotton, Jakob Anderson (injured) and Archie Roberts – it would be fun to be a fly-on-the-wall in the classroom this week.
Harry Collopy: is from the Dragons catchment area but was dismissed by the club in pre-season which is when Dandenong recognised his talent as a key defender and swooped. Listed at 195 centimeters, the 19-year-old will likely spend some time on Sandringham’s Chris Rousakis, who has shown throughout the season he has sticky mits. Collopy, and others in the back line will need to nullify that and other aerial threats including Sheezel.
Cooper Simpson: coach Nick Cox has run out of superlatives to describe Simpson. He’s smooth, efficient, polished and confident, all traits that stack up well in big games, and he is only 17-years-old. Forced his way into the midfield rotation with consistency of output and fundamental proficiency and has been so important, particularly in his last four games where he has averaged 19.5 disposals and scored seven goals. Has already showed he stands up in pressure moments, with a clutch sealing goal to sink Gippsland in the final round of the home and away season, and recruiters look out for those moments. They also like to see players with defensive accountability, and two smothers to deny a goal early in the preliminary final is the sort of heat Cox and co. would hope he can repeat in the big dance.
Jaxon Binns: the speedy winger from Berwick was among Dandenong’s best in the preliminary final, with 26 touches and eight inside 50s. Has averaged 22 disposals this season and his strength is his running tank. Finals are always hot and the pressure on, but that won’t phase him. Whether on the wing, or deployed as a high-half-forward, he could become important late because he will run the game out and get the ball forward.
Finn Emile-Brennan: The live-wire halfback slices teams apart with his kicking and speed. Big finals can be about moments and the Mount Eliza product is the sort of player that can produce those, whether by taking the game on down the guts or executing a long kick that opens the game up. If the Rays expose Sandringham out the back, there is a good chance he’ll be involved.
Dragons that need to be stopped:
Harry Sheezel: the x-factor up forward for the Dragons who can get you aerially or on the ground, Sheezel is creative inside 50, makes good decisions and generally kicks truly when he is lining up with 32 goals for the season. His vast skillset and coolness could see him win the game off his own boot, plus he is a leader of their forward-line. Whoever is on him will need to have a sacrificial defend-at-all-costs mentality.
Charlie Clarke: an excitement machine that seizes his moments in big games, the Port Colts junior has kicked 11 goals in his last four games – all finals. Is the type of footballer that can turn the tide of the game with his ability to produce highlights, celebrate hard and bring the crowd and his teammates with him. Can’t be given space in the forward half because he’ll come through with pace and execute his skills.
Olli Hotton: has clean hands in close and uses his speed to spread well and hurt you on the follow-up. And you can’t give him any space around goals or he will make you pay. Two goals against Oakleigh in his last NAB League home and away game showed his skillset in microcosm as he cleanly gathered a loose ball from a contest and snapped around his body from 35, barely looking at the goal-face.
Will Ashcroft: what more can be said about the Brisbane Lions father/son prospect? Gets first hands on the ball, is tough in the contest, puts his head over it and is as ready for AFL as anyone in the league.
Cam McKenzie: wins clearances with his speed and is trustworthy with ball in hand, McKenzie has been touted as a probable first-rounder. As could be said for the wider midfield battle, closing down his space, or better, denying his supply, is crucial for the Rays.
Angus McLennan: McLennan’s name is not as familiar to 2022 draft followers, but with Vic Metro representative Jakob Anderson out, he is the key ingredient in defence for the Dragons. A 19-year-old prospect who has played VFL football at the Sandringham Zebras in 2022, he will intercept or spoil anything predictable coming inside 50 and is composed in his decision-making coming out of the back half so the Stingrays need to keep the ball out of his hands.
The midfield battle:
It promises to be a mouth-watering battle with five likely 2023 first round draft picks, two players shaping as high 2024 prospects and a Morrish Medallist all rolling through. Thus, both sides would consider their engine-room a strength.
Neither team has a dominant ruckman to give their side a leg-up in the midfield battle: in their last three games the Stingrays have been -42 compared to the Dragons’ -61. Jess McManus and Justin Davies, both listed at 195 centimetres, will split the duties against developing Sandringham 17-year-old Vigo Visentini and 19-year-old versatile key-position player Ben Andrews.
Then it will come down to the ball-winners. Campbell-Farrell tore the Dragons apart the last time the teams met, with 40 relatively clean disposals on a slippery night at Shepley Oval. Now a Morrish Medallist, can the strong-bodied hunter repeat the dose, or will he be rusty in his first game back from compartment syndrome? Plus the star trio, which also includes Mitch Sybkowski and Henry Hustwaite, have never played a full game as starting midfielders for various reasons this season – it will be incumbent on them to gel from the start and apply the heat.
Sandringham’s Will Ashcroft has made a habit of getting first hands on the ball and finding a teammate by hands or foot. The Rays will need to lock him down to limit the effectiveness of his disposal. If he is not finding a target by foot, often he’s handballing to Cameron McKenzie who can run away from a stoppage and hit a target, averaging a tick under 24 disposals for the game. The midfielder for Dandenong who can find space is Hustwaite, with a smart sidestep and evasive presence slipping him through traffic, as he averages 23.5 disposals this season. Mitch Sybkowski is Dandenong’s other asset, the captain offering important leadership and has strength and quick hands around stoppages and polished 2023 prospect Cooper Simpson will also spend some time in there.
Hotton, a hard-working player and 17-year-old Ryley Sanders both have clean hands, and are the other Dragons generally in the midfield rotation. Both teams like to feed it to the outside and go, but expect the pressure to be on at a slippery Ikon Park, and the game to become a scrap given weather and the high stakes – not only is it a final, but for some it is their final chance to impress AFL recruiters. They say defence wins premierships and the players willing to apply heat and do the hard stuff without the ball are the ones more likely to be singing the song.
