A huge rivalry was resumed at Robert Booth Reserve as the two best sides in Southern Division 2 – Hampton Park and East Malvern – went to battle with memories of their recent fiery encounters spurring them on.
It was the Redbacks who prevailed in what could be a grand final preview, kicking 33-0 in the last quarter; utilising the wind beautifully to come home and win by 17 points.
There was plenty of feeling in the contest; yellow cards were handed out and tempers were boiling over as Hampton Park surged home to retain top spot on the ladder.
Despite kicking against the wind in the first quarter, the Redbacks were completely outplayed and East Malvern were looking quicker and better to take a 24-point lead into quarter time.
Hampton Park coach Luke Bull came out and gave his team a spray and demanded that the midfielders lift.
The team responded well, with 5.1 reducing the margin back to a single kick going into the half time break.
“The boys were good, they responded well and embraced the challenge,” Bull said.
While the eyes were on the five-goal final term from Hampton Park, their defensive efforts in the third term to keep East Malvern to just two goals set up the victory.
“I always try and set us up mentally for close games, we try to embrace them and not go into our shell,” Bull said.
“We adjusted well to keep them to just two goals (in the third), we knew we were going to a have a very decent wind in the fourth.”
The fourth quarter started perfectly for the Redbacks as Jesse Naylor slotted a snap goal – a minute later and they had another through Dylan Morris.
East Malvern’s bench was in panic and Hampton Park was surging as Liam Scott, who played so brilliantly in defence, took a mark in front of the East Malvern bench and copped a stray hand to the face which resulted in a costly 50m penalty.
Scott walked into the goal square and put his team in front 63-59 just eight minutes into the term.
Midfield star Morris put on a clinic for the Redbacks in the final quarter and soon kicked the sealer out of a stoppage – his second of the quarter.
“We were able to really lock in and pile on the goals which was really good … we were happy with the win,” Bull said.
“It was a pretty special day with Dawesy (Nathan Dawes) breaking the games record, which was awesome and set the tone for the day.”
Jye King was dominant in the 17-point win, as was Mason Hawkins (two goals), Trent Thomas (three goals) and Ryan Patterson who had plenty of it.
In other games, Highett is in fourth position on the ladder after defeating Caulfield Bears by 17 points, now two games safe within the top five.
The Bulldogs trailed by 13 points going into the fourth quarter but utilised the wind, doubling their score as Ben Kenny and Rhys Wilkinson (three goals each) led the way.
Despite still sitting two wins above Frankston, Mordialloc would’ve been hoping to record a win over the Dolphins, but it wasn’t to be.
Frankston had a strong last quarter as it kicked four goals to one, on its way to a healthy 32-point victory.
For Chelsea Heights, it was the Erishmiilan Uthayakumar show as the forward booted seven goals in a huge 85-point victory over Doveton.
Scores were level at quarter time after the Doves had the wind in the first term, but they were smashed against the breeze as the Demons kicked 91 points across quarters two and four.
A couple of goals against the wind in third quarter helped propel Keysborough to its sixth win of the season, as it kicked four final-quarter goals to defeat Endeavour Hills by 29 points.
Ethan Bakes, Simon Marchese and Thomas Shaw all kicked two goals for the Burras in the victory, while Dylan McKenzie had plenty of the ball.
SOUTHERN 2
Results – R14: Hampton Park 11.10(76) def East Malvern 9.5(59), Chelsea Heights 19.10(124) def Doveton 5.9(39), Highett 10.14(74) def Caulfield Bears 8.9(57), Frankston Dolphins 10.10(70) def Mordialloc 5.8(38), Keysborough 8.10(58) def Endeavour Hills 4.5(29).
Ladder: Hampton Park 44, East Malvern, Chelsea Heights 36, Highett, Mordialloc 32, Frankston Dolphins, Caulfield Bears, Keysborough 24, Doveton Doves 20, Endeavour Hills 8.
Fixture – R15: East Malvern (2) v Frankston Dolphins (6), Keysborough (8) v Doveton (9), Mordialloc (5) v Hampton Park (1), Chelsea Heights (3) v Caulfield Bears (7), Highett (4) v Endeavour Hills (10).
