BUNDOORA, VIC. (NFNL HQ). — The penultimate round of the Northern Football Netball League’s (NFNL) Division 2 has left the finals race still wide open after another weekend with some close-fought results.
Macleod vs OId Paradians
The match of the round was out at De Winton Reserve where Macleod got a nail-biting three-point win over Old Paradians.
It seemed that the Kangaroos were cruising to an easy victory, being ahead by 37 points at three-quarter time and kicking the first goal of the last quarter, pushing the margin to 43.
The Raiders then went on to kick the next six goals to bring it back to single figures; Macleod then got a settler, bringing it back to 15 in the 24th minute of the last quarter. Old Paradians kicked the last two of the game but ultimately fell three points short.
For the Roos, Patrick Martin and Jack Medley each kicked three goals, and the Raiders would have been happy with the fact they were able to keep star Kangaraoo forward Darcy Barden to just the one goal. Kobe Brandt (23 disposals), Jack Medley (19 disposals, eight clearances), Jordan Crelli (20 disposals) and Zac Hudson (16 disposals, eight clearances) were all in the best for Macleod.
Archie Jones kicked three, and Rufus Jones and Noah Whittle both kicked two goals for Old Paradians. Joshua Iacobaccio (32 disposals), Jack Nicolo (25 disposals, seven marks) and star ruck Connor McDonald (24 disposals, 14 clearances) all found themselves in the best as well.
The fourth-placed Raiders are on 36 points and face sixth-placed Fitzroy Stars on 34 points this week and Macleod are wedged between also on 34 but with the far superior percentage to the Stars.
The Roos face South Morang in Round 18, which will be a tricky matchup with the Lions being on top of the ladder. If the Roos win, they’re in, but if they lose and the Stars or Whittlesea get up, then Macleod’s season will be over, so it really is all to play for.
Fitzroy Stars vs St Mary’s
In another cracking matchup, it was the Stars who got a massive win to keep their season alive. Unlike their match in Round 16 where they kicked 6.14, this week they managed to put up a score of 16.4-100 to 12.14-86.
Mingara Clark and Matthew Williamson both slotted four goals for the Stars – Kanoa McGrath and Patrick Farrant added three as well.
The Stars were a goal down at half-time but managed to slot six goals to three in the third term to grab a 13-point lead going into the final change.
Kain Proctor (34 disposals, ten clearances, one goal) and Farrant (27 disposals, three goals) showed their class when it mattered, with both being named in the best.
For the Burra’ it was last quarter inaccuracy which was their demise. They were well and truly in the match, but kicked 1.7 in the last quarter to 2.2 for the Stars, if that scoreline had a bit more accuracy, the end result may have been different.
The result leaves the Stars with a mini elimination final in Round 18 against Old Paradians; if the Stars win, they will leapfrog the Raiders and guarantee a finals spot, finishing fourth or fifth pending other results. But a loss would see their season come to an end.
St Mary’s could end the season in first, second or third; to finish first they would need to win, have South Morang and Northcote Park both lose and also make up 2.5 percent on South Morang. It is a tall order but not within the realm of possibility based on how tight this season has been.
Tom Eames (three goals) and Wil Ryan (two goals) were the only multiple goal scorers on the day for the ‘Burra. Josh Carelli (29 disposals, five clearances, one goal) and Will Dean (25 disposals, 12 clearances, one goal) were busy across the afternoon.
Whittlesea vs Northcote Park
Whittlesea claimed a huge win over Northcote Park to keep their season alive. A low-scoring, tight first quarter had the Eagles leading 10-9 at the first change; from that point on they seemed to be full steam ahead. The home side extended their margin in every quarter and ended up being 53-point victors, with a scoreline of 13.18 it could have been more.
Caden Allen kicked two goals to take his season tally to 35. Zane Anderson, Justin Chambers-Jones and Bailey Robinson each slotted two majors. Bailey Robinson and Mitchell Andrews were the top possession winners for the Eagles with 24 touches apiece.
On the other side of the field, Northcote Park could only muster up six goals for the day; Michael Amad and Jaymes Tragakis both kicked two, with Amad’s total moving to 37 for the season; he will be very important for the Cougars come finals time. Jordan Perry (35 disposals, six clearances) and Matt Perry (32 disposals, seven clearances) were the dominant midfielders on the ground.
In Round 15, the Cougars had a very important win over St Mary’s, but since then they have lost two in a row by heavy margins, and will hope to turn their form around in Round 18.
The Eagles currently sit in seventh on 32 points; their most likely path to finals would see them getting a big win over St Mary’s at Whatmough Park, and then both Macleod and Fitzroy Stars would need to lose their matches. There is also a scenario with Whittlesea winning, Macleod losing, and Fitzroy Stars winning over Old Paradians; the Eagles and the Raiders would both finish on 36 points, but the Raiders at the moment are ahead by 6.94 percent so the Eagles would need to make that up.
The Cougars’ chances at top spot are still alive; they would need to get past the Eagles, have South Morang lose, and hope that St Mary’s does not make up the 3.11 per cent lead which the Cougars have.
South Morang vs Panton Hill
South Morang got the job done against Panton Hill, and with other results falling their way, found themselves atop MC Labour Division 2 by the end of Saturday’s matches. The Redbacks’ chances of survival have officially come to an end, and they will be relegated for 2027.
The Lions did the damage in the first half, breaking away to a 33-point lead by half-time.
The second half was much more even, with the final margin only ending up at 35 points. Ben Peterson was the pick of the bunch up forward, slotting five goals and was supported by Jesse John Christidis, Liam Jolly and Kobe Van Zwienen who all kicked two. Tyson Gresham (35 disposals), Bailey Brown (17 disposals, six clearances) and Nathan Stefanile (17 disposals, nine clearances) were a few names who found themselves in the best.
For the Redbacks, Thomas Blake (four goals), Paul Vavlitis (three goals) and Nicholas Parks (two goals) were the multiple goal scorers. Hotak Akram, Jesse Callaway, Riley Livingstone and Ben Donohue were named in the best alongside Blake and Vavlitis.
The equation for South Morang is all in front of them: win against Macleod and they are the minor premiers and give themselves the bye in the first week of finals. The minor premier is also placed straight into Qualifying Final 2, with the winner of that being launched straight into the Grand Final. Now is the perfect time for the Lions to be hitting form.
For Panton Hill, their loss in Round 17 has them now eight points behind Thomastown, so they will be heading to Heidelberg Golf Club Division 3 at the end of the season. They face Lower Plenty, whose finals hopes are over, so that will be a good matchup for both teams to have a chance to end the season on a high.
Thomastown vs Lower Plenty
Lastly, Thomastown secured their safety and will be playing Division 2 football once again next season. Whilst for Lower Plenty, their slim finals chances have come to an end following the defeat.
Both teams kicked inaccurately, with Thomastown going 8.19 and Lower Plenty going 6.12. It was Thomastown who had the slender five-point lead at quarter time. Then Lower Plenty looked to show some dominance in the second, kicking 3.7 to just two behinds from Thomastown, and opening up an 18-point lead at the main break.
Then it was Thomastown who really dominated the second half, kicking 5.12 to Lower Plenty’s 0.5 to end up 19-point winners at the final siren.
James Lucente (2 goals) was the only multiple goal scorer for Thomastown. Familiar names Lawrence Lo Piccolo (31 disposals, 14 tackles, ten clearances) and Youseph Dib (24 disposals, 11 clearances) found themselves in the best. For Lower Plenty, Flynn Davis was the only player with two goals, Matthew Lewis and Ciaran Porter were a couple of players in the best alongside Davis.
Thomastown won in Round 1, then went on to lose the next nine. But since that point have had a record of five wins and two losses, so they can hold their heads up high going into their final match of the season next week against Northcote Park.
For Lower Plenty, it has been a disappointing back half of the season, losing seven matches in a row to date, having been seven wins and three losses after Round 10.
An exciting Round 17 has set up a massive last round of the home and away season.
