THE Central Murray Football Netball League grand final shapes as the most enthralling match-up the league has to offer for its showcase day.
In one corner you have the immovable object that is Kerang. The Blues are playing their seventh consecutive grand final and have lost only two games in the past three years.
A win on Saturday would give Kerang its third straight flag and fifth since the formation of the CMFNL in 1997.
If the Saints get the job done it will be their second premiership since the 2004 merger that formed Tooleybuc Manangatang.
Crucially, the Saints appear set to welcome back Joel Cullen from a calf strain that has seen him miss the past fortnight.
Without Cullen at centre half-forward the Saints’ most potent weapon in their quest to beat the Blues, their tall department, is severely stretched.
Tooleybuc Manangatang probably has to win the contest in the air in its forward line with the Blues proving formidable at ground level.
Take Cullen out therefore, and a replacement is required. That replacement would most likely be Ryan O’Sullivan, nullifying the Saints’ other key advantage in the ruck.
To win, the Saints need O’Sullivan firing in the ruck with their on-ballers moving the ball quickly into attack and hitting targets including Cullen, Kayne McAlpine and Lee Cox.
If O’Sullivan does start in the ruck his first opponent will be either Mark Walter or Troy Davis.
McAlpine was too much for Swan Hill in the preliminary final, taking numerous marks and kicking four goals.
Should the ball come to ground at half-back, the Blues will rely on the clearance work of Josh Bray, Brandon Hayes, Brad Pay and Jon Murphy.
A crucial advantage for Kerang is Bray’s and Murphy’s ability to play tall and small.
Both sides have midfielders that can kick goals. Kerang’s Lance Picioane is tough as nails over the ball and looks classy going forward. So is Luke Cotchett.
Picioane will combine through the middle with Troy Coates, Ryan Gillingham, Cotchett and Pay.
For the Saints, the inclusion of Mitch Hough and Tom Pridgeon has been important, while Mick Dedini, Josh Stone and Frankie Robinson have all played key roles in a high-functioning midfield.
Both sides had some tough calls to make at selection last night.
That the Saints will welcome back Cullen if fit is a given. Who makes way is a more difficult call.
After playing 14 games in the seniors this season, Ben Jones played in the Saints’ reserves side last week. He will be keen to break back into the club’s first team.
The Blues’ starting 18 from the second semi-final seems unlikely to be changed, with one exception.
Assistant coach Travis Matheson didn’t play against Swan Hill.
His presence will be handy anywhere. He could start forward and he could spend time in the middle.
He will start on the ground with Jack Deviny probably going to the bench first.
Kobi Wilson, Jesse Clark, Greg Dickson, Blake Shay and Gregor Campbell appear set to fight out the remaining positions on the bench.
Wilson and Clark have been striving to break back into the team following injury this season. Clark had a knee reconstruction last year, while Wilson had a hip operation last December.
Campbell seems a long-shot to make the cut, although his effort to win senior selection on 11 occasions this year deserves to be noted.
Coates said the Blues’ had actively worked to create as versatile a side as it could in recent years.
He said the club considered its 2008/09 runners-up teams to be “one-trick ponies” in hindsight.
“We like to think we’ve got Plan B and Plan C now if things aren’t working,” he said.
“We say to our players be prepared to play anywhere and that makes us hard to match up on.”
Saints coach Daryl Powell said it was unlikely Tooleybuc Manangatang would use hard tags tomorrow.
“When we haven’t got the footy they just need to be aware of where their opponent is,” he said.
Powell said Brenton Chislett was an under-rated tap ruckman who would be used to relieve O’Sullivan if and when required.
“The on-ballers like him so much because he directs the footy at their feet. He’s very beneficial to us,” he said.
If anyone could upset Kerang it would be Tooleybuc Manangatang.
The task before them, though, is immense. The Blues’ versatility is their biggest strength.
If you see Livingston head in to defence, for example, you know the Blues’ are activating one of Coates’ B or C plans.
But you also know the Blues’ would make such a move with the utmost confidence.
It is a flexibility that all sides should seek to emulate. It is this strength that gives Kerang the ultimate edge.
TIP: Kerang by 32 pts.
