COHUNA v TYNTYNDER
THE finals hopes for one of the Cohuna Kangas or Tyntynder could come to an end when the two clubs meet in a must-win clash at Cohuna on Saturday afternoon.
Both clubs find themselves two wins and percentage behind the fifth-placed Tigers with just five games remaining, with a loss almost certain to extinguish the finals flame for either side.
On the other hand, a win could put either team back in the finals equation, with Tyntynder having a slightly easier final month of the season than the Kangas.
The Bulldogs were good against the reigning premiers last Saturday but just lacked class in the final quarter, with their propensity to just bomb the ball inside 50 playing into the hands of the Blues.
Regardless of that result, if Tyntynder can produce that sort of effort against the Kangas, who have turned their season around with three consecutive wins, then they will be right in the contest.
Will Lee and Jacob Mitchell are set to return for Cohuna, with Lee the perfect replacement for Brenton Conforti who is set for a stint on the sidelines after straining his hamstring last week.
The Bulldogs will also regain the services of key defender Patrick Crowe.
While both clubs’ defences will be bolstered by the inclusions, it’s in the midfield where this match is likely to be won and lost, with the head-to-head battle between Joel Helman and Roy George set to provide plenty of excitement for supporters.
Tip – Tyntynder to win by six points.
MALLEE EAGLES v TOOLEYBUC-MANANGATANG
ANOTHER match with finals implications will take place at Lalbert when the Mallee Eagles host Tooleybuc-Manangatang.
The Saints would be disappointed with their performance against Swan Hill last Saturday, with the 37-point loss dropping them a game and percentage behind Woorinen and Balranald in the race for the five.
Missing several key players, including Connor McDonald, Harrison Maher, Kai Kearns and Elliott Chalmers didn’t help, but it was Tooleybuc-Manangatang’s inability to find targets inside forward 50 that hurt them the most.
That problem is unlikely to change when they come up against one of the league’s best structured rebound defences, with the Eagles possessing intercept defenders of the calibre of Jayden Post, Zac O’Meara, Joe Halloran and Harry McGregor.
The Eagles are expected to be without Matthew Despott (hamstring) and Toby Sheahan (ankle), but will regain the services of ruckman Kieren Bourke and Jacob O’Meara, along with the senior debut of mid-season recruit Nathan Bisset.
Arriving from Geelong and District Football League club Thomson as a midfielder-forward, he has played the past two matches in the Eagles’ reserves.
Although Bisset isn’t expected to be the difference between a win and a loss, he will add even further depth and class to an already talented forward line, with the home side starting to look like a serious premiership threat the longer the season continues.
Tip – Mallee Eagles to win by 22 points.
SWAN HILL v WOORINEN
JOSE Miliado will be the big inclusion when Swan Hill hosts Woorinen, with the classy midfielder returning for the Swans just in time to take on his former club.
Miliado has played just one game in the past six matches due to a recurring hamstring injury but finally appears set to return having spent the past six weeks recovering after reinjuring it in the King’s Birthday loss to Tyntynder.
Although the Swans will lose talented youngster Lachlan Vrolijks from the team that defeated Tooleybuc-Manangatang last weekend, Cooper Angus is also a chance to return from a foot injury providing he passes an overnight fitness test.
Woorinen on the other hand will go in with an unchanged line-up, having upset ladder leaders NNW United last Saturday in a dominant defensive display from the Tigers.
Doug Beames and Matthew Gardner were both among Woorinen’s better players last Saturday and loom as key players again, along with William Collicoat who kicked six goals against the Demons.
Although the Swans have won their past two matches and appear to be a much more settled team in recent weeks with Luke Phelan, Jarvis Keogh and former Tiger Tom Isma in form, Woorinen deserve to go in as favourites.
Tip – Woorinen to win by 36 points.
NNW UNITED v KOONDROOK-BARHAM
NYAH-Nyah West United are expected to come out breathing fire when they host winless Koondrook-Barham after last Saturday’s disappointing loss to Woorinen.
It took the Demons until the final quarter to shake the Raiders on their way to a 46-point win in round 1, but since then the fortunes of both clubs have gone in separate directions, with the Demons sitting on top of the ladder and Koondrook-Barham bottom.
Unfortunately for the Raiders, their record doesn’t show just how competitive they have been in patches this season, but as with all young teams, finding that consistency for four quarters is proving the biggest challenge.
That test doesn’t look as though it will get any easier against the Demons, who will get Riley Daniels and Brayden Bigham back from suspension, with Lucas Iudica also a chance to return providing he is able to overcome an ankle injury in time to take on his former side.
After being held to just one goal against the Tigers, the Demons will be hoping for a bigger return from gun forward Brandyn Grenfell, who needs just two goals to become the first player to break the half-century mark in the Central Murray this season.
Tip – NNW United to win by 42 points.
