By Shane Fleming
WANDELLA v MURRABIT
WANDELLA will be in celebration mode ahead of tomorrow’s match against Murrabit – with the Bombers not only welcoming home their 2011 and 2012 premiership sides, but also celebrating a remarkable achievement by one of their favourite sons.
Five-time premiership player and dual club Best & Fairest Ryan Lancaster will play his 400th senior game in the famous red and black tomorrow afternoon – a fantastic effort for one of the most loyal players ever to play in the Golden Rivers Football Netball League.
While Wandella will be hoping to celebrate the day with a win, it will be the much-improved Murrabit who will be hoping to spoil the party. The Blues have managed to put together some solid games in recent weeks – notwithstanding their heavy loss at the hands of the all-conquering Nullawil last Saturday.
The improvement from their midfield has certainly correlated with their turn around in form, with Marc O’Neill and Nathan O’Toole finally getting some assistance with the additions of Cameron Hall and Dustin Blake, while Brayden Turvey and Tom Copland have also improved as the season has progressed.
While they were found wanting against the Maroons last weekend, they aren’t the first side to have that fate befall them – and while tomorrow’s match against the Bombers will be a step down, it will be no less of a challenge through the middle.
Mitch Treacy has returned from his ACL in amazing form and has given the Bombers’ engine room a new lease on life. His inclusion has given added support to Kane Timmins, Russell Rich, Darren Rushton, Mitch Collins and Bradley Delamare.
While Wandella will lose the services of Matt Wilkinson, they should have more than enough weapons at their disposal to bring down the Blues.
Tip – Wandella to win by 24 points.
MACORNA v MOULAMEIN
MACORNA’S season comes to a head this weekend, with the Tigers’ finals hopes set to go on the line when they host Moulamein tomorrow afternoon.
There are no second chances for Jaydon Stiles’ men now, with fifth-placed Macorna sitting two games and percentage behind the fourth-placed Swans and at risk of missing the finals yet again. A loss tomorrow would make it nigh on impossible for the Tigers to claim the required wins to leap frog the Swans – especially with matches against Nullawil and Quambatook still to come.
Moulamein’s scenario is just as simple – win, and the top four and then locked away – lose, and the season is back on. Despite sitting two games clear of the Tigers, tomorrow still looms as a significant challenge for the Swans, whose form has been inconsistent at best over the past month. Losses to Quambatook and Wandella have been interspersed with hard-fought wins against Murrabit and Ultima – both games that they would have expected to win with a bit more comfort.
Tomorrow’s match looms as a battle of the forward lines, with both teams possessing a number of attacking weapons deep in attack. The return of Josh Flight from suspension gave the Swans forward line a different look, with the key forward kicking three goals in his return. Beau Duggan-Hulands had stepped up in Flight’s absence and has been holding the Moulamein forward half together of late and if the pair can start to form a solid combination, along with Luke Smailes and Daniel Aarsman, then anything is possible for the visitors.
Alternatively, Macorna’s forward line is looking more dangerous since the recruitment of Troy Parker. Parker joins an already strong attacking half for the Tigers, with Jaydon Stiles, Josh Walters and Chris Wilson all capable of kicking big bags of goals.
The one benefit Macorna have is the ability to swing Lachlan Ritchie into defence to play on one of Flight or Duggan-Hulands to nullify their impact – and it might be this move that gets the Tigers over the line in an upset.
Tip – Macorna to win by 5 points.
QUAMBATOOK v ULTIMA
ULTIMA will be full of confidence following their second win of the season last Saturday – that is until they face off against one of the form teams of the Golden Rivers in Quambatook tomorrow afternoon.
The Roos held on for a tough four-point win against the Lions, but can expect a far tougher challenge this weekend against the Saints, who will be desperate to continue their winning form heading into their club’s last ever finals series and claim their fifth straight victory.
Making that task slightly easier will be the returns of ruckman Michael Bradbury and joint coach Gregor Knight, who will return to bolster an already potent midfield for Quamby. The only negative for the home side will be the omission of Jarred Schlitz, with the key defender set to miss through injury.
The Roos on the other hand have their own injury and illness concerns ahead of tomorrow’s match, with the club set to look to the future by promoting a number of their under 17.5 players for the experience of senior footy.
The challenge for Ultima will be matching it with the Saints’ star-studded midfield, especially in the absence of their own key on-baller Mitch Seton-Stewart. Sean O’Reilly has been a great pick-up this season and not only wins plenty of the ball but uses it well, while Bradd Gleeson and Jack Gervasi provide great support. The big issue is the Roos’ depth and how quickly their quality will fall away when matched against the Saints’ strong engine room.
Ricky Wild has been in sensational form this season, while Tobie Cameron, Bradley Organ, Dylan Pascoe and Knight, among many others, are all capable of influencing a match out of the middle and around the stoppages.
With Quambatook still with plenty to play for – and Ultima’s injury and illness crisis about to reach its peak – it’s hard to see anything other than a comfortable Saints victory.
Tip – Quambatook to win by 50 points.
HAY v NULLAWIL
HAY will host Nullawil tomorrow afternoon, in a game that shapes as a battle between the Golden Rivers’ David and Goliath.
There isn’t much that hasn’t been said or written about the powerful Maroons outfit this season – and while they won’t want to get complacent against a Lions team that is a three to four goal better side at home, tomorrow’s match still looks like mission impossible for Hay.
The Lions would be disappointed with their four-point loss to Ultima last Saturday – after appearing to have the game in hand midway through the third term, only to allow the Roos to kick four of the last six goals and pinch the win.
Their round 5 encounter resulted in a 121-point win to Nullawil, with the Maroons midfield running amok. Nullawil went into that game without either of Andrew Oberdorfer or Mitch Farmer – and while Oberdorfer has missed the past few weeks, Farmer has returned in ominous form, having kicked 29 goals from his four games since returning from injury.
His availability will just add an extra layer of difficulty for the home side, who not only need to find a way to quell his influence up forward, but also get their hands on the ball out of the middle and stop the Maroons outside run and carry.
While the Lions will be hoping for improvement on their round 5 encounter, the reality is tomorrow should still result in a relatively comfortable win to the visitors.
Tip – Nullawil to win by 80 points.
