SWAN HILL v WOORINEN
3SH CENTRAL MURRAY LIVE
BOTH Swan Hill and Woorinen will be aiming to return to the winners’ list when they clash at the Showgrounds.
Despite competitive performances against highly ranked opposition last weekend, both teams are coming off losses, with Swan Hill’s 34-point defeat to Balranald dropping them to seventh on the ladder after three-straight victories.
Woorinen will be no easier, with the Tigers smarting after their seven-point loss to premiership favourites Kerang in wet conditions last Saturday.
Making the Swans’ task even harder will be the loss of Jose Miliado, with the in-form midfielder-forward handed a one-match suspension during the week.
Miliado’s absence will take away one of the key talking points, with the former Tiger now missing the opportunity to play against the club in which he is a dual premiership player.
It will also put more pressure on the Swans midfield, and although there are plenty of quality options that can run through the middle, they will still have to contend with Josh Domaille, Jye Barry and Robbie Miller without one of their key playmakers.
Added to that pressure is the expected inclusion of Mitch Taylor to Woorinen’s back six, with the key defender likely to cause headaches for an undersized Swan Hill forward line that was missing full-forward Zach Mihocek last Saturday.
While the Swans aren’t without a chance of causing an upset, especially if Matthew Wade, Jarvis Keogh and Xavier Moloney can all impact the contest, Woorinen should have more than enough attacking weapons to record their fifth win of the season.
Tip – Woorinen to win by 17 points.
MALLEE EAGLES v TYNTYNDER
WHILE finals football appears to be an unlikely scenario for both clubs at this point, both the Mallee Eagles and Tyntynder will go into their match at Lalbert confident of turning their seasons around with a win.
Bulldogs coach Josh Stone is expected to return from injury, along with onballer Brock Storer, in a major boost to Tyntynder’s injury-hit side.
The Eagles were likely to regain both Braidon Bennett and Matthew Despott from injury, although this was to be offset by the loss of Brent Macleod, who strained a hamstring in last Saturday’s loss to the Cohuna Kangas.
Also in doubt for the home side is Harry Allen, with the former Jack Betts Medallist needing to pass a fitness test in order to take his place in the Eagles line-up.
Allen will leave a massive hole in the Eagles midfield which will be hard to fill, especially with his ability to win the contested ball around the stoppages, an area which has been somewhat of a concern for Tyntynder at times this season.
The other issue for the home side is who to send to Jason Eagle, who despite kicking just nine goals from his first three matches in 2023, which is well down on his 2022 average, has still threatened to take a game by the scruff of the neck.
If the Bulldogs midfield can give their spearhead plenty of opportunities to impact, it could be a long day, despite the Eagles being a traditionally hard team to beat on their home deck.
Tip – Tyntynder to win by four points.
TOOLEYBUC-MANANGATANG v BALRANALD
TOOLEYBUC-Manangatang will be aiming to claim their second win of the season, and the big scalp of Balranald.
That will be a lot easier said than done for a team that has shown glimpses of good football throughout the opening seven rounds, but just haven’t been able to string their best together for long enough.
Last Saturday was a perfect case in point, with the Saints starting and finishing their match against Tyntynder strongly, but a third-quarter lapse where they allowed the Bulldogs to pile on five of their nine goals ultimately cost them any chance of victory.
A similar lapse against Balranald could well spell disaster, with class players like Jydon and Matthew Neagle, Ethan Gant and Drew Lloyd capable of piling on plenty of pain – and quickly.
While the Saints have plenty of weapons at their disposal as well, including key forward Josh Williams and ruckman Tim Auckland, the biggest challenge will be in getting their hands on the ball first and negating Balranald’s midfield run off half-back.
Tip – Balranald to win by 34 points.
KERANG v KOONDROOK-BARHAM
IT’S fair to say a Koondrook-Barham victory against Kerang would result in the upset of the decade, and while anything is possible, the key measure for the Raiders tomorrow really needs to be their ability to remain competitive for four quarters against the reigning premiers.
With Koondrook-Barham yet to taste victory this season, and the Blues yet to taste defeat, there is really only one result expected, despite the Raiders showing signs of improvement in their 59-point loss to Lake Boga last Saturday.
Kerang will be without their coach Troy Coates, who will be rested after sitting out the second half against the Tigers last Saturday, while Ash Davis and Tom Dunham will also miss with shoulder injuries.
The news isn’t all bad for the undefeated Blues however, with premiership half-back Lachlan Ross set to play his first match of 2023 after recovering from injury, with Kerang slowly starting to put their best team together in an ominous sign for the rest of the competition.
Despite missing Brad Pay, Nick Lang and Tyson Clingan, the Blues midfield, led by Josh Nitschke, Ryan Gillingham and Sam Heavyside, should run amok against the Raiders and help themselves to another comfortable victory.
Tip – Kerang to win by 68 points.
