SYDNEY AFL ROUND 16 - Flying Start for Demons May Shape Finals

This article originally published on RedAndWhiteOnline.

 

It was another weekend of glorious weather, with blue sky and sunshine keeping the grounds in good condition as the battle for the finals continued. The results for the weekend see four of the five Premier Division finals places wrapped up, and the last position in the finals close to being resolved.

 

The match of the round was at Ern Holmes Oval, where Pennant Hills took on North Shore. For Pennant Hills the equation was clear - win and the Demons would be assured of participating in their 6th straight finals campaign. For North Shore, a win would ensure they would still remain in control of their own finals destiny without relying on results in other games.

But after a first quarter in which Pennant Hills played precision football while North Shore were constantly second to the ball, the Bombers already looked to be on the ropes. The ball spent the early minutes camped on the Demons' forward line, but it took 7 minutes for Nick Campbell to intercept a defensive chip across the face of goal and open the scoring.

But that goal opened the floodgates. Matt Carey, with a diving slips catch mark in the pocket got the Demons' second. Brant Jack got on the board with a downfield free. Ben Beaston capitalised on a turnover to add another. The Demons' second downfield free set up Campbell. Some good vision from Kieran Wright found an unmarked Jay Lewis. Josh Cole got one back for the Bombers, but when a leading Alistair Richardson marked and goaled deep in time-on the Demons had set up an imposing 35-point quarter time lead.

North Shore coach Michael Hosking let fly with a blistering quarter time speech, and early in the second term it had the desired effect as the Bombers began to compete for the hard ball, tackling harder and manning up more effectively than their loose first quarter efforts. But the Bombers let themselves down badly in front of goals, with four set shots from inside 50 all going wide. And as the quarter went on, and the Bombers had failed to make any meaningful dent on the scoreboard margin, frustration began to flow. Against the run of play, Charlie Richardson moved forward to goal, and from the centre break the ball found Matt Carey for another. At half time the margin was 46 points, and the Demons looked safe.

For all the hard work the Bombers had done in the second term, they had lost the quarter. The third quarter was to be North Shore's best in general play, but they didn't do themselves any favours with their wasteful finishing in front of goal. Lachlan Pryor was playing a lone hand up forward, and caused the Demons some nervous moments during the quarter. At one stage the margin was back to 30 points, before late steadiers to Beaston and Campbell steadied the Pennant Hills' ship. North Shore kicked 3.8 for the quarter, many of the missed shots being kickable. But bad kicking is bad football, and on this occasion bad kicking may have cost North Shore any chance of launching an unlikely comeback.

Let off the hook, Pennant Hills were happy to play out time in the last quarter, and when the final siren sounded the scoreboard showed the Demons with a well deserved 39 point win. It was a win generated almost entirely during the first quarter, when the Demons consistently outran, out-tackled and out-kicked their opponents. And over the remainder of the game, whenever the Bombers threatened, Pennant Hills had the steadying goals to prevent any North Shore momentum from establishing itself.

 Nick Campbell kicked 4 for Pennant Hills, while Damian Dell'Aquila and second-gamer Jack Schwarze were also prominent. The result guarantees that Pennant Hills will be taking part in this year's finals, keeping alive their chances of taking back-to-back premierships in Premier Division for the first time in the club's illustrious history. For North Shore, Lachlan Pryor kicked 4 and was easily their best, while Daniel Dickerson played a solid game. The Bombers will need to win their last two games and are depending on other results to qualify. For the last four seasons, the team that has lost the Pennant Hills v North Shore game at Ern Holmes Oval has gone on to win the premiership, but it would take a brave pundit indeed to predict it would happen again this year.

Click here to see Harboursport's photo gallery from this match.

Campbelltown moved just one win short of qualifying for playoff action when the Blues recorded a 16-point win over Wollongong at Monarch. On the long Monarch ground, goals were hard to come by for both sides; but the Blues kicked enough goals at crucial times to hold out the presistent Lions. The Blues won every quarter to lock Wollongong out of any chance of a comeback, but the result remained close enough to keep the Lions' hopes alive until the closing stages of the match. Chris Lees kicked 3 goals for the Blues, while Owen Love and Mark Edwins were among their best. For the Lions, Adam McConnochie and Ken Ewen-Chappel were again solid contributors.

 

With Pennant Hills winning, UNSW-ES needed a win in their game against Wests at the Village Green to remain in the double-chance position on the ladder. And after an even first quarter, the Bulldogs pulled ahead to pull off the win. The Bulldogs hit the front in the second term and led by 10 points at half time, and extended their advantage during the premiership quarter with a 6 goals to 1 burst. The final margin was 49 points, the result keeping UNSW-ES in third place; although the race for the double-chance in the finals is far from decided. Brad Abbott kicked 6 for the Bulldogs and Ryan Underwood 3, while Underwood and Kieran Emery were key players in the Bulldogs' performance. For Wests, Mark Withers kicked 3 and was their best, while Joel Minichiello was also a solid performer.

 

With Wests going down to UNSW-ES; East Coast Eagles wrapped up the minor premiership, and with it a week off at the start of the finals, when the Eagles were 98 points too good for St George at Olds Park. After leading by 14 points at the first change, the Eagles stepped up the pressure in the second term with 7 goals to 1, followed by 6 unanswered goals in the third term. Gus Seebeck was again an unstoppable presence at full forward for the Eagles with 8 goals to bring his season tally to 93; while Ben Rogers was the perfect support act with a bag of 5. Shane Ryan and Michael Johnston were among the Eagles' best. St George were well served by Anthony Cuthbert and Shaun Wicken.

 

Sydney Uni kept their finals hopes alive with a 32-point win over Balmain at Drummoyne Oval. The Dockers put up a much-improved performance and gave the Students some nervous moments, but the Students had enough in reserve after establishing a break in the second quarter, when their 6 goals to 2 extended the half time lead to 29 points; and although the Dockers battled hard they were unable to make any impact on the deficit. Andrew Kraefft was in strong form up forward for 5 for the Students, and Mark Egan kicked 3; while Ben Mankarious and Kraefft were among their best. Markus Bujch  kicked 4 goals for Balmain and Nick O'Brien 3, with Daniel Napper and O'Brien being among the best for Balmain.

 

After the round of football, East Coast have the minor premiership wrapped up. Pennant Hills will need to win more games than UNSW-ES in the last 2 rounds to qualify for the double-chance, otherwise the Bulldogs will retain a top-3 berth. Campbelltown will need to win either of their last 2 matches to make the final 5, should they drop both then Sydney Uni or North Shore would need to win both their final 2 matches to qualify for playoff action.

And around the divisions, if the final ladders were to stay as they currently are; then only Balmain, Camden and St Ignatius would not have at least one of their teams in the finals. The divisional structure implemented this year could well see a bigger variety of teams involved in finals action than had previously been the case and more clubs than ever before showing interest, and bringing support, to the finals matches.

 

Pennant Hills   7.1   9.2   12.8   14.11 (95)

North Shore   1.2   1.6   4.14   7.14 (56)

Goals : Pennant Hills - N Campbell 4, B Jack 2, M Carey 2, B Beaston 2, A Richardson, J Low, C Richardson, J Lewis. North Shore - L Pryor 4, B Fitzgerald, J Cole, J Brain.

Best : Pennant Hills - D Dell'Aquila, N Campbell, J Schwarze, B Jack, M Aitken, M Carey. North Shore - L Pryor, D Dickerson, M Wilson, B Fitzgerald, J Brain, J Russell-Jones.

At Ern Holmes Oval, Saturday 8th August 2009.

Campbelltown   2.3   6.6   8.8   11.9 (75)

Wollongong   1.2   5.4   6.9   8.11 (59)

Goals : Campbelltown - C Lees 3, L Coughlan 2, O Love 2, T Wright, M Edwins, B Yakimov, A Sneddon. Wollongong - K Ewen-Chappel 2, C Wells, T Bartlett, A McConnochie, D McClure, T Heath, J Weavers.

Best : Campbelltown - O Love, M Edwins, D Chivas, C Lees, J Brazill, F Brown. Wollongong - A McConnochie, K Ewen-Chappel, D Goodley, M Toussis, J Weavers, J Mahony.

At Monarch Oval, Saturday 8th August 2009.

 

Uni NSW-Eastern Suburbs   2.1   7.4   13.8   18.9 (117)

Western Suburbs   3.2   5.6   6.7   10.8 (68)

Goals : UNSW-ES - B Abbott 6, R Underwood 3, J Bradfield 2, K Emery 2, S Pech, J Coulloupas, L Lavery, S Rutland, M O'Regan. Wests - M Withers 3, A Eurell 2, M Eurell, B Mumme, B Lafferty, D Williams, D Clout.

Best : UNSW-ES - R Underwood, K Emery, T Atallah, S Rutland, D Ward, A Henderson. Wests - M Withers, J Minichiello, B Mumme, L Roehrig, M Linsen, A Eurell.

At Village Green, Saturday 8th August 2009.

 

East Coast Eagles   5.2   12.4   18.9   22.13 (145)

St George   3.0   4.1   4.3   7.5 (47)

Goals : East Coast - G Seebeck 8, B Rogers 5, M Skuse 2, B Physick, B Ure, G Garner, M Johnston, M Sankey, S Ryan, J Dimery. St George - C Windle 2, T Addison, S Wilsen, N Charlwood, J Cooper, D Carey.

Best : East Coast - S Ryan, G Seebeck, M Johnston, B Rogers, L Stanford, S Merkel. St George - A Cuthbert, S Wicken, S Richmond, D Carey, D Donohue, A Buttling.

At Olds Park, Saturday 8th August 2009.

 

Sydney University   4.1   10.2   14.3   17.11 (113)

Balmain Dockers   3.1   5.3   8.8   12.9 (81)

Goals : Sydney Uni - A Kraefft 5, M Egan 3, B Mankarious 2, G Stevens, D Archer, C Clarebrough, T Ley, T Barton, S Crichton, M Killicoat. Balmain - M Bujch 4, N O'Brien 3, J Britton 2, J Dickens, D Turner, N Todd.

Best : Sydney Uni - D Napper, N O'Brien, J Mobbs, N Todd, G Howe, D Turner. Balmain - B Mankarious, A Kraefft, G Stevens, A Everett, N Barton, A Turco.

At Drummoyne Oval, Sunday 9th August 2009.

 

 

First Division:

Pennant Hills 18.11 (119) d North Shore 3.7 (25)

East Coast Eagles 23.16 (154) d St George 2.5 (17)

UNSW-ES 10.23 (83) d Western Suburbs 5.9 (39)

Manly-Warringah 21.15 (141) d Wollongong 1.10 (16)

UTS 12.5 (77) d Sydney Uni 9.9 (63)

Ladder - UTS (64, 243.25%), Manly-Warringah (52, 193.41%), East Coast (44, 150.86%), UNSW-ES (44, 126.23%), Sydney Uni (36, 150.28%), Pennant Hills (24, 101.36%), Western Suburbs (18, 61.70%), Wollongong (18, 51.81%), North Shore (16, 69.58%), St George (4, 33.92%).

 

Second Division:

Campbelltown 6.10 (46) d Manly-Warringah 6.7 (43)

UTS 19.23 (137) d Camden 2.4 (16)

Southern Power 16.12 (108) d Holroyd-Parramatta 4.4 (28)

Macquarie Uni 18.21 (129) d East Coast Eagles 4.0 (24)

Sydney Uni 11.17 (83) d Balmain 9.15 (69)

Ladder - Southern Power (64, 457.87%), Macquarie Uni (60, 293.40%), UTS (44, 202.97%), Holroyd-Parramatta (44, 133.26%), Sydney Uni (36, 138.87%), Balmain (20, 78.87%), Manly-Warringah (16, 72.17%), Camden (16, 40.60%), East Coast (12, 36.49%), Campbelltown (8, 27.04%).

 

Third Division:

Southern Power 11.16 (82) d Holroyd-Parramatta 2.5 (17)

NorWest Jets 10.10 (70) d Macquarie Uni 7.14 (56)

Penrith 14.5 (89) d Pennant Hills 8.6 (54)

UNSW-ES 10.11 (71) d Moorebank Sports 6.10 (46)

Ladder (Match Ratio) - UNSW-ES (92.86, 282.16%), NorWest Jets (92.86, 261.74%), UTS (71.43, 177.50%), Macquarie Uni (57.14, 142.71%), Moorebank Sports (46.67, 99.71%), Pennant Hills (40, 81.49%), Penrith (28.57, 63.55%), Southern Power (21.43, 50.00%), Holroyd-Parramatta (0, 18.86%).

 

Fourth Division:

UTS d Camden - forfeit

UNSW-ES 18.24 (132) d Holroyd-Parramatta 0.6 (6)

NorWest Jets 11.8 (74) d Macquarie Uni 8.11 (59)

Manly-Warringah 12.12 (84) d Penrith 11.6 (72)

Sydney Uni 13.15 (83) d Moorebank Sports 3.1 (19)

Ladder - Sydney Uni (60, 310.64%), UNSW-ES (48, 178.03%), NorWest Jets (46, 263.14%), UTS (40, 174.19%), Manly-Warringah (40, 131.71%), Macquarie Uni (34, 80.46%), Moorebank Sports (24, 80.46%), Penrith (16, 57.67%), Holroyd-Parramatta (12, 34.33%), Camden (0, 13.17%).

 

Under 18s Premier:

Balmain 13.11 (89) d St Ignatius Riverview 8.4 (52)

North Shore 11.6 (72) d Pennant Hills 3.9 (27)

Wollongong 13.20 (98) d Campbelltown 3.2 (20)

St George 11.4 (70) drew East Coast Eagles 11.4 (70)

UNSW-ES 8.21 (69) d Western Suburbs 5.7 (37)

Ladder (Match Ratio) - North Shore (87.5, 295.01%), East Coast (84.38, 217.39%), St George (78.13, 227.39%), Pennant Hills (68.75, 224.26%), Wollongong (68.75, 124.51%), UNSW-ES (34.38, 79.82%), Balmain (25, 43.97%), St Ignatius Riverview (20, 52.02%), Campbelltown (16.67, 38.98%), Western Suburbs (12.5, 30.10%).

 

Under 18s Challenge:

Southern Power 13.13 (91) d Holroyd-Parramatta 10.7 (67)

East Coast Eagles 9.12 (66) d Macquarie Uni 6.7 (43)

Penrith d Manly-Warringah - forfeit

Sydney Uni 14.10 (94) d Moorebank Sports 6.4 (40)

Ladder (Match Ratio) - Sydney Uni (92.86, 360.32%), Southern Power (85.71, 178.99%), Penrith (78.57, 228.09%), Moorebank Sports (60, 119.69%), Pennant Hills (57.14, 96.92%), East Coast (28.57, 84.59%), Macquarie Uni (21.43, 42.59%), Holroyd-Parramatta (14.29, 37.45%), Manly-Warringah (13.33, 36.01%).

 

THE RUN HOME:

Just two weeks to go till the finals. East Coast have wrapped up the minor premiership, and will get the week off in the first week of the finals.
Wests will get the double-chance and play in the qualifying final, unless they lose both their remaining games and UNSW-ES and Pennant Hills both win both their remaining games.

UNSW-ES will get the double-chance unless they lose more games than Pennant Hills in the last 2 rounds.

Pennant Hills, to get the double-chance, will need to win more games than UNSW-ES, or win both their remaining games while Wests lost both their remaining games. Otherwise they will play in the elimination final.

Campbelltown will make the top 5 unless they lose both their remaining games and either Sydney Uni or North Shore win both their remaining games.

Sydney Uni to make the top 5 need to win both their remaining games and Campbelltown lose both their remaining games.

North Shore to make the top 5 need to win both their remaining games, Campbelltown to lost both their remaining games and Sydney Uni to lose at least one of their remaining games.

 

The remaining games are:

East Coast Eagles (56, 201.67%) - UNSW-ES (Bruce Purser), Wollongong (North Dalton).

Western Suburbs (46, 152.92%) - Balmain (Drummoyne), Pennant Hills (Blacktown),

UNSW-ES (44, 125.47%) - East Coast (Bruce Purser), Sydney Uni (Sydney Uni No 1).

Pennant Hills (40, 139.53%) - St George (Olds), Wests (Blacktown).

Campbelltown (36, 86.37%) - North Shore (Gore Hill), St George (Olds).
Sydney University (28, 98.62%) - Wollongong (Sydney Uni No 1), UNSW-ES (Sydney Uni No 1).

North Shore (28, 86.06%) - Campbelltown (Gore Hill), Balmain (Gore Hill).

 

NEXT WEEK'S FIXTURES (Lurker's Kiss of Death in bold):

Saturday 15th August

Drummoyne Oval - Balmain v Western Suburbs (2:10pm)

Gore Hill Oval - North Shore v Campbelltown (2:10pm)

Sydney Uni No 1 Oval - Sydney University v Wollongong (2:10pm)

Bruce Purser Oval - East Coast v UNSW-ES (2:30pm)

Sunday 16th August

Olds Park - St George v Pennant Hills (2:10pm)

 

First Division:

Saturday 15th August

Sydney Uni No 1 Oval - Sydney University v Wollongong (12pm)

Bruce Purser Oval - East Coast Eagles v UNSW-ES (12pm)

Pittwater No 6 Oval - Manly-Warringah v North Shore (2:30pm)

Trumper Park - UTS v Western Suburbs (2:30pm)

Sunday 16th August

Olds Park - St George v Pennant Hills (12pm)

 

Second Division:

Saturday 15th August

Drummoyne Oval - Balmain v Camden (12pm)

Gore Hill Oval - Campbelltown v Holroyd-Parramatta (12pm)

Pittwater No 6 Oval - Manly-Warringah v Sydney University (12:30pm)

Trumper Park - UTS v East Coast Eagles (12:30pm)

Gwawley Oval - Southern Power v Macquarie Uni (2:10pm)

 

Third Division:

Saturday 15th August

Ern Holmes Oval - Pennant Hills v UNSW-ES (10:30am)

Trumper Park - UTS v NorWest Jets (10:30am)

Gwawley Oval - Southern Power v Macquarie Uni (12pm)

Blacktown Olympic Park - Penrith v Holroyd-Parramatta (2:10pm)

Moorebank Sports has the bye.

 

Fourth Division:

Saturday 15th August

Trumper Park - UTS v NorWest Jets (8:30am)

Pittwater No 6 Oval - Manly-Warringah v Sydney Uni (10:30am)

Blacktown Olympic Park - Penrith v Holroyd-Parramatta (12pm)

Village Green - UNSW-ES v Macquarie Uni (2pm)

Rosedale Oval - Moorebank Sports v Camden (2:10pm)

 

Under 18s Premier:

Friday 14th August

Alan Davidson Oval - Balmain v Western Suburbs (7pm)

Saturday 15th August

Gore Hill Oval - North Shore v Campbelltown (10am)

Bruce Purser Oval - East Coast Eagles v UNSW-ES (10:30am)

Sunday 16th August

Olds Park - St George v Pennant Hills (10am)

North Dalton Oval - Wollongong v St Ignatius Riverview (12pm)

 

Under 18s Challenge:

Saturday 15th August

Bruce Purser Oval - East Coast Eagles v Pennant Hills (8:30am)

Pittwater No 6 Oval - Manly-Warringah v Sydney Uni (8:30am)

Blacktown Olympic Park - Penrith v Holroyd-Parramatta (10am)

Gwawley Oval - Southern Power v Macquarie Uni (10am)

Moorebank Sports has the bye.