BURNSIDE HEIGHTS v COBURG DISTRICTS
Saturday 2:15pm at Burnside Heights Recreation Reserve
TOP spot on the Strathmore Community Bank Division 2 ladder is up for grabs between Burnside Heights on Coburg Districts on Saturday.
It’s the kind of situation Coburg Districts has had some experience with over the years, but this is brand new territory for Burnside Heights.
The Bears have been outstanding to start 2019, with superstar forward Josh Covelli booting eight goals in each of his side’s solid wins over Jacana and Moonee Valley in the opening fortnight of the season.
But while he seems to get much of the credit, the reason the Bears have been so good is because of the marked improvement that has come from their midfield brigade.
We’ve seen the likes of Adam Sullivan, Anthony Fawcus and Stephen Kenrick, among others, all produce some very good footy in order to provide Covelli with the service he needs, and so far, both the Jaguars and Fog have failed to restrict the flow.
That’s the task for Chris Tankard and his Lions, who’ve been just as impressive in the two games they’ve played.
Matthew Vesnaver is equal-second on the Division 2 goal kicking table with 10 majors to his name and has proved difficult to stop for opposition defenders.
But the other major scoring threat comes from Coburg Districts’ potent midfield, which includes the ‘Two Toms’, Tom Lucin and Tom Gleeson.
Both need to maintain their good form here to ensure Covelli’s supply remains limited, otherwise the Bears will more than likely kick the bigger score.
NORTHERN SAINTS v MOONEE VALLEY
Saturday 2:15pm at Charles Mutton Reserve
This looms as an important game for two evenly-matched sides with finals aspirations.
Both the Northern Saints and Moonee Valley find themselves outside the top four and need to bank as many wins as they can in what is a much-improved division.
The Saints bounced back from their Round 1 loss to the Kangaroos nicely against Hadfield two weeks ago, booting 16.18-114 in a 27-point win that should probably have been even greater.
Tamer Abdallah’s class came to the fore with two goals in a best-on-ground display, while Zakaria Farah added four goals to his season tally of six.
But this is the Saints’ biggest test of the year so far and they’ll be running into a Moonee Valley outfit that is keen to make amends for a disappointing showing in its first game two weeks ago against the Bears.
Skipper Ned Wilson was the only mainstay missing from the Fog’s line-up as Burnside Heights kicked clear after halftime to hand the Valley a 20-point loss that many of us did not see coming.
But Josh Covelli’s eight-goal haul aside, things weren’t all that bad for those wearing black and white.
Former Northern Saint Rocky Ferraro booted four goals and fellow stars Cory McGrath (two goals) and Braden Padmore (one) combined for three more in good first-up individual performances.
The Saints don’t have a Covelli type inside their forward 50 and will need a good spread of goal kickers to get them over the line.
The exact same goes for Moonee Valley, so we’re left with a genuine coin flip to decide on a winner here.
HADFIELD v EAST SUNBURY
Saturday 2:15pm at Martin Reserve
The fact you could make a serious argument for Hadfield getting up in this game is testament to the vast overall improvement we’ve witnessed this year in Strathmore Community Bank Division 2.
The Hawks claimed last year’s wooden spoon by some distance after only winning a single game, but across their three meetings with the Thunder in 2018, the losing margin steadily decreased against a side that got within a kick of winning the premiership.
This is something coach Brett Pitts will be very well aware of and I wouldn’t be surprised if he makes sure his players know that in the lead-up to Saturday.
The Hawks have every right to be feeling somewhat confident after a really good Round 1 win over Keilor Park and a competitive showing against the Saints the following week.
Zac Polizzi (six goals) and Ben Pretty (one) have both started 2019 on a strong note and we’re still waiting for ex-Western Bulldog Brad Murphy to make his Hadfield debut as well.
With a settled line-up and coming off a two-week break, Hadfield should be feeling good about its prospects of beating an underwhelming East Sunbury side here.
In a huge Saturday night game against crosstown rival Sunbury Kangaroos, East Sunbury couldn’t fire a shot.
Granted, the Thunder was missing Tom Cree with a hip complaint, but that doesn’t excuse the lack of flow and competitiveness we saw at Eric Boardman Reserve.
If the Thunder can’t find significant improvement from its middle tier in particular, then they could be staring at a 0-3 start to the season.
The pressure’s for Glenn Hopkins’ men this weekend.
KEILOR PARK v JACANA
Saturday 2:15pm at Keilor Park Reserve
We often hear about one week being a long time in football.
Imagine sitting on a 171-point loss for three weeks before getting a chance to bounce back.
That’s the scenario that has faced Keilor Park since its one and only outing of the season way back on April 6 against Hadfield.
No one in their right mind is expecting the Devils to be in the finals conversation this year, given where they’ve come from just to get 22 players back out on the park, but even John Mangos will more than likely agree that conceding 29 goals in a single game of footy is unacceptable.
This week presents Keilor Park with a fresh chance to get a positive vibe back flowing through the club and given Jacana’s early-season form has been rather poor, the Devils should be looking for a vast improvement on the scoreboard this weekend.
The Jags arguably have the best player of the division at their disposal in Cameron Cloke, and yet they remain winless with a percentage of just 52.63.
Cloke booted six goals against Coburg Districts at Cole Reserve in Round 2, but there was nothing else to write home about following a disappointing 80-point loss.
On the evidence we’ve seen so far, the Jags are sorely missing Billy Morrison, Mick Evans and Justin Colliss in the centre square.
In both defeats they lost the midfield battle soundly and there’s currently far too much reliance on Cloke.
It is time Jacana’s support cast got its act together and this game presents an ideal opportunity to kick-start its 2019 campaign.
