PASCOE VALE v KEILOR
Saturday 2:15pm at Raeburn Reserve
PASCOE Vale will be hoping it can maintain its undefeated home record at Raeburn Reserve this weekend.
But Keilor itself is undefeated and has not looked like losing in recent weeks.
The Blues welcomed Dean Galea back into the line-up last week and the star forward kicked the first two goals of the game, which set the tone for the rest of the day at home to Strathmore.
It served as an ominous reminder of just how lethal Keilor can be forward of centre, so the challenge for Pascoe Vale here is to limit the supply and kick a big score the other way.
Many of the Panthers’ A-graders have stood tall in their recent run of four wins from five, and in last week’s 25-point win at Essendon Doutta Stars, forward duo Matthew Watson and Jacob Polizzi combined for six goals and were the two best players on the ground.
Liam Ogden also returned after missing Round 10 while Nick Mellington has been handy since returning from the VFL two weeks ago.
There’s no reason why we shouldn’t see Pascoe Vale at its best here and being at home will help its cause.
However, Keilor is rightly the favourite.
GREENVALE v ESSENDON DOUTTA STARS
Saturday 2:15pm at Greenvale Recreation Reserve
Greenvale remains inside the top four but its form has been slipping for several weeks, now.
Since pushing ladder leading Keilor to nine points at the start of June, the Jets’ scoring ability has gradually, but steadily declined and they have only won a single game in that time – an eight-point win over Avondale Heights.
Fabian Deluca’s form in the ruck has been solid, allowing Kurtis Sanajko to park himself inside forward 50 and combined with Jacob Thompson last week, the Jets did get five goals from their key forward combo.
But a lot of Greenvale’s recent success came on the back of its scoring power from midfield, which has now vanished.
Courtenay Dempsey was named but did not play last week and his absence has hurt Greenvale’s attacking structure, while Fort Caruso will be another handy inclusion when he returns from overseas.
As presently constructed, Greenvale is vulnerable and Essendon Doutta Stars is more than capable of winning this game.
Section Road suits Douttas’ outside game and if conditions hold up, expect Kyle Hardingham’s men to bring some flair and try to run the undermanned Jets off their legs.
Poor kicking cost the Stars against the Jets back in Round 3, so if getting a win this time around is as simple as correcting that, then the visitors should be feeling confident here.
AIRPORT WEST v MARIBYRNONG PARK
Saturday 2:15pm at Hansen Reserve
More than a month has now gone by since Airport West delivered a stellar performance to defeat Avondale Heights by 82 points.
Since that one and only win they have had this year, the Eagles have slipped back into some old habits, which is hurting them defensively.
Both Pascoe Vale and Essendon Doutta Stars have kicked 100-plus scores against Airport West in recent weeks and last week in what was admittedly a wind-affected game, Aberfeldie’s seven-goal first quarter blitz took the fizz out of the contest by quarter time.
The Eagles had trouble containing the star-studded Abers forward line, which doesn’t bode well here with Maribyrnong Park’s forwards finding form.
The Lions will win and probably win well if they get enough output from Jock Cornell, James Breust, Brandon Ryan, Jordan Davey and Panayioti Kokkinakis.
Through midfield, Maribyrnong Park can be just as dangerous, with Robert Ball, George Abboud and John McKenzie all capable of hitting the scoreboard as well.
If Airport West can’t find a way to lock Maribyrnong Park’s playmakers down and turn this into a scrap, then the Eagles are little chance of getting up.
STRATHMORE v GLENROY
Saturday 2:15pm at Lebanon Reserve
Last week showed us what the best of Glenroy actually looks like.
Both Lachie Ronaldson and Judd Brewster proved hard to stop up forward against Avondale Heights while Travis Dulic, Adam Del Busso and Josh Trembearth all impacted the game as well.
Strathmore Community Bank Premier Division often comes down to cattle and star power.
If you lack one, then you’d better hope you have the other.
Those five names are arguably Glenroy’s best players and the only name missing from that list is the suspended Matt Walker.
The more impact Glenroy’s top-end can have, the better their scoring will get – which has been the major downfall this year.
Strathmore may serve as an ideal opponent this weekend.
The Mores were poor at Keilor last week, only scoring four goals for the day – two of which were free kick and 50-metre-penalty gifts.
If Glenroy coach Ross Terranova can find the right match-ups for Josh Helliwell and Shane Foulds, then the Roys might not need to kick a big score to win.
ABERFELDIE v AVONDALE HEIGHTS
Saturday 2:15pm at Clifton Park
Aberfeldie is undefeated at Clifton Park this season and no one has really come that close to taking points off the premiers on their home deck.
Last week Airport West had virtually no chance as Aberfeldie welcomed six premiership stars back into their 22.
There could still be more to come as finals creep closer, so the upside is big for Adam Potter’s men.
Last week’s blistering first quarter will have filled Aberfeldie with some confidence and may have helped them re-capture their premiership spark, especially with Kyle Reimers, Jayden Foster, Josh Pound and now Daniel Thompson all firing in front of the sticks.
Thompson’s ability to play a key position role at either end of the ground is a powerful new weapon up Potter’s sleeve and if he keeps kicking bags, then Aberfeldie won’t be dropping many more games in pursuit of their three-peat of flags.
Looking down the list, it’s hard to pinpoint where Avondale Heights can find an individual advantage around the ground.
The Robb twins are a very dangerous small forward combo who could cause trouble and Mathew Cravino has been in some vintage form since returning to the Heights’ side as well.
Reimers and Foster combined for 12 goals when these two last met on ANZAC Day at Canning Reserve and the final margin that day was 59 points.
That’s probably a fair indication of where both clubs are at heading into this one.
