By JULIA MONTESANO
Airport West 15.10-100 def. by Hillside 14.17-101
THE addition of Rex Taylor into the Airport West side was a much-needed one after suffering a 28-point loss to Glenroy before their two-week break.
The Eagles took a convincing 22-point lead into the main break, looking to hand Hillside their fourth consecutive loss.
But the Sharks made a spirited comeback in the third quarter, booting five goals to one.
This took the margin to just two points, leaving supporters on the edge of their seats.
Hillside went into the last quarter with the momentum, but couldn’t capitalise on their opportunities as they kicked three goals and five behinds.
Rex Taylor was prolific for the Eagles, booting five goals for the day, including two crucial majors in the last quarter.
Hillside’s Brandon Coletta also booted five majors, continuing his wonderful form in front of goal.
This was just enough for the Sharks to scrape over the line at Hansen Reserve.
Tullamarine 8.10-58 def. Oak Park 8.2-50
Oak Park put in their biggest fight of their season against the Demons, looking to secure their fourth win of the year.
It was another low-scoring game for Tullamarine, but that didn’t worry Caleb Harward, who kicked three goals for the day at Leo Dineen Reserve.
The Demons looked set to seal a comfortable win, after kicking six goals to the Kangaroos’ three in the first half.
But in the second half, the Kangaroos outscored Tullamarine with five goals to two, and were assisted by three majors from forward, Dean Clare.
Oak Park’s accuracy kept them in the game for the whole day - remarkably only conceding two behinds for the match.
But it was Tullamarine’s persistence that got them over the line… and over Airport West on the ladder.
The Demons now sit second on the table and will have the Essendon Ford Division 1 flag in their sights.
Hadfield 2.4-16 def. by Glenroy 39.25-259
With Daniel Kerr suiting up for the Hawks, there was a glimmer of hope going into the game for a troubled Hadfield outfit.
But Glenroy shut down that hope immediately, starting off the game with an 11-goal first quarter.
By half time, the lead had already blown out beyond the century mark, with the top-of-the-table side looking to boost their percentage in a big way.
In the second half, Glenroy’s Luke Capuano started to hit his straps, booting six goals for the day, with most of them coming in the second half.
It was also a big day for the Walkers, as Jayden contributed a whopping eight goals while Matt helped out with plenty of dash across the ground and precise goal assists.
Daniel Ferraro was named best-on-ground for the high-flying Roys, who comfortably sit at the top of the ladder after a mammoth 242-point win over the bottom-of-the-table Hawks.
East Keilor 15.10-100 def. by Westmeadows 15.17-107
It was a seventh v eighth battle and with the match being played at Overland Reserve, East Keilor went into the match with all the belief that they could cause an upset.
The Cougars started off the match convincingly, taking a 10-point lead into quarter time.
But by half time, the margin had swung the way of the Tigers, as they took a 10-point lead going into the main break.
The lead continued to change every quarter, with East Keilor taking a narrow five-point lead at three quarter time.
Despite five goals from Nick Grigg for the day, the Cougars couldn’t hold onto the lead and succumbed to a gutsy seven-point loss.
Westmeadows played gallant football, and were aided by a great game from star player, Mohamed Saad.
Saad, along with Mitch Church, kicked two goals for the day, and helped their side rise up to sixth on the ladder.
