SKOB have jumped to the top of the tree and remain the only unbeaten team in Premier Division after five rounds. It's still very early on in the season but on Saturday, SKOB faced their sternest test to date and passed with flying colours, despite being two men short for most of the afternoon. Elsewhere the Under 19 Premier team kept their winning streak going whilst the Div 4's finally broke through for their first win of the season. The Ressies, Academy, U19 Div 2 and Saints Green found better opponents on the day and all went under whilst the Saints Gold and Blue (and our Masters) had a week off.
Straight to the main game and it was a picture perfect day for football at VAFA HQ. You couldn't ask for better conditions with the sting out of the ground and the sun shining brightly all afternoon. There was little breeze to speak of, although it's worth noting in the Seniors that 17 of the 22 goals scored for the match were to the Glenhuntly Rd end of the ground. It was to this end that SKOB headed in the first term and they made the most of their scoring opportunities. Xavs were looking to rack up possessions, denying SKOB the football and restricting them of any opportunities to break. Despite this, both teams had equal scoring shots in the first quarter, but it was SKOB who utilised it better shooting 3 straight to 3 straight behinds. Stung into action, Xavs responded and had the better of it in the second quarter, and this time it was SKOB who had the wayward kicking. Injuries to two key players for SKOB saw them down a couple of rotations for the remainder of the match and there were concerns they might struggle to run out the game on the wide expanse of Elsternwick. At half time there was just a goal in it, but SKOB raised their intensity in the third term and pulled right away from Xavs. Booting 4 quick fire goals through the middle of the third, the margin started to extend. Xavs hit back but SKOB managed some late goals to give them a 31 point buffer at the last change. With reserves low on the bench it was going to be tough in the final quarter, but SKOB held out bravely and despite a late flurry from Xavs they came away with a terrific 10 point win against a very good opponent.
Josh Tynan was given the nod from Maxy Lynch for best afield, with Sam Cameron, Cal Matheson, Bill Coates and Mitch Wallis all starring. Up forward Shaun Kennedy was again a thorn in the opposition's side with 4 goals whilst young Jack Palmer impressed again, booting 3 goals in just his third game at Senior level. Next week SKOB will take on last year's grand finalists Old Brighton in a huge game at TH King.
In the Reserves, SKOB were holding their own for three quarters against a very strong Old Xavs team, who then put the foot down in the final quarter and ran away with a big win. Andy Clough's boys battled hard but a 5 goal to zip last stanza had them licking their wounds. Nick French was voted best with Christian Woolrich, Tommy Pirola, Ethan Beer, Luke Mazzeo and Hamish Serpell giving their all. Our Academy team also had their hands full taking on Old Xavs away. After a promising start, SKOB conceded 5 goals in the second quarter and despite managing to even things out from there were never able to pin back the margin going down by 17 points. Despite the result, the coaches were very happy with the effort particularly from big Darcy Grace, Sam Doyle, Oli Phillips, Ethan Boal, Harry "hard at it" Mulcahy and James Ritchie.
In the Under 19's, our Premier team had a resounding win over De La Salle at TH King. Things were neck and neck at quarter time, but SKOB lifted from there and drew away from De La, kicking 12 goals to 5 from that point onwards. Cooper Chaffey, Tom Feehan, Pat Carracher (4 goals), Will Pfeiffer and Andrew Butler were the best of a very strong team performance. Our Div 2 team suffered defeat at the hands of Old McKinnon/Glen Eira. The clash pitted 2nd against 3rd, but the visitors were too good for SKOB despite the best efforts of Liam Hepburn, Henry James, Angus Kerr, Josh Bayley, Aidan Leiner and Matt Carter. They now slip to third on the table having dropped games to the two teams above them. They'll look to bounce back strongly next week.
Our Saints mostly had the weekend off with the Gold and Blue enjoying a bye. The focus shifted to the Green Machine who were over at Victoria Park in Kew to take on the Bears. The Greens must have started like a bear with a sore head as they were blanked in the first half, but after the restart they came out firing in the second half kicking 3 goals to 1 and keeping their opponents scoreless in the last quarter. Alas it wasn't quite enough and they went down. Better players were Anna Lewis, Ruby Atkin, Olivia Slifirski, Poppy Somerville, Gen Holden and Steph Taylor.
In the story of the round, our Div 4's broke through for their first win of the season. They have fought hard every week and never given in despite coming up against much stronger opposition. Last week they nearly tasted victory, going down by the merest of margins. Plenty of talk was had during the week and the determination to go one better was evident from the get go. The boys inched out of the blocks against Old McKinnon and had a small lead at the first break. The second term saw them get on top and in the Premiership quarter they blew the opposition away booting 8 goals. A HUGE win for the young side who will take tremendous encouragement from the effort into next week and beyond. It was truly a team performance but the standouts were Nelson Conwell, Jackson O'Malley - who booted 5 majors, Ben Mahony, Patty Shaw, Jack Hillyer (4 goals) and mighty Sam Mulcahy. Well done to all involved.
Home Game lunch - this Saturday - BOOK NOW
It's the Grand Final rematch this Saturday 20 May at TH King and EVERYONE is welcome. our Seniors have started 5-0 for the season and come up against Brighton who will be keen to bounce back from their first loss last weekend. This is a genuine top of the table clash and one not to be missed. Pre-match luncheon commences as our Reserves take the field at 11:40 with our Seniors at 2:00pm. We are expecting a great crowd to come down and support SKOB so make sure you lock your spot in at the table.
