TWENTY-SIX teams made their first stand in the Northern Football Netball League competition across the weekend, and many made their first big statement of the season.
None were perhaps bigger than Whittlesea’s ambition to be the premiership favourite in division 2, recording a 30-point win over fellow expected premiership contender South Morang at the Whittlesea Showgrounds.
The Lions, under new coach Matthew Penn, looked to make a strong statement early as they kicked the first two goals.
But, driven by youngster Caden Allen, the Eagles hit back strongly, and took a one-point lead into the first change, 26-25, with Allen kicking three goals for the term.
As the half wore on, it looked as though Whittlesea would start to surge ahead as the Eagles really got its running handball game going. This resulted in three goals for the quarter, while South Morang managed one through Joshua Lansfield, with Whittlesea leading 47-35 at the main break.
It was Clayton McCartney who eventually broke the whole game open in the third term. He kicked the first goal of the quarter, before South Morang hit back with two goals to close the margin to five points.
But Whittlesea was not to be denied, and five goals in 13 minutes ensured the Eagles had the upper hand, including two to McCartney in red time, to extend the lead to 36 points at the final change, 87-51.
The last quarter was a struggle, with just three goals kicked, the Lions kicking two and Whittlesea, through Allen’s fifth, adding just one, but it was enough to see Whittlesea win 14.13 (97) to 9.13 (67).
For the Eagles, new recruit Bailey Robinson was in the thick of everything, as the reigning division 3 best and fairest dominated. Taidhg Bland, Tom Falls, Allen, Thomas Crowley and Deakin Tennant also impressed the watchful eye of coach Garry Ramsey.
The Lions were well-served by Tyrone Leonardis, Lansfield, Tyson Gresham, Alex Kirkopoulos, Teague Van Zwienen and Ben Peterson.
In division 3, Mernda needed three quarters to overcome Epping, kicking five goals to none in the last quarter to record a 30-point victory at Epping Recreation Reserve to regain the Patrick Chow Cup.
Epping had all the play early, and recorded the first goal, but Mernda slowly got into gear and kicked two of the last three goals of the term to lead 24-17 at the first change.
Both teams went goal-for-goal in the second term, but it remained an eight-point game at the main break, with Mernda resolute in leading 39-31.
The third quarter was Epping’s best as the youthful Blues slammed on four goals in a row to lead by as much as 14 points at one stage. But two late goals saw the lead whittled down to just one point at the final change as Epping held on to a 56-55 lead.
It was the youngsters who sparked the Demons, allowing them to hit the front early in the last term through Emile Gill-Haimowich, Jett Philips and Zach Ciacia, while best-on-ground Christian Evans sealed the deal as the Dees won 12.15 (87) to 8.9 (57).
Evans, Lachie Taylor, Nathan Baccega, James Sekulovski, Philips and Justin Spadorcia were all named in Mernda’s best.
Laurimar kicked 12 goals to one after quarter time to record a 78-point win over Watsonia at Laurimar Reserve.
It was revenge of sorts for the Power getting relegated at the hands of Watsonia in the final game of 2024, although it took until the third quarter to truly get going.
Once they did, however, Watsonia were overwhelmed by Laurimar’s method and forward line, with a seven-goal to one behind third quarter doing the trick as Laurimar won 15.12 (102) to 3.6 (24).
Noah Mooney relished getting the keys to the ruck with a best-on-ground performance, while Patrick Fitzgerald was the dominant key forward kicking six goals. Micah Vecchio, Jesse Donaldson, Stephen McCallum and Luke Wilson also performed strongly.
Netball grading games started for the lower grades last Friday night.
Laurimar had a mixed night, winning three out of five games, while South Morang managed one win from four games. Whittlesea lost both of its grading games.
The premier divisions begin this Friday, with Whittlesea 1 facing a tough task against reigning premier North Heidelberg in division 1, while South Morang 1 takes on Whittlesea 2 in division 3.
