Colmont School’s board were investigating alternative sites more than 12 months before it publicly announced its intention to move the school from its White Street premises.
The Kilmore International School announced in April 2022 it would change its name to Colmont School to avoid having to pay a naming licence fee, and it would look for an alternative site to avoid paying rent to the owners of the buildings and land. The board were looking at land in Kilmore and Wallan to build a new school – the Wallan land is owned by Wally Mott, a board member at the school until April 2021.
Mr Mott, also owner of the Review and property developers Crystal Group, stood down from the board to avoid a conflict of interest. Crystal Group is developing land south of Wallan, named St Hilaire – an estate that will be home to more than 6000 residential lots.
The board registered alternative business names with the Australian Business Register in April 2021, including Hilaire International Grammar School and Mitchell International Grammar, in preparation for an impending move.
Ultimately the school board decided on the Colmont School Limited business name, and were yet to confirm a new site when the school went into administration.
Four other board members also resigned from the board since 2020.
The Age reported on Saturday that a whistleblower from The Kilmore International School had reported to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, ASIC, two years ago warning the school was at risk of financial collapse, and that high fees were being paid to companies controlled by the school’s founder Ray Wittmer. ASIC did not investigate.
Also in The Age’s article titled ‘Sucked dry: How a private school fell into financial ruin’ states it was not the first time the school’s commercial structure, with the state’s school regulator, the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority, reviewing what was paid to Mr Wittmer in 2012.
The article also states a former business manager at the school raised concerns about the school’s contractual history with Mr Wittmer and reported to the board prior to the pandemic that the school was facing significant financial losses if it didn’t remove itself from the contracts and leases.
AUGUST 6 marked 80 years since a Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Beaufighter crashed into Mt Disappointment.
A commemoration at Wandong Hall on Saturday remembered all airmen who lost their lives on the mountain between 1942 and 1953.
An RAAF memorial plaque was unveiled at the summit of the mountain on August 5 last year, however due to COVID-19 restrictions many relatives of the pilots who died were unable to attend the event.
The Friends of Disappointment and Wandong History Group contacted 44 relatives of eight airmen who lost their lives on the mountain between August 5, 1942 and July 21, 1953, with 37 attending Saturday’s event at Wandong Hall.
Dignitaries from the RAAF, Returned and Services League, RSL, and Federal Parliament were also in attendance.
Friends of Disappointment administrator Trevor Viénet said it was special to be able to invite relatives of the lost airmen to attend and remember.
“For the families, they’ve heard the stories from their parents about the loss of a brother or sister, and that’s been handed down,” he said.
“They’re honouring their memory on behalf of their families.”
On August 5, 1942, pilot officer Leslie Langusch and sergeant Norman Greasley died when their RAAF Beaufighter Mark 1C crashed on Mt Disappointment.
The plane had departed Richmond, NSW, en route to Laverton in Victoria, and after the aircraft failed to arrive within the flight endurance time, it was reported as missing.
Following an extensive search, the wreckage was located about 300 metres north of the summit of the mountain on August 8, 1942.
Relatives of both airmen from Queensland and Victoria attended Wandong Hall.
On May 25, 1944, two RAAF Vutlee Vengeance dive-bombers crashed into Mt Disappointment during a period of low cloud and fog on the mountain.
Pilot officer Ralph Erskine and flight sergeant John Hall, along with crew members sergeant Phillip West, flying officer Kenneth Wood, and corporal William Falahey all died on a ferry mission from Laverton to Bowen, Queensland after their original route closed, forcing them to fly directly over the Whittlesea township and eventually Mt Disappointment in poor weather conditions.
Relatives from Queensland and Victoria were in attendance on Saturday.
On July 21, 1953, trainee pilot Terence Hallinan lost his life when his RAAF Wirraway crashed into Mt Disappointment during a night-time training exercise.
Flying in a cross-country exercise that took him from Point Cook, to Cressy, Ballarat, Bacchus Marsh and then back to Point Cook, Mr Hallinan’s last radio contact reported his position as Bacchus Marsh, however receivers felt the transmission came from further north.
A Trans Australian Airlines aircraft near Kilmore also heard the transmission and felt the aircraft was nearby, with its pilot instructing his co-pilot to keep watch in case evasive action was necessary.
The next day the search began with a focus on Bacchus Marsh before extending as far as the Grampians, however it was not until August 16, 1954 when the wreckage was located by forestry commission workers in a clearing near the top of Mt Disappointment.
Mr Hallinan’s three sisters, who waited 69 years for the recognition of their family’s loss, attended the Wandong event, along with other relatives from Queensland.
Mr Viénet said this year would provide an opportunity for relatives of the airmen to view the plaque after difficulties last year.
“Events last year sadly prevented the attendance of many of the family members, and today we hope to provide some comfort and peace for those families, a chance to see the plaque erected in honour of those loved ones,” he said.
“So today for those family members that are able, we will show you the plaque, you will get a sense of the area where your family loved one died and have a chance to reflect and remember them and take some peace from knowing your loved one died in this beautiful place.”
Also acknowledged at the event were the lives lost in the helicopter crash that occurred on the mountain in March this year.
Attendees visited the Mt Disappointment memorial on Saturday afternoon, following the official proceedings at Wandong Hall.
CONTROVERSY abounded at JJ Clancy Reserve on Saturday, with Old Eltham Collegians handed a contentious one-point win against Kilmore with a goal on the siren in the penultimate round of Northern Football Netball League division three.
After trailing for much of the afternoon Kilmore hit the lead with the first three goals of the fourth quarter, and looked like running over the top of the Turtles.
But in the final five minutes Old Eltham goaled twice, with both the direct result of questionable 50-metre penalties that took them to the goal square.
The final goal of the game was especially contentious, with Eltham forward Nick Milne given 50 metres after a Kilmore player knocked the ball from his hands following a mark in the forward line.
With less than a minute left, the Turtles’ bench called for Milne to take his time before kicking for goal, but Milne took so long that the Kilmore players and supporters screamed for the umpire to call play on.
Ethan Derrick stretches to take a fingertip mark.
The umpire eventually called play on, and the siren appeared to sound before Milne kicked from point blank range, but the umpire allowed the goal, giving the Turtles an 8.3 (51) to 7.8 (50) win.
Irate Kilmore coach Nathan Phillips walked onto the field to query the umpire after the goal, with one Old Eltham official heard to remark that they also believed the kick came after the siren.
However Phillips refused to blame the umpires for the loss, saying a lackadaisical first half and inability to capitalise on opportunities in the second half cost the Blues.
“We shouldn’t have put ourselves in a position where a free kick, whether it’s there or not, influences the game,” he said.
“We dominated the last quarter for a good 15 minutes and then let them get on top and wrestle the momentum back. That’s on us. We needed to keep our foot on their throat when we had them, but we let them back in.
“We lost the game in the first half. We didn’t play the way we wanted to play, for what reason I’m not sure.
“In the third quarter we dominated the play but couldn’t capitalise on the scoreboard, which kept them in the game.”
First-half injuries put Kilmore under the pump, with defenders Pete De Sousa, leg, and Liam Monaghan, head, taken off early and forward Michael Fenech hampered by a rib injury.
Kilmore ruckman James Atkinson wins a hitout over the Turtles’ Matthew Quinton.
The injuries meant Kilmore had to leave both its ruckmen – Mick McCulloch and James Atkinson – on the field for most of the day, robbing the team of leg speed.
Key defenders Kieran Moran, Jaxson Kinnear and Steve McIntyre held up superbly against numerous Old Eltham forward entries in the first half, while Bailey Derrick helped break the lines in his return from concussion.
Onballer Chris Barton gave the Blues a huge lift in the second half by willing himself to contests and putting his body on the line, in stark contrast to the way the team played in the first half.
Fellow midfielder Chris Ryall kicked two goals in a customarily solid outing, and Tom McMillan played well on a wing in tricky conditions.
Veteran midfielder Leigh Irons was another to lift in the second half as he celebrated his 300th game for Kilmore.
With one round left in the home-and-away season, Kilmore will play Reservoir at JJ Clancy Reserve before a rematch with the Turtles in an elimination final.
With none of the past five meetings between Kilmore and Old Eltham decided by more than 10 points, Phillips said he expected another close battle.
“We’re looking forward to Reservoir and then the Turtles again in two weeks,” he said.
“[This result] probably doesn’t change anything apart from the fact that they’ll get the home change rooms now.”
A SELFLESS group of teachers has banded together to provide stability for year 12 students following the closure of Kilmore’s Colmont School.
The international baccalaureate, IB, school, formerly known as The Kilmore International School, appointed administrators on July 26, with students from years three to 10 finishing three days later.
The administrators from Vince and Associates had vowed to keep the school open for year 11 and 12 students for as long as possible, but last week announced year 12s would be unable to study at the school beyond today. Year 11 students finished on Friday last week.
Colmont families were left reeling by the decision, but senior teachers were determined to give their students the best possible chance of completing their final IB exams.
IB coordinator Deanna Krilis said a group of teachers had negotiated access to Ivanhoe Grammar School’s Plenty campus in Doreen, as well as GOTAFE’s Wallan campus with the aid of Mitchell Shire Council.
Ms Krilis said the arrangement would allow students to continue their studies with familiar teachers.
“The most important thing is creating a program for the next few weeks that is stable for the kids, because they’ve had such a mix of news,” she said.
“This plan allows them to finish their work, prepare for their final exams and complete their final exams at [an IB] registered school. They deserve some certainty and security, which is what this plan is all about.”
Although the teachers volunteered for the plan without any assurance of being paid, students and their families threw their support behind the group by organising an online fundraiser on website GoFundMe.
As of yesterday afternoon the page, titled TKIS Year 12, had raised more than $6000 of a $30,000 goal.
School parent Jane Lamb said she was grateful for the support of the teachers.
“All I can say is thank goodness these teachers have put their hands up and really put the kids first. They’ve been the heroes in all of this,” she said.
“There was no other option. For a lot of people their kids can’t go down to Melbourne [to study at another IB school], and even if we could a lot of the schools didn’t have places.
“Without wanting to sound too dramatic, they’ve been our saviours. Without them I don’t know what we would have done.”
Ms Krilis said teachers would be at Ivanhoe Grammar’s Plenty campus on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and GOTAFE’s Wallan campus on Tuesdays and Thursdays until the end of term.
She said there would be a mix of online and face-to-face learning to allow flexibility for both teachers and students.
“Some of the teachers can only work in the morning, some in the afternoon and some only online depending on their personal circumstances,” she said.
“We’re trying to be respectful of people’s individual needs, so across the five days the students will have access to their teachers, either face-to-face or online at one or both of the two campuses if the teachers choose that.
“It means they will have a really good finish and preparation for their final exams.”
Ms Krilis said while she was not directly involved in the fundraiser to support the students, she appreciated the backing of the community and pledged to be accountable to parents.
“I don’t know how the fundraiser will work and we certainly didn’t come into this with the expectation of putting in a bill,” she said.
“We’re obviously going to keep records. It’s not just going to be a whole lot of cash handed over. We’re keeping records of attendance for students and staff work hours as well.
“There is full accountability and transparency for the parents, and then it’s up to them how the fundraiser works. The parents are a very strong group for our year 12s, and they’ll decide how that money is best used.”
TWO Wallan teams will vie for Big V basketball grand final berths after a hard-fought round of elimination finals at the weekend.
Three of the association’s four representative sides qualified for Big V finals, with the senior division two men and women and the youth league division two women all playing elimination finals on Saturday night.
The men, playing away, emerged from a road clash against Sherbrooke with a stirring 97-85 overtime win, and will now face Gippsland United in a best-of-three semi-final series starting this weekend in Wallan.
The youth league women also found success in a fast-paced, physical game against Whittlesea in Wallan, lining up a one-game semi-final against Coburg, but the senior women lost to Gippsland United 52-74.
Men’s coach Tim Annett described the victory over the Suns as one of the best in his tenure with the Panthers, with the team trailing for all but three minutes of the game.
With intensity high at both ends of the court, Annett said his players kept their composure brilliantly.
“It shows huge character from our guys to stay in the game for as long as they did, and then things finally turned our way late in the game,” he said.
“We knew that we weren’t making many shots from outside and at some stage they would eventually fall. Late in the fourth and in overtime we had shooters make shots and we got a bit of momentum going our way.
“They jumped us at the start of overtime. We had a couple of loose possessions at both ends of the floor and they got five points on us quickly. I called a timeout to settle us down, and we spoke about what we needed to do.
“The guys really stuck together and bought into what we wanted to achieve.”
American import Arcaim Lallemand lived up to his big billing with 34 points, 17 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and two steals.
Although he took 33 shots to score his 34 points, Annett said Lallemand’s performance kept the Panthers in the game.
“[I was impressed with] the way he was continually going at the defence and trying to lead our team,” Annett said.
“From the perspective of being our import and what we brought him over here to do, the way he kept the guys in it for the first three-and-a-half quarters was a credit to him and puts the rest of the league on notice for what he can do in the finals.”
In overtime it was captain Jordan Hockley, sidelined with injury for much of the season, who took over, scoring 12 points including 10 from the free-throw line to finish with 22 for the night.
Annett said his team was confident of upsetting minor premier Gippsland United, who has lost only twice all season, in the best-of-three semi-final series starting this weekend in Wallan.
“They haven’t beaten us by much at all. The first game they beat us by [nine] points and the second game they beat us by [13] but we were missing a couple of guys and we were right in the game with three minutes to go,” he said.
“If we get this first game off them then it puts them under pressure. We’re going into it with no pressure and knowing that all of the expectation is on Gippsland.
“The women’s games at the weekend were sellouts and the stands were packed full, so we’re hoping we can get a big home crowd to help us over the line.”
Youth league women
The youth league women are also eyeing off the chance to play in a grand final after their hard-fought win against Whittlesea on Saturday night.
Coach Ben Whyte paid tribute to a complete team performance after the Pacers challenged the home side in the second half of the 70-62 win.
“About halfway through the third quarter the lead got back to one point and it continued to be a physical game, but we were able to stop the bleeding before they took the lead.
“We were able to hold a 12-point lead at three-quarter time and then put them away in the fourth. [The margin] was about 17 points until two minutes to go in the last quarter and then they made a couple of baskets late in junk time.
“It’s our first finals win as a youth league program and to progress to a semi-final against Coburg is really great.”
Olivia Dalmau controlled the game from the opening tip, staying patient on the offensive end and finding her team mates in good positions to finish with a 17-point, 11-rebound, 10-assist triple-double.
Starting centre Melissa Buckley was another big performer, also finishing with 17 points and grabbing 10 rebounds of her own to help the Panthers to a 14-rebound advantage for the game.
For Whittlesea, Sofia Ruscitti scored 20 points and Amy Temos had 16, while Isabella Ryan was a standout at the defensive end with 16 rebounds, three steals and four blocks.
Whyte said his team had plenty of belief ahead of its semi-final in Coburg.
Wallan’s Jordyn Eichstadt pressures Whittlesea ballhandler Rani Taylor on Saturday night.
“We played them there in round six when they were undefeated and we beat them on their court by 28 points. We know we can get the job done there,” he said.
“In round 12 we were able to take care of them at home by [four] points. That was a lot closer but we had about a 15-point lead halfway through the last quarter and they clawed their way back into it with a couple of shots late in the game.
“It’s 100 per cent a winnable game and I think the girls will go in confident we can get the job done again at Coburg.
“Even with the men playing likely Saturday night at home, we’d like to see some of the Wallan faithful down to support the youth league girls as well.”
Senior women
While a 22-point loss brought the division two women’s season to a close on Saturday, coach Carey Papanicolaou had nothing but praise for his players.
The Panthers endured a difficult season, with player injuries and unavailability sometimes limiting the team to play without a bench.
With guards Kaitlyn Wakartschuk and Jacinta Scott unlikely to return for next season, Papanicolaou said the team would have a fresh look in 2023.
“I think the girls had a tremendous season given what we went through all year. I thought we did really well to get as far as we did,” he said.
“A couple of the girls won’t be back [for next season], but we’ll get some of our youth league girls in there and see how we go.
“I’m proud of the way we performed this year and I’m looking forward to next year. Hopefully we can go one step further.”
KILMORE trainer Hanna Powell’s Just Jake, paying odds of $9, appreciated the drop in class in impressively winning at Sportsbet-Ballarat Synthetic on Friday.
Coming off a pleasing mid-field placing on a heavy 10 surface at Sandown Hillside track last month, the six-year-old gelded son of Reward For Effort and Heavenly Dawn was a comfortable winner of the $40,000 Hygain Winners Choice BM70 Handicap over 1200 metres.
Giving the in-form Jarrod Fry the second leg of a riding treble, the gelding was positioned behind the leader until halfway down the straight where he took charge to defeat Ultimate Edition, $14, by a head with Brazen Brando, $21, a further one and a half lengths away third.
Strapper and picnic apprentice rider Tyson Barton with Just Jake after the gelding’s win.
“Full marks to Jarrod on the ride as he didn’t get flustered and just sat behind the leader and he doesn’t mind this surface either which he’s won on previously,” Powell said.
“He pulled up really well and he has qualified for the final at Pakenham Synthetic over 1200 metres on the 26th August.”
Raced by Powell and her husband, Ian, Just Jake has now won seven races with eight seconds and three third placings from his 35 starts. He has earnt $224,618 in prizemoney.
Meanwhile, Powell said she would set the bar higher for the ultra-consistent stablemate Kiss Me If You Can – winner of three of his past five starts – and enter him in the $130,000 Handicap over 1500 metres at Moonee Valley on Saturday, August 20.
Hoofnote: Powell’s strike rate of late has been five winners from her last 16 starters.
Assumption College Kilmore’s First XVIII football team defeated Marcellin by 49 points on Saturday to claim the 2022 title in the Associated Grammar Schools of Victoria, AGSV, competition.
In front of a large home crowd, which included many former players including past captains, the Dark and Light Blues were dominant.
The heavy ground conditions may have slightly favoured the home team but it was a convincing win to cap off an unbeaten season.
The standard of play was high, with many brilliant exchanges.
The Dark and Light Blues won three quarters well, while the Eagles had a fine third term.
The score difference at the final break was 25 points but Assumption dominated the final term to win 13.20 (98) to 7.7 (49).
Assumption’s big-name players Rowston, Longmire, Harvey and Moloney were well to the fore but there were no passengers in a well-drilled, highly motivated unit.
Harry Rowston, a boarder from tiny Binya, near Griffith, NSW, was named in the Herald Sun as a likely high draft pick in the November AFL draft.
The crowd applauded both teams at game’s end. Some of the happiest former ACK players in attendance were captains of distinction Fred Le Deux, Pater Tossol, Ray Power and Jesse Taylor.
Le Deux, whose grandson is Cats star Tom Hawkins, captained Assumption 70 years ago.
Principal Kate Fogarty would have been happy with the proceedings, starting with a fine rendition of the national anthem by a senior student. Hundreds enjoyed refreshments to celebrate after the game.
MITCHELL Shire councillor Annie Goble will remain absent from meetings as she sues council through its insurance company over what she said was $90,000 of damage caused to a horse transport vehicle by a tree in Kilmore East last year.
Cr Goble has been absent from council meetings since April. She was listed as an apology for the April, May and June meetings, before council issued a statement that she had taken a leave of absence in July.
She continue to receive her council allowance and agenda papers during her absence, which will be until at least September 1.
Cr Goble, who is also a horse trainer, said she had engaged a barrister to issue proceedings against MAV Insurance, council’s insurer, over damage to her horse transport truck.
She said a tree branch overhanging O’Sheas Road in Kilmore East near her house became an issue in 2019 when she bought the transport vehicle.
“The horse box was 3.3 metres high, and there was a limb on one of the trees on O’Sheas Road that came across the trafficable lane at 3.2 metres, so I knew there was a possibility I was going to run into it at some stage,” she said.
“There was a wedge that was cut out of it, which I found out later was one of the Cleanaway [wase disposal] trucks – they had already hit it.”
Cr Goble said contractors removed the limb about two months after she reported it, but left a stump hanging over the edge of the road.
“They didn’t cut it off flush with the tree … They cut straight down through the limb and there was a protrusion that stuck out at 3.2 metres a half metre over the road,” she said.
“Then it was in my peripheral vision and couldn’t necessarily be seen easily.”
Cr Goble said she raised the matter with council again, but alleges that nothing was done to alter the tree for more than a year.
In September last year, she struck the protrusion while contractors carried out grading works on the road.
“I shifted slightly to the left on the road because the right-hand side hadn’t been rolled and was really rough,” she said.
“Fortunately I slowed right down to about five kilometres an hour when the grader came, and the protruding stump hit the corner of my horse box and effectively almost ripped it off.
“The steering wheel got ripped out of my hands, my head hit the window and my elbow hit the door. The truck got lifted up onto the small embankment over the grader blade cut. I thought a tree had fallen on me.
“There was about $90,000 worth of damage. Thankfully neither of the horses was seriously hurt, but the whole box was a complete write off.”
Council officers referred the incident to MAV Insurance, who Cr Goble said had denied any responsibility.
“[Council has] a road management policy that says trafficable lanes have to be clear by 4.9 metres, and this was 3.2 metres,” she said.
“There are photos and I’ve got statements from the garbage truck driver – the evidence is so clear.
“Every time the insurance company comes back they say I knew it was there so I’m liable and council isn’t responsible because it was wholly and solely my driving.
“Then they said council cut the limb to the lowest possible point, which isn’t true.
“We’d given them a lot of opportunities to come back and negotiate, but they just won’t do it. They deny, defer and delay.”
Cr Goble said council installed traffic guide posts this year to change the alignment of the road and keep vehicles away from the protruding base of the limb.
She said she was unsure of when she would return to council duties and had considered resigning over the matter.
“It’s been stressing me and I don’t feel I can sit in the room while it’s going on. It’s gotten to the point where I’ve considered resigning, but I’ve stayed because I know I’ve got the opportunity to improve things,” she said.
“[The council officers are] really good people, but they have policies and procedures that they have to follow. They can’t change MAV’s view.”
Mitchell Shire Council chief executive Brett Luxford said Cr Goble was granted a leave of absence until September 1, but would not comment of the circumstances of her absence.
WALLAN atoned for one poor performance with a win against Woodend-Hesket on Saturday and is keen to do the same when it takes on Riddell District Football Netball League ladder leader Diggers Rest this weekend.
The Magpies, who sit third on the ladder, have only two losses and a draw from 15 games this season, with the draw coming against Woodend-Hesket in round two and one of the losses to Diggers Rest.
Both results came after slow starts, an error Wallan assistant coach Spencer Mathieson was happy to see rectified in Saturday’s 13.10 (88) to 8.3 (51) win against the Hawks.
Mathieson said Wallan’s coaches challenged the players to switch on from the start.
“We knew going in that Woodend-Hesket would be well organised and well coached, so we had to play smarter and better than we did in the first quarter of round two,” he said.
“They kicked to the scoring end in the first quarter and we won the first quarter by 10 points and were five goals up by half time. That set us up a lot better than last time.”
Despite a third-quarter run that cut Wallan’s lead to little more than two goals, the Magpies were able to reestablish their dominance and run out the game comfortably in front of a home crowd.
Pat Mahoney rucked well all day in a best-on-ground performance, feeding the likes of Jarryd Bonello, Ricky Schraven and Steve Boyall in Wallan’s on-ball unit.
Wallan’s Jarryd Bonello shakes off Woodend-Hesket’s Jordan Rizzardo.
Defenders Matt Bonello, Cody Lynch and Corey Baker stifled Woodend-Hesket’s scoring opportunities while at the other end of the ground Corey Grindlay slotted four goals.
With Wallan unable to rise above or fall below third place, Mathieson said the team would rest players as needed this weekend.
He said the team was confident of a better showing than in round eight, when it lost to Diggers Rest by 40 points.
“Hopefully we play a lot better because that was probably our worst performance for the season, so we need to redeem ourselves,” he said.
“They beat us in contested footy. We were second to the ball and that was the crux of it.
“They’re probably the premiership favourites, so we need to make sure we play properly against them heading into the finals.
“We’re a lot better than what we showed against them in round eight and I’m pretty confident we can bounce back.”
Wallan will play at Greenhill Reserve again this weekend, celebrating the premiership reunions of the 1992, 2000, 2001 and 2002 teams.
Rhys Frost is caught in a tackle.
Romsey will also prepare for finals this week with a tune-up against Woodend-Hesket after beating Melton Centrals 17.12 (114) to 6.5 (41) in an impressive display at Romsey Park.
With captain Nathan Blair leading the way, the Redbacks piled on 10 first-half goals to the Blues’ two, and were never seriously challenged.
Among the other star performers for Romsey were Matt Burkett, Jack Jedwab with five goals, Matthew Hoy in his first senior appearance of the year, and Will Di Pietro.
Lancefield lacked the firepower to keep up with Diggers Rest in their round 17 clash, with the Tigers losing by 101 points despite some impressively accurate goal kicking.
Mathew Higgins, Matt Bowden, Joe Slattery and Harrison Taylor played solid games while Tom Atwell and Brendan Crowhurst kicked three goals each, but it was not enough to prevent a 22.17 (149) to 8.0 (48) loss.
Lancefield will host Riddell in the final round of the season.
WHITTLESEA fell just four points short of an upset win against North Heidelberg in a game that solidified the Eagles’ status as a genuine Northern Football Netball League division one team.
Whittlesea has fought to avoid relegation to division two for most of the season after the mid-year departure of former coach Blair Harvey and several key players.
While the team only gave itself reasonable assurance of avoiding the wooden spoon with a spirited win against Northcote Park in round 15, it played with newfound confidence against the sixth-placed Bulldogs on Saturday.
Trailing by seven points at quarter time, Whittlesea booted five goals to three in the second term to grab a three-point advantage at the main break.
After conceding eight goals in the third quarter many onlookers would have been forgiven for writing the home team off, but Whittlesea responded again with six goals in the last term to storm home and nearly steal the win, going down 16.8 (104) to 17.6 (108).
North Heidelberg sported a star-studded team, with former North Melbourne AFL players Brent Harvey and Majak Daw leading the way for the Bulldogs.
Onballer Tom Falls played a brilliant game for Whittlesea, with half forward Clancy Bland, defenders Brody Bell and Mitch Atta and ruckman Sam Indian also named among the best.
Jaron Murphy continued to play strongly in Whittlesea’s forward line, booting four goals to give him a team-high 23 for the season.
Whittlesea will travel to take on Greensborough this weekend in the penultimate round of the home-and-away season.
