Sorrento is through to a seventh consecutive grand final after defeating Crib Point

SORRENTO playing-coach Troy Schwarze pinches himself after his Sharks surge into a seventh straight grand final.

Nepean league 2nd semi-final - Crib Point v Sorrento

SORRENTO is through to its seventh successive Nepean league grand final after toppling minor premier Crib Point by 22 points in the second semi-final on Saturday.

Scores were deadlocked at 9.9 apiece at three-quarter time before the Sharks piled on seven goals in a furious last quarter to win 16.13 (109) to 13.9 (87) under clear skies at Hastings.

Sorrento playing-coach Troy Schwarze was thrilled his side had made it through to another decider, but was at a loss to explain how his side got over the line in a gripping encounter.

“It was tight, hard and tough,” he said. “I don’t know ... I honestly couldn’t tell you (how we won).

“They (Crib Point) have got some good players, they use the ball well.

“Some people said after the game it was the best game they’ve seen this year from a quality point of view.”

Former Port Melbourne forward Myles Pitt was brilliant up forward, booting six goals — just as he did in last week’s qualifying final.

He combined well with Leigh Poholke, who slotted four majors to take his season tally to 86, and James Hallahan kicked two, while strong-marking Tyrren Head was best-on-ground.

Sorrento’s ruck pair of Ryan Williams and Jon Croad were also key contributors.

Crib Point, playing in its first final since 2004, was beaten but coach Duane Annable was proud of his men.

“I thought our boys were really good today,” Annable said.

“For three quarters of our side, that’s the first final they’ve ever played in, so to be equal at three quarter time and just to get pipped in the last 10 minutes I thought was a fantastic effort.”

Annable said he admired Sorrento’s will to win.

“They’ve just got polish and fantastic players who just will them over the line,” he said.

“We’re disappointed but we’ll certainly take a lot out of today.”

Crib Point will try to earn another shot at Sorrento by winning this week’s preliminary final.

Sorrento will focus on preparing for yet another flag decider — its seventh on the spin.

The mighty Sharks have won premierships in 2008, ‘10, ‘11 and ‘12 — all under the coaching of Schwarze, who says he’s exceeded his expectations at Sorrento after linking with the club in 2006, just days after being delisted by St Kilda.

“I never thought when I moved down we’d be as good as we are,” he said.

“Predominantly our team is local kids who played juniors for the club.

“We’ve just filled holes where we thought we needed players.

“It’s a good record but we have to make sure we win in a couple of weeks.”

A RAMPAGING Rye continued its giant-killing romp in Nepean league when it thrashed reigning premiers Dromana by 69 points in the first semi final at Rowley Reserve on Sunday afternoon.

With the Semmel brothers in dynamic form, the Demons won 19.14 (128) to 8.11 (59) to progress to the preliminary final, in which they will face minor premiers Crib Point.

After squeaking into the finals, Rye has built momentum. The Demons pipped Red Hill in the elimination final and steamrolled Dromana.

Ryan Semmel — well known as a contestant on Foxtel’s reality football show The Recruit — played a starring role with a relentless display.

The three Semmels were involved in a brilliant passage of play in the second term; Ryan started it, Jake chimed in and Luke finished it with a goal.

Rye had plenty of avenues to goal, with Chris Gleeson booting five, Matt Dunn four and Brady Egan three.

Rye skipper Rhett Sutton continued his outstanding form in the ruck.

EDITHVALE-Aspendale’s premiership defence is over.

The Eagles bowed out of the Peninsula league finals series on Sunday after losing to Mornington by 28 points in the elimination final, 10.11 (74) to 6.10 (46), at a sun-drenched Pines.

It meant a straight sets exit for Edi-Asp.

In a tight tussle, Mornington eventually cracked the Eagles in the third quarter.

The Bulldogs’ relentless run was too much for Edi-Asp.

Mornington forward Dale Nolan played a starring role in the win, booting five goals — including two in the Bulldogs’ match-winning four-goal-to-one third term.

Edi-Asp began fast, kicking the opening two goals of the game.

Nolan opened Mornington’s account before Jackson Calder put the Bulldogs in front with a goal on the quarter time siren. Adrian Speedy drilled the first goal of the second quarter to increase Mornington’s lead to nine points — and then it was goal-for-goal for the next 40 minutes as both sides struggled for control.

Nolan’s brother Danny broke the sequence with a superb snap-goal in the third term as Mornington sneaked 15 points ahead. A minute later, Dale Nolan slotted another as the Bulldogs opened up a 24-point break at the last change.

Edi-Asp began the last quarter pressing hard, but Dale Nolan bobbed up to kick the first goal of the term, and Mornington was out to a 30-point lead.

It was the end of the road for Edi-Asp, which earned so much respect for its 2013 backs-to-the-wall title triumph.

Mark Mullins was Edi-Asp’s best player, providing dash from defence, while Tim Mannix and Tim Mavric tried hard.

Mornington, which hasn’t been this far in finals for a decade, now head to Frankston Park on Saturday to take on Bonbeach, with the winner to play Frankston YCW in the grand final.

A DOMINANT display by star ruckman Ash Eames fuelled Frankston YCW’s clinical 35-point win over Bonbeach in Saturday’s Peninsula league second semi final — and into its fourth grand final in five years.

Eames was a huge figure, literally, around the ground as he exposed Bonbeach’s lack of talls.

The undersized Sharks went into the game without ruck duo Dylan Jones and James Norton — both ill — and Eames was near-on unstoppable.

After leading by a point at quarter time and 15 points at half-time, Frankston YCW kept Bonbeach goalless in the third term while adding a goal itself and then kicked five goals in the last quarter to win 15.15 (105) to 11.4 (70).

Strong YCW forward David Bodley was another key figure, slotting seven goals, while Scott MacLeod and Ben Buckley were super.

After being bundled out of the finals in straight sets last season, the Stonecats were back as finals winners.

YCW coach Scott Mathers, who has the Stonecats on track for a flag in his first season at the helm, described the win as a “pleasing performance”.

“We went in there with a plan and the boys executed it pretty well,” he said.

“It was a struggle there for a while ... but obviously having an advantage with Ash (Eames) against a guy who tried his heart out but was a bit undersized. It probably helped us get our hands on the footy a lot more than what we normally do.”

Bonbeach coach Steve Capp said his side wilted under YCW’s pressure.

“We couldn’t sustain the game plan, we went away from it a bit, stopped hitting up through the middle and their pressure was good,” he said.

“Weight of numbers in the end got a hold of us.

“We’ve got to get over it pretty quick, though, because next week we’ll be in the same position: playing for a grand final.”

Bonbeach’s premiership dream remains alive and it will line-up in the preliminary final. In a blow for the Sharks, key play maker Paul Rebeschini suffered a glute injury.

Frankston YCW (16-3 this year) will look to cap an outstanding season with a grand final win on September 21.

FORMER Melbourne and Brisbane star Travis Johnstone is still trying to fight his way back into Bonbeach’s senior side.

The 34-year-old, who played 209 AFL games and finished fourth in a Brownlow Medal, played 12 games in the Sharks’ seniors this season before being dropped to the reserves.

Johnstone actually gave up his spot in the reserves last week so a younger player could experience finals footy.

But last week he answered an SOS after Bonbeach was depleted by injuries and he played in the reserves on the weekend.

Bonbeach coach Steve Capp admitted he had an honest discussion with Johnstone about his future.

“We had a chat,’’ Capp said.

“He said, ‘am I in the mix at the moment? At that particular moment, we said, ‘no’. I was honest with him and said I haven’t got him in the mix. He disagreed with me but he was good enough to say, ‘look, I don’t want to take a spot’.

“Now there have been a few injuries and we needed him to play, so we gave him a call ... not a bad bloke to call to run around in the twos, is it?’’