EFL 2018: Vermont claims its 20th Eastern Football League premiership after a 35-point win over South Croydon
VERMONT has buried the pain of consecutive grand final losses with a commanding 35-point win over South Croydon to win its 20th Eastern Football League Division 1 premiership.
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VERMONT was never going to let this one slip.
The Eagles buried the pain of consecutive grand final losses with a commanding 35-point win over South Croydon on Saturday to win their 20th Eastern Football League Division 1 premiership.
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The game was effectively over by halftime. Perhaps even before then.
Five goals in the opening 40 minutes from the Cliff Tomkins/Blue Ribbon medallist Andrew Ainger put Vermont 58 points up by the long break. The former SANFL star finished with 5.2 in a best afield performance.
The margin reached 70 points midway through the third quarter as the Eagles ended a nine-year premiership drought in style.
Most suburban clubs would take a flag every decade. Not Vermont. It deals in premierships and nine years was the second-longest stretch it had gone without tasting the ultimate success.
After three grand final losses in six years, Vermont coach Harmit Singh said his group were deserving premiers.
“No one could say they’re not deserving, we’ve done all the work and consistently proven to be a really strong side,” Singh said.
“This is the reward for not just the 22 that played, it’s the 40 that played a senior game and the 65 we have on our senior list and our support staff.
“I couldn’t be prouder of our players, the buy-in from them in terms of what I’ve wanted has been unreal and I love them so much.”
In sparkling Spring sunshine at Bayswater Oval, the first half was a ruthless display from the competition powerhouse, setting up the 15.11 (101) to 10.6 (66) victory with 11 goals by the main break.
Ainger was unstoppable up forward, while star ruckman Liam Buxton must have run a close second for best-on-ground honours with his influence around the ground.
The midfield of Cam Purdy, Adam Parker, Tom Schneider, Rob McComb and captain Lachie Johns got to work early and never let the Bulldogs settle.
Any South Croydon forward 50 entries were either met by the fists or intercepting hands of Matt Willcocks, Lachlan Carey or Kyle Staples, while Joey Fisher and former captain Tim Johnson provided trademark bounce off halfback.
Vermont saved its best football of the season for the last two months of the year.
A mid-season form slump had some questioning if 2018 would go to waste but three of its last four home and away wins came against top-five sides.
The Eagles then produced two blistering halves of football in September — the second half in the semi-final and the first half in the decider — to claim the silverware.
Vermont’s reserves also made it a premiership double after a 78-point win over South Croydon.
Singh praised the club’s resilience in sticking through the grand final losses.
“My happiness is for my playing group, my volunteers … I’m more happy for those people,” Singh said.
“These guys drove it themselves, which was a positive and they deserve to be premiership players.
“I don’t think anyone could say that this group didn’t deserve it at some stage to win a premiership.”
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