EFL 2022: Who makes finals, who misses out? Every Eastern league division analysed
Who makes it, who misses out? Several Eastern league finals spots are up for grabs with a handful of games remaining. We analyse each of the five divisions.
Eastern
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The race is on.
Several finals spots remain hot property while some clubs may be booking their September holidays across the Eastern league.
We analyse the state of play in all five divisions with just over a month of home-and-away action remaining.
PREMIER DIVISION
Current order: Rowville (11-1), Noble Park (10-2), Doncaster East (8-4), Balwyn (8-4), South Croydon (7-5), Blackburn (6-5-1), Park Orchards (5-7), Norwood (5-7), Vermont (5-7), Doncaster (4-8), Berwick (2-9-1), North Ringwood (0-12).
A gulf has formed following Blackburn’s upset of Balwyn last round, signalling a six-point gap between sixth spot and the rest.
Is the finals race set?
Those directly outside the six – Park Orchards (seventh), Norwood (eighth), Vermont (ninth) have all threatened this season but consistency has been an issue.
Park Orchards hasn’t won more than two games in a row and faces four current top-six outfits to close out – South Croydon (fifth), Rowville (first), Vermont, Blackburn (sixth) and Doncaster East (third).
Norwood is in a similar boat – it hasn’t been able to string more than two wins in a row together, and clashes with Noble Park (second), Balwyn (fourth), Doncaster (10th), Park Orchards (seventh), Doncaster East (third) and South Croydon (fifth) await.
Vermont is in danger of missing the finals for the first time since 2011 having lost its past six matches. Its run home reads Doncaster (10th), North Ringwood (12th), Park Orchards (seventh), South Croydon (fifth), Balwyn (fourth) and Blackburn (sixth). It could potentially win the first half of those, but the current form of the latter half suggests the Eagles might be up against it.
Verdict: sixth spot is Blackburn’s to lose. Recent form has it favourite to hang on, having won four of its past five matches.
DIVISION 1
Current order: Mooroolbark (13-0), East Ringwood (12-1), Mitcham (8-5), Wantirna South (7-6), Croydon (7-6), Montrose (5-8), Bayswater (5-8), Beaconsfield (4-9), Lilydale (4-9), Upper Ferntree Gully (0-10).
Similar to Premier Division, the gap has widened in recent weeks with two games separating fifth-placed Croydon from Montrose in sixth and Bayswater in seventh.
The Blues have lost their past two matches to finals rivals East Ringwood and Wantirna South, while Baysie let slip an opportunity to close the gap to just four points after its defeat to Mitcham on Saturday.
Croydon finishes the season with Upper Gully (10th), Beaconsfield (eighth), Mitcham (third), Mooroolbark (first) and Montrose (sixth).
Montrose faces Beaconsfield (eighth), Mitcham (third), Lilydale (ninth), Bayswater (seventh) and Croydon (fifth) in the run home – three of which sit below it on the ladder – with a superior percentage to Croydon. The final-round meeting with Croydon may have a finals spot riding on it if things go to plan for the Demons.
Then there’s Bayswater, which meets three of the current top four in the run home – Lilydale (ninth), Wantirna South (fourth), Mooroolbark (first), Montrose (sixth) and East Ringwood (second). An inferior percentage – almost 14 per cent less than Montrose – doesn’t help its cause, nor does a tough run home.
Let’s not forget Wantirna South, which has won four in a row after surging into fourth on Saturday with a win over Croydon, lifting it seven per cent clear with a 7-6 record.
Wantirna South takes on Mitcham (third) this weekend before meeting Bayswater (seventh), East Ringwood (second), Lilydale (ninth) and Mooroolbark (first).
Verdict: the two-game buffer from fifth could prove a bridge too far for those outside.
DIVISION 2
Current order: South Belgrave (12-1), Ringwood (11-2), East Burwood (10-3), Boronia (7-5-1), Heathmont (6-7), The Basin (5-7-1), Templestowe (5-8), Mulgrave (5-8), Knox (3-10), Oakleigh District (0-13).
The hottest race for the finals is in Division 2.
Just four points separates fifth from eighth while just two points separates fifth from sixth.
The top three spots look untouchable, while fourth-placed Boronia’s six-point gap on fifth looks secure, with the Hawks having won four of their past six matches.
Heathmont banked a crucial win over Mulgrave on Saturday to leapfrog it from seventh into fifth, while the Lions plunged from sixth to eighth.
The Jets’ result sets up a monster clash with Boronia this weekend, followed by matches against Knox (ninth), Oakleigh District (10th), East Burwood (third) and Templestowe (seventh).
Of those outside the top five:
The Basin meets Knox (ninth), Oakleigh District (10th), East Burwood (third), Templestowe (seventh) and Mulgrave (eighth).
Templestowe: Ringwood (second), Mulgrave (eighth), Boronia (fourth), The Basin (sixth), Heathmont (fifth).
Mulgrave: South Belgrave (first), Templestowe (seventh), Knox (ninth), Oakleigh District (10th) and The Basin (sixth).
The door remains ajar for the Bears, who play just one of the top five on the way home. And they could end up inside the top five by the end of this weekend if they knock over Knox and Boronia defeats Heathmont – both of which are very real possibilities.
Mulgrave can’t be discounted either, but it will need to quickly arrest a five-game losing streak. There may be plenty to play for in the final-round clash with The Basin.
Templestowe’s card of matches is certainly the most challenging of the pack, with three of the five coming from the top five.
Verdict: Heathmont has won three of its past five matches, but The Basin is breathing down its neck. On current form both have favourable runs home and expect the pair to be fighting it out for fifth, but perhaps the Jets’ win last Saturday might just be enough. Buckle up.
DIVISION 3
Current order: Waverley Blues (12-1), Donvale (8-4), Warrandyte (8-4), Coldstream (7-3-1), Scoresby (4-7), Whitehorse Pioneers (4-7), Ferntree Gully (3-8-1), Glen Waverley (3-9), Fairpark (3-9)
The top four looks all but set.
A rift of 14 points and more than 33 per cent separates Coldstream in fourth from Scoresby in fifth with five matches left.
The Waverley Blues are a sure thing to finish first, but the fight for second – and a double chance in the finals – is heating up.
Donvale and Warrandyte are the two key players – and the ‘Vales sit 21 per cent ahead of the Bloods in second. But the bonus for Warrandyte is it has played all the top-four teams twice already – Donvale, nor any other club in the top four has that luxury.
Donvale’s run home figures a bye this week followed by Glen Waverley (eighth), Ferntree Gully (seventh), Waverley Blues (first) and Coldstream (fourth).
Warrandyte: Whitehorse Pioneers (sixth), bye, Scoresby (fifth), Fairpark (ninth), Ferntree Gully (seventh).
The Bloods’ draw reads the more favourable of the two, and provides an opportunity to build consistency which has eluded it for more than a month now, having not won two matches in a row since rounds 8 and 9.
At the other end of the table, Ferntree Gully, Glen Waverley and Fairpark are locked in a relegation battle (two points separate the Gully from the drop-zone) with two sides going down at season’s end. The Eagles’ form has been the best of the three in the past month, having banked a draw, three wins and just one loss from their past five matches after starting 0-7.
DIVISION 4
Current order: Silvan (11-1), Chirnside Park (10-2), Surrey Park (7-4), Forest Hill (5-6), Kilsyth (5-7), Croydon North-MLOC (3-9), Nunawading (0-12)
Much like Division 3, the top four looks set – also bearing in mind third and fourth-placed Surrey Park and Forest Hill have a game in hand on Kilsyth just outside.
Silvan heads the table with an average winning margin of 112 points – but as Surrey Park proved in Round 11, the Cats are not invincible after pulling off a four-point upset. The result came after the Panthers ran Silvan to 35 points earlier in the season, suggesting it could be a closer race than one might think. The pair will clash again in the final round and we’re set to learn plenty.
Meanwhile, Chirnside Park is set to play in its first finals series since 2009 and is within grasp of a double chance.
And we may see the first Eastern league player kick the ton in six years, with Silvan’s Leigh Kimpton heading the goalkicking table with 79 majors to his name. He has four matches (Forest Hill, Croydon North-MLOC, Chirnside Park and Surrey Park) to do so in the home-and-away, otherwise he’s a show to achieve the feat in a finals series the Cats are expected to progress deep into.
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Heathmont plucks prized Premier Division skipper
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