EFNL 2025: Inside ex-AFL forward Josh Schache’s sizzling start to Eastern league season

Fresh off a bag of seven, former No. 2 draft pick Josh Schache leads the Eastern Premier Division goalkicking as he adapts to suburban footy.

EFNL 2025: Josh Schache in action for Doncaster East. Picture: Field of View Photography

It was the ex-AFL forward’s biggest performance yet.

Former No. 2 draft pick Josh Schache proved the difference as Doncaster East denied Mitcham its first win of the season on Saturday, booting seven goals in the three-point heart-stopper.

The 27-year-old leads the Eastern league’s Premier Division goalkicking with 22 from five matches – including bags of five and six in the fortnight prior to the weekend’s haul.

“He’s had a really good start to the year … his kicking for goal has been unbelievable,” Doncaster East coach Ryan James said.

“The goals are obviously nice for us, but it’s more what he’s bringing to the forward group.”

James said the key forward had worked in tandem with former Bulldogs teammate Tim O’Brien (12 goals) and young gun Jay Rankin (five).

“‘Schach’ is getting his rewards at the moment, but I think Tim O’Brien and Jay Rankin are playing their roles – I think Tim’s having just as good a year as ‘Schach’,” he said.

“It’s hard to keep all three of them in check … if you (the opposition) put too much attention into one, another probably gets away.

“Tim’s probably drawing more of the attention (than Schache), but they’ve obviously got a relationship pre-Donny East which is showing in how they both sacrifice their roles at times – ‘Schach’ has played a bit of wing for us as well.

“One probably doesn’t get to play well without the other.”

Saturday’s 12.3 (75) to 10.12 (72) victory lifted the Lions to a 3-2 record for fifth spot, with James lauding his side’s grit in the narrow escape.

“Full credit to Mitcham – we were on top early and then the rain hit and we took too long to adjust to the conditions,” he said.

“The pleasing part for us was we needed to show a bit of resilience – we didn’t have much of a bench in the last quarter … a lot of our onballers couldn’t come off in the last quarter, people just had to play different roles.

“It was nice to get a result which last year we were probably on the wrong side of.”

Doncaster East hosts a resurgent Balwyn this weekend, with ex-AFL man Tom Bell expected to return.