Injuries hit South Morang before grand final but Lions vow to return

South Morang coach Gary Hall believes his team can replicate Panton Hill’s premiership formula after falling short in the Division 3 grand final as pre-game injuries took a toll.

A dejected South Morang player after losing the grand final. Picture: Andy Brownbill

Injuries may have cruelled South Morang’s hopes of the ultimate prize before the first bounce of the grand final.

Star midfielder and NFL Division 3 Team of the Year wingman Tye Hall ruptured his ACL in the preliminary final win over Laurimar and will miss the next 12 months.

Then just minutes before Saturday’s decider, half-back James Hewson pulled up sore and was forced to withdraw.

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Without the key pair, the Lions put up a brave fight but were no match for Panton Hill, the Redbacks claiming a 40-point victory at Whittlesea Showgrounds.

Lions coach Gary Hall lamented his side’s misfortune at the wrong time but conceded the Redbacks were the superior team this season.

“It was a carbon copy of last year’s prelim — they jumped us at the start and we had to make up ground and we just couldn’t do it today,” Hall said.

Dejected South Morang players after their grand final defeat. Picture: Andy Brownbill

Alek Tsardakis and Aiden Grace keep their eyes on the ball. Picture: Andy Brownbill

“The size, the age, their just right in their prime, Panton Hill.

“They were the best side all year and that’s how they played and finished off the year, so credit to them.”

Mitchell Dickson and Nathan Moro came into the Lions’ grand final side and performed admirably.

Skipper Mathew Robinson was outstanding in defence, keeping the Division 3 leading goalkicker Rhys Boyden to just one goal.

Robinson, along with Reece Jones’ shutdown job on Matt Byron, helped keep South Morang in the game when Panton Hill had the breeze at its back in the third quarter.

Young gun Mitch Kalpakis was again impressive at half-back, taking several intercept marks.

A dejected South Morang player after the final siren. Picture: Andy Brownbill

Fellow under-19 Nathan Bell kicked the goal of the day with a sublime finish from the boundary line against the wind.

The season isn’t over for Kalpakis and Bell, who will suit up for South Morang in this weekend’s Division 2 Under-19 decider against Mill Park.

South Morang just scraped into finals, thanks to a stunning final-round win over Laurimar, before it knocked off Kilmore and the Power to reach the decider.

Hall was confident his team would continue to build in 2020.

“We made it, we’ll be there again next year when the whips are cracking,” he said.

“We don’t really recruit up here, we rely on our juniors, we’ll just get what we need.

“We’ll be young again but they’ll be another year older, another year stronger, so we’ll have another crack.”