Banyule cements itself in NFL Division 2 top-three with win over Thomastown

Boosted by the return of five key players Banyule cemented itself in the NFL Division 2 top-three with a hard-fought win over Thomastown.

Lincoln Sieben in action for Banyule. Picture: George Salpigtidis

The cavalry arrived at the perfect time for Banyule on Saturday.

Five key inclusions played critical roles in the Bears’ 20-point win over Thomastown at Main Street Reserve, helping cement them in the NFL Division 2 top-three.

Skipper Devin McDonald, star ruck Tim Martin, reigning Coaches MVP Reuben Blackmore-Moore, Adam Carafa and Michael Edwards impressed in the 10.11 (71) to 7.9 (51) victory.

Banyule coach Paul Harris hoped the quintet’s return would have his team firing at the right time come finals.

“Having Marto back in the ruck gives our guys first hands and a few of the other senior blokes who have missed a bit of footy,” he said.

Tim Martin in action for Banyule. Picture: Andy Brownbill

Reuben Blackmore-Moore in action for Banyule. Picture: Hamish Blair

“They all came back at the same time so we weren’t sure how that would work but it worked out well and they all contributed.

“We’ve got a couple more to come back but, like everyone else, you think you’ve got a couple coming back and then you lose a couple.

“The finals series, obviously Eltham have kicked away at the top at the moment, but any of the five that are in it are a chance.

“It will come down to who’s got a bit of momentum at the time, who’s healthy at the time, that’s our goal to be playing our best footy come August.”

The Main Street Reserve wind played a decisive role in the match.

Just one goal was kicked to the grandstand end – the first goal of the match, a sublime side-step and finish from Dan Kelly – as both teams took full advantage of the breeze.

Thomastown jumped out to a 14-point lead on the back of Anthony Capeci’s two first-quarter goals but Banyule took a 14-point lead into half-time as Jack Langford and Blackmore-Moore booted two majors each.

The hosts tried to give the game away in the third term with a trio of horror turnovers in defence but Banyule couldn’t take advantage kicking five behinds.

The margin was just 10 points at the final change and it would have been 16 points if not for a controversial free kick on the Thommo goal line that denied the brown and gold Bears the first major of the term.

From there it was all Banyule, the blue and maroon Bears slamming on five unanswered goals.

Tyrone Leonardis kicked one of the goals of the season in the first quarter but Lachie Turner stole the show in the final term with a pair a high-flying marks that wowed the crowd.

Arben Dani was prolific off half-back with his line-breaking run-and-carry crucial to Banyule’s performance, while Josh Page impressed in midfield.

“It’s a really important win, it’s really competitive for that top-three at the moment,” Harris said.

“We were confident (at three-quarter-time) but we also knew how quickly Thomastown can score, so the game was well and truly up for grabs.

“We knew the wind wasn’t going to do it for us and they showed in the first five or six minutes of the fourth when they gave themselves some good looks.

“Arben’s had a good season, he’d been playing on a wing but he went to half-back today and was telling into the wind.

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“Josh Page, a young fella on ball, did a couple of jobs for us and each one he did really well and Mikey Edwards had to slide back to full-back in the second half and really shored us up down there.”

Langford and Capeci both finished with four goals.

Tyla Barrow, Luca Gioskos, Adrian Natoli and Jarryd Coulson were among Thomastown’s best in defeat.

Banyule faces Lower Plenty in arguably the match of the round on Saturday, while Thomastown will look to bounce back against ladder-leader Eltham.