VAFA: All the talking points from Division action

St Mary’s Salesian sent a statement to its VAFA rivals with a big win as coach Clay Tait reveals what pleased him most about the performance. And the small forward reaping the rewards of patience.

St Mary’s Salesian secured a massive win. Photo: VAFA Media.

St Mary’s Salesian coach Clay Tait is enjoying the ride to start 2025 but he’s approaching what lay ahead cautiously.

The Saints are 2-0 to start the season after recording a 140-point thumping of Hawthorn in Saturday’s Division 2 clash as Tait’s side proved why they’re right in the mix as finals contenders this season.

“It’s only two games,” the coach stressed.

“Last year, our best was really good and our worst was really poor, we’re trying to close the gap. We’ve got a lot of guys getting towards the 40 to 50 game mark of senior experience now and we want to see more growth.

“The key is to string it together for an extended period, not just two games. We’ve got a mantra of know your role, accept your role and execute your role. Picking our best on Saturday was really difficult, we didn’t know who to give it to.

“Our boys are learning good sides need to continue with their work. Even when we were up by 65 points at halftime, the message was to keep going. We might have let them back in the contest if it was last season.”

There were plenty of positives for the Saints to take away from the victory over the course, but one of the most promising was the seven-goal performance from Jacob McElroy.

He returned to the club last season but elected to play in the lower grades to get through a season on the comeback trail from injury.

McElroy was at the club in 2021 before stints with Glen Waverley and Mordialloc.

“He’s barely missed a session,” Tait said.

“He’s a small forward who just knows how to get to the right spots. It’s good to see him having so much confidence in his body.

“I think the most pleasing thing for me throughout the game was we had 11 different goalkickers.”

After the Easter break, Tait’s side will take on a South Melbourne Districts side who have started the year 0-2.

“Looking at the results, a few have surprised me,” he said.

“A few sides seem to have players out at the moment so banking wins early is important. We’re off to a strong start but it will probably be a few weeks before we can reassess where we are at.”

Ben Tricarico, Michael Baysinger, Luke McKay, Jack Contencin, Alex Stork and Liam Moulday were named among the best on the weekend.

UNICORNS YOUNG GUNS SHINE

MHSOB would be pleased with what they’re seeing from some of their young stars. While Duncan Clarke and Mathew Pereira (five goals) were best afield in the 41-point win over Canterbury, there’s plenty to like from the Unicorns. Lucas Judd proved his class as a forward with four goals while Yonal Gunawardena was named in the best for the second straight week. Leo Motyl-Coverdale also impressed in his second game at senior level.

Lucas Judd before his debut in Round 1.

PAYZE LIGHTS UP PIRATES’ SHOOTOUT WIN

Old Peninsula made a 2-0 start to the season after claiming a 31-point win over UHS-VU in what was an old fashioned shootout. The Pirates won 19.19 (133) to 16.6 (102) as Bailey Payze continued his brilliant start to the season with eight goals in a best on ground display. Kurt Thiele was highly impressive during the win while Lochie Baczyk also impressed.

A STUNNING RETURN

Tom Beck hadn’t played a game of footy since a 2019 reserves appearance according to his PlayHQ profile but he’s made a stunning return to life at the Preston Bullants. He made his senior debut back in 2017 when he was still an under-19s player. Now he’s played the first two senior games of the season. On Saturday, he was best afield as the Bullants secured their first win of the season, courtesy of an 19-point win over Monash Blues. Matthew Marinucci and Serge Mariani were among the young guns to impress as coach Tom Hill kicked three.

WATTLE PARK’S STATEMENT

If you needed a result to prove Wattle Park was a serious finals contender in Division 3, this was it. The Animals secured a 63-point thumping of last year’s minor premier North Brunswick to announce their arrival into the competition. Leaders Nathan Bird and Harry Davis kicked three apiece while Tom Ferguson was more than a handful. Connor Xipolitos was best afield.

COACH BEAU THRIVES FOR BOX HILL NORTH

Box Hill North coach Beau Parthenides led the way in his side’s first win of the season, best afield, in a 12-point win over La Trobe. The big man was influential across the ground in a game where accuracy, 11.7 to 8.13, proved pivotal for the home side. Tim Stanghi, Jonathan Tommasoni, Matthew Wong, Josh Alderson and Cristian Christopoulos were also among the better players.