West Brunswick makes dominant start to VAFA Division 3 season after promotion

WEST Brunswick has taken little time to find its feet in Victorian Amateur Football Association Division 3, taking all before it over the first five rounds of 2015.

Chris Germon collects the ball on the boundary during West Brunswick's VAFA Division 4 grand final win. Picture: Julia Germon.

WEST Brunswick has taken little time to find its feet in Victorian Amateur Football Association Division 3, taking all before it over the first five rounds of 2015.

No side got within 40 points of last year’s Division 4 premier over the opening five rounds as the Magpies started the campaign with a series of commanding performances.

Convincing wins over finals­ aspirants Hawthorn and Aquinas underlined West Brunswick’s class.

Coach Angus Hamilton said his side needed to capitalise on its strong start, predicting nine wins could be enough to feature in finals.

“We couldn’t have asked for a better start,” Hamilton said last week.

“We’ve been pretty lucky with the draw.

“Hawthorn and Aquinas, who I think will be at the top end of the ladder come the end of the season, were both understrength when we came across them.

“Even La Trobe (last week), they had 14 away with a musical festival.

“Over a 16-game season to have four in the bank already, it’s pretty good.”

The Magpies have a vastly different team to last year, with more than 50 per cent of their grand final side moving on.

But the club’s ambition remains the same, with early results proving it will not settle for second best.

“We’ve managed to get some numbers back and I think talent-wise we’ll be as good if not better than last year,” Hamilton said.

“Whether they play as well as a team, I guess that’s the big question.

“We were a bit unsure how we’d go ...(but) we’re comfortable enough we’re not out of our depth by any stretch.”

Hamilton said the club was still riding the momentum of its 2014 premiership win.

“We’ve had a few returning blokes and two or three of our best half dozen were injured for the grand final last year,” he said. “There’s a bit of hunger with them coming back as well.”

He said the depth available to most clubs had been the most noticeable difference between Division 4 and Division 3.

West Brunswick continued its perfect start on Saturday with a 68-point win over UHS-VU.

Dylan Muscat starred in the victory with five goals, while Chris Germon also impressed.

The Magpies have the bye this weekend.