Mernda coach declares North Heidelberg a short-priced flag favourite

Mernda coach Brett Wilson concedes NFL Division 2’s challengers have ground to make up to catch North Heidelberg.

NFL football: Mernda versus Lalor at Mernda Recreation Reserve. Merndas' Robert Aparo,38 and Joel O'Reilly and Lalors' Shannon Smith,13. Pictures:Angie Basdekis

MERNDA coach Brett Wilson admits it will take something special to beat North Heidelberg to the Northern Football League Division 2 premiership.

In horse racing parlance, the Dogs have been the division’s Black Caviar, leaving Wilson to concede North Heidelberg has the rest of the competition covered by the length of the Flemington straight.

The Dogs hammered second-placed Mernda by 100 points in Round 9, showcasing their dominance over the league with an irresistible performance at Shelley Street Oval.

But Wilson hasn’t given up the chase yet and believes his side can still challenge when the whips are cracking in the final weeks of the season.

“They are flying, they’re up and about and I think they’ll get the chocolates,” Wilson said of North Heidelberg.

“I think they’re definitely a Flemington straight ahead.

“We’ve just got to get back to our best brand of footy and take it up to them.

“They denied us playing the way we wanted to play and that was a credit to them, they were ruthless in that area.”

Hurstbridge has come closest to knocking North Heidelberg off its perch, getting within 35 points on Saturday.

Mernda went down by 48 points against the Dogs in Round 2, but no side has come close to toppling the ladder-leader since.

Wilson said North Heidelberg was playing well enough to be competitive in Division 1.

He said the Dogs team that beat Mernda in Round 9 was the best he had coached against in years.

“Over the past two years, they’re the best side we’ve played,” he said.

“They’re a quality football side.”

The Demons meet North Heidelberg again in Round 17, two weeks before finals.

Both sides appear certain to figure in the final month of the season with the top three teams in Division 2 holding a three-game buffer over their nearest rivals.

The Dogs boast a percentage more than 100 points better than any other side and the competition’s top goal scorers Shane Harvey and Lachlan Dowling.

Their last lost was nine months ago against Whittlesea in the 2013 preliminary final.

Mernda squandered a golden opportunity to cement a top-two spot, losing to Lalor by 17 points on Saturday.

Fitzroy Stars’ surprise loss to Diamond Creek opened the door for Mernda, but it was unable to capitalise as Scott Dowell booted Lalor to victory.

In Division 1, Northcote Park recorded its best result of the season, downing Macleod by 47 points, while Whittlesea came within seven points of an almighty upset against Heidelberg.

In other results, West Preston-Lakeside trumped Bundoora by 23 points, while Thomastown chalked up a comfortable win in Division 3.