Bendigo, Hampden: Sandhurst and South Warrnambool win grand final thrillers
Country footy premierships have been won and lost all over Victoria and southern NSW. See all the winners here.
Ararat completed back-to-back premierships in the Wimmera league for the first time since its mid-1950s dynasty with every player in its latest flag team being a one-pointer.
Ararat completed back-to-back premierships in the Wimmera league for the first time since its mid-1950s dynasty with every player in its latest flag team being a one-pointer.
For the second season in a row, Ararat denied Southern Mallee its first Wimmera premiership with the Rats coming from behind in the final quarter to win by nine points at Dimboola.
In a first since the introduction of the player points system in country footy in 2016, Ararat played on only 21 points with no multiple point players in the team.
Ararat is led by co-coaches Tom Mills and Tom Williamson with the latter capping off a brilliant season when he also won the Toohey Medal and was the league’s leading goalkicker.
“We’re all local,” Mills said.
“I think there are only two players on our team who didn’t play juniors, but have played for us for a while now that they are down to one point.
“We’re really lucky in that sense.
“You haven’t got the luxury of just bringing blokes in all the time and you’ve got to invest in your juniors.
“Hopefully you put the time into them when they are young and they give it back eventually.”
The Rats played on 23 points when they won the second semi-final, but three-pointer, Sam Cronin, was replaced by James Jennings for the grand final.
Ararat trailed by 10 points at three quarter time and had use of the breeze in the final term.
The lead changed three times in the final quarter before the premiership was sealed with late goals to Jack Ganley and Pat Toner.
“I thought we were done to be honest,” Mills said.
Matt Spalding booted two goals in the final term to win the Binns Medal for best-on-ground and for the second year in a row Henry Shea won the under-21 medal for best player in the grand final.
Southern Mallee has kicked 6.16 and 9.14 in its two grand final defeats.
MATCH DETAILS
ARARAT 1.1 5.5 5.7 11.11 (77)
SOUTHERN MALLEE 3.3 3.5 6.11 9.14 (68)
Goals: ARARAT: T. Williamson 2, M. Spalding 2, B. Taylor 2, J. Ganley 2. E. Summers, T. Mills, P. Toner. SOUTHERN MALLEE: Z. Robins 2, L. Nelson 2, B. Lowe 2, J. Fisher, X. Oakley, B. Lloyd.
Best: ARARAT: M. Spalding, H. Shea, E. Summers, B. Taylor, C. Lindsay, P. Toner. SOUTHERN MALLEE: S. White, B. Lloyd, X. Oakley, S. Clugston, L. White, Z. Robins.
CENTRAL MURRAY
Nyah Nyah West United ambushed grand final specialists Kerang at Swan Hill on Saturday to win its first Central Murray league flag since going back-to-back in 2000-01.
The premiership was safely in Demons’ hands by halftime when they raced to a 49-point lead by doing the unthinkable of keeping Kerang goalless for the opening two quarters of a grand final.
The changing of the guard was complete when the Demons booted five goals in the final term to seal a 54-point win.
Young gun Ethan Curran, who has kicked six goals in the preliminary final win against Mallee Eagles, set the tone in the opening few minutes of the grand final when he ran back with flight of ball, took the mark on his chest and converted from 30m out.
Another teenager Max Thompson, 15, kicked the first of three for the match courtesy of a 50m penalty as Kerang had its worst day of the season in the grand final.
Its woes were compounded when goalkicker Brett Kennedy was yellow-carded in the second term.
“We just came out and put them under pressure,” Nyah Nyah West United co-coach Jason Murphy said.
“That was where the game was won.
“The boys committed to it all day and done it all day.
“We blew them out of the water.
“It’s how we drew it up during the week with the key being to pressure them all day.”
The Demons’ other co-coach Nick O’Neill also made his impact on the ground when he booted goals either side of quarter time to keep them firmly in control.
Midfielders Jordan Ludica and Dom Gallo ran amok with Nyah Nyah West United ruckman Blake Larkings more than matching it with Kerang’s Nick Lang.
Two goals in time-on from Demons’ star forward Brandyn Grenfell was the perfect way to finish a dominant first half.
Nyah Nyah West United key defenders Joel Walsh and Joel Campbell totally locked down the Kerang forward line.
Kerang was attempting to win a hat-trick of flags under departing coach Troy Coates, but was no match for the Demons despite the best efforts of Jesse Clark, Lachlan Ross and Martin Kelly.
MATCH DETAILS
NNW UNITED 4.6 8.8 10.12 15.16 (106)
KERANG 0.2 0.7 3.8 7.10 (52)
Goals: NNW UNITED: B. Grenfell 4, M. Thompson 3, N. O’Neill 2, R. Daniels 2, D. Gallo, A. Erlandson, E. Saville, E. Curran. KERANG: B. Kennedy 2, M. Kelly, A. Baird, N. Lang, T. Hetherington, J. Nitschke.
Best: NNW UNITED: E. Curran, J. Walsh, J. Stirling, E. Saville, J. Campbell, Z. O’Shannassy. KERANG: J. Clark, L. Ross, M. Kelly, S. Heavyside, T. Clingan, J. Nitschke.
HUME
The farming district with the fabulous footy team delivered another premiership in the Hume league on Saturday.
Osborne and Holbrook met in the grand final at Walbundrie on Saturday for the third successive year with Osborne making amends for the 2022 loss by winning for the second season in a row against the Brookers.
Osborne made a slow start when it conceded the first four goals of the match against the breeze.
But from quarter time onwards it clicked into premiership-winning mode.
The Tigers kicked four goals of their own in the second term to take the lead at halftime and held Holbrook goalless from quarter time to eventually record a 29 point win.
Holbrook kicked 0.9 in the last three quarters of the match.
Osborne coach Myles Aalbers didn’t take his place in the team after suffering a hamstring injury in the second semi-final and masterminded the huge turnaround from the sidelines.
Aalbers played the bulk of his career at Ovens & Murray club Lavington where Osborne’s greatest player, Adam Schneider, will coach again next year.
Veteran ruckman Duncan McMaster won the Des Kennedy Medal for best-on-ground in his fourth premiership win for Osborne with another flag won at Tallangatta.
Brothers Clancy, Declan and Connor Galvin are also four-time flag winners with Osborne as are forward George Alexander and Sam Rutland.
Connor Galvin featured in Osborne’s best players along with Charlie Douglas, Hugh Schmetzer, Daniel Madden and Kai Watts.
Galvin was also the only multiple goalkicker in the grand final with two goals.
Holbrook beat Osborne in round four, but Osborne won the return match at home and two finals against the Brookers.
Osborne has won 10 flags since 2000 after winning six in the 1990s.
MATCH DETAILS
OSBORNE 1.3 5.4 7.5 9.9 (63)
HOLBROOK 4.1 4.4 4.6 4.10 (34)
Goals: OSBORNE: C. Galvin 2, K. Watts, G. Alexander, D. McMaster, D. O’Rourke, D. Galvin, I. McDonnell, A. Smith. HOLBROOK: L. Gestier, J. Jones, K. McCarthy, J. Mitchell.
Best: OSBORNE: D. McMaster, C. Douglas, H. Schmetzer, D. Madden, C. Galvin, K. Watts. HOLBROOK: A. Dear, J. Hucker, K. McCarthy, J. Triggs, C. Hewat, W. Holmes.
BENDIGO
A returning favourite son has led Sandhurst to premiership glory in the Bendigo league grand final, helping the Dragons claim a trifecta of football flags at the Queen Elizabeth Oval on Saturday.
Captain Lachlan Tardrew, who returned to the Dragons this season after 100 games with Collingwood VFL, capped a perfect season claiming a prized premiership medallion and the Nalder Medal for a best-on-ground grand final performance to go with his joint league best and fairest award, the Michelsen Medal.
The Dragons, who were beaten by six points in last season’s decider by Golden Square, claimed a thrilling four-point win after holding on against a charging Gisborne.
It reversed the result from the second semi-final a fortnight earlier when Gisborne won by 23 points.
Just two points separated the teams at halftime after Sandhurst arrested a slow start, before a five-goal third term gave them a 27-point lead at the final change.
However, buoyed by a stiff breeze Gisborne mounted a final quarter challenge.
The Bulldogs booted five goals to close the gap to four points with just minutes remaining, but were unable to retake the lead.
On the dais, outgoing Sandhurst co-coach Ashley Connick dedicated the flag to Danny Ellis, who died this year, aged 57, following a decade-long battle with leukaemia.
“We worked a long time for this,” Connick said.
“We had to go through a fair bit after losing last year.
“This one’s for Danny.”
Ellis played 115 matches for the Dragons between 1985 and 1993 and won the league goalkicking award, the Ron Best Medal twice.
He also served 11 years as president.
Next season, Tardrew will co-coach Sandhurst with Bryce Curnow, who returned from injury to play in the grand final.
Sandhurst beat Gisborne in the reserves, 11.5 (71) to 4.11 (35) and also beat Gisborne in the under-18s, 12.14 (86) to 2.5 (17).
MATCH DETAILS
SANDHURST 2.0 4.4 9.7 10.8 (68)
GISBORNE 3.1 4.2 5.4 10.4 (64)
Goals: SANDHURST: L. Tardrew 2, J. McLean 2, J. Wharton, F. Greene, H. Free, M. Wilkinson, L. Hood, D. Uerata. GISBORNE: P. McKenna 3, M. Merrett 2, J. Gray, R. Bourke, H. Luxmoore, F. Lakey, B. Bernacki.
Best: SANDHURST: L. Tardrew, L. Wright, J. Coghlan, N. Walsh, B. Curnow, C. Maxted. GISBORNE: J. Reaper, L. Spear, M. Lord, Z. Vescovi, F. Schipano, J. Ainsworth.
HAMPDEN
A player who has spent long stints in reserves for the last two years and was still playing in the early game at the start of this season was the hero of South Warrnambool’s one-point win over North Warrnambool in the Hampden league grand final on Saturday.
Walker Owen didn’t break into the Roosters senior line-up until round six, but kicked the only goal in the final quarter of one of the lowest scoring grand finals in league history.
His long set shot at the 22-minute mark to put the Roosters back in front followed soon after a 50m penalty when an Eagles player ran across the mark near the interchange gates.
The Roosters then survived a succession of late scoring attempts from North Warrnambool to hang on and seal back-to-back flags under coach Matt Battistello.
Defender Isaac Thomas produced his own “Leo Barry” moment when he pulled in a chest mark on the last line of defence for the Roosters.
The thrilling finish was in complete contrast to 12 months ago when South Warrnambool dominated from the opening bounce to win by 35 points.
The Eagles also lost the 2022 and 2019 grand finals to Koroit and are still in search of their first Hampden league flag.
Sam Kelly competed strongly against North Warrnambool coach Nathan Vardy in the ruck in the final term to also help the Roosters hang on.
Corey Gallichan, who didn’t play in the grand final win last year, also negated the influence of Maskell Medal winner Jett Bermingham.
MATCH DETAILS
SOUTH WARRNAMBOOL 1.3 2.3 3.5 4.5 (29)
NORTH WARRNAMBOOL 0.1 1.5 3.7 3.10 (28)
Goals: SOUTH WARRNAMBOOL: J. Dye 2, S. Kelly, W. Owen. NORTH WARRNAMBOOL: T. Batten 2, S. Motlop.
Best: SOUTH WARRNAMBOOL: A. Stevens, H. Lee, C. Gallichan, D. Nicholson, W. Owen, S. Beks. NORTH WARRNAMBOOL: R. Scoble, J. Lewis, M. Barlow, D. Bermingham, B. Jenkinson, A. Noske
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