Leading country football goalkickers for 2025 season
A Gippsland goalkicker who missed the ton last year due to suspension is on the brink of being the first to 100 goals in 2025.
Career-best form has Longwarry’s Jason Wells on the brink of becoming the first country footballer to kick 100 goals this season on Saturday.
A bumper haul of 20 goals last round against Poowong has Wells sitting on 95 goals to eclipse the 92 he booted last year when Longwarry was narrowly beaten in the Ellinbank District league preliminary final.
“This is easily the best form I’ve been in,’ he said.
“I still can’t believe it’s going to happen to be honest.
“We’ve got a couple of new players this year and the ball is definitely getting delivered a lot better which makes it a lot easier.
“I’ve been the one lucky enough to be on the end of it most weeks.”
Wells kicked 18 goals against Bunyip earlier this month and also booted 13 when Longwarry played Poowong early in the season.
A two-match suspension last year robbed the 33-year-old of the chance to kick 100 goals last year for the first time in his second season back at the club where his career started with an under-13s flag.
Wells played in three senior premierships with Kilcunda-Bass in the now defunct Alberton league between 2011-13.
In a career that has netted more than 1000 goals, Wells has also played for Nilma Darnum, Warragul Industrials and Koo Wee Rup before returning to Longwarry in search of another premiership.
“I always wanted to go back to Longwarry,” Wells said.
“It’s a family club and I’ve got family who play there.
“My daughter plays netball and it all made sense.”
Longwarry, which last won the flag in 2019, is sitting second behind undefeated Neerim South and plays Yarragon on Saturday.
Wells kicked six goals against Yarragon in round 4.
THE WRIGHT STUFF
Benalla’s Nathan Wright is on track to become the club’s first Goulburn Valley league leading goalkicker in a decade after a season-high nine goals against Mooroopna on Saturday.
Wright has kicked 32 goals for the season and was playing his second match back since hurting his hamstring representing the GV against Ovens & Murray last month.
Wright booted eight goals in a losing team against Rochester in round 6, but went one better in Benalla’s second win of the season.
The last Benalla player to top the GV goalkicking was Josh Mellington in a premiership-winning season of 2015.
Mellington kicked 87 goals in the home and away rounds before finishing on 111.
He is playing for Bears Lagoon-Serpentine again this season and has 48 goals midway through the season.
Wright, a 193cm key forward, joined Benalla from Queensland club Labrador this season.
Moe’s Ben Crocker is the most prolific goalkicker at major league level in 2025.
He added another seven against Wonthaggi on Saturday to boost his tally to 51.
Other leading goalkickers at major league level this season are Corowa-Rutherglen’s Kaelen Bradtke with 34 in the O&M, Eaglehawks’ Jack O’Shannessy with 26 in the Bendigo league, Bacchus Marsh’s Jake Owen with 33 in the Ballarat league, Warrnambool’s Luke Cody with 34 in the Hampden league and Stawell’s Paul Summers with 39 in the Wimmera league.
Mildura recruit Noah Pegoraro has booted 40 in the Sunraysia league and St Mary’s Patrick Dowling has kicked 31 in the Geelong league.
CENTURY IN SIGHT
Neerim South’s Mason McGarrity is charging towards his first 100-goal season at senior level in the Ellinbank District league with three double-figure hauls in his last four outings.
McGarrity has 64 goals for the season with another 12 goals against Catani last Saturday.
His hot form started in round 6 when he booted a club record 18 goals against Yarragon and followed up with 12 the next week against Poowong.
McGarrity was a regular player for Gippsland Power before Covid and swtiched from Warragul Industrials to Neerim South this season.
Another Ellinbank District spearhead, Longwarry’s Jason Wells, leads the statewide race to 100 with 75.
McGarrity has moved into second place one ahead of Wandin’s Aaron Mullett.
Bridgewater’s Lachlan Sharp has crossed the 50-goal mark with 10 against Mitiamo in the Loddon Valley league on Saturday.
CROCKER’S CRACKING RUN
Moe star recruit Ben Crocker is making his mark on the Gippsland league with his exploits in front of goals in the first half of the season.
Crocker has become the first player in the league to kick seven or more goals in three successive rounds since Traralgon’s Paul McCulloch in 1994.
The former AFL and VFL player booted seven goals against Morwell last Saturday to add to the two bags of eight he kicked against Drouin and Sale in the previous two rounds.
Crocker is the first Moe player to achieve this feat since Ian Jennings in 1973.
Jennings produced a brilliant four-match run of 11, 11, eight and nine goals on his way to 102 goals in the home and away rounds.
Jennings won the Gippsland league goalkicking award six times with the first occasion being in the club’s last flag in 1967.
In 1973, AFL Hall Of Famer Kelvin Templeton also kicked 100 goals for Traralgon aged 16.
Gippsland league historian Paul Carter said the best run of seven or more goals was the opening six weeks of the 1987 season when Sale’s Shane Loveless kicked 13, 11, 10, 12, eight and 13 to have 67 goals by round 6.
The legendary forward posted a league record 136 goals for the home and away season, plus four more in finals.
The previous season Loveless also kicked 100 goals in a Sale premiership year.
“Crocker’s tally stands at 42 goals after seven rounds,” Carter said.
“If or when he passes the 50-goal mark he will be the first Moe player to kick 50 goals in a season since Ryan Donaldson in 2011.”
Crocker presently holds a 22-goal lead over the rest of the field this year with the 2024 leading goalkicker, Bairnsdale’s Brayden McCarrey, limping from the ground in the first quarter last Saturday and taking no further part in the match against Sale.
McCarrey kicked 54 goals in the home and away rounds before being overtaken by Leongatha’s Jenson Garnham, who kicked six goals in two finals matches.
Meanwhile, Longwarry’s Jason Wells has taken the lead in the statewide goalkicking race with 67 after a big bag of 18 last Saturday.
BRIGHT START IN FRONT OF BIG STICKS
Bright’s Cooper Thomason is halfway to reaching the magical mark of booting 100 goals for the year, a feat which has eluded him for the past three seasons.
Thomason went into last year’s Ovens & King grand final on 99 goals for the season, but went goalless for the match when Greta ambushed Bright to win the flag by 68 points.
In 2023, he finished on 90 goals and the previous season booted 72 goals.
Last Saturday, Thomason booted 11 goals against struggling Benalla All Blacks to beat his previous best haul this season of 10 against Tarrawingee.
Thomason won Bright’s best and fairest last year.
He has taken the lead in the statewide goalkicking race with 52, one ahead of former AFL player Aaron Mullett, who is playing for Wandin.
Two other Ovens & King league forwards are within sight of 50 goals.
Whorouly coach Michael Newton has 46 goals for the season after booting seven goals in a loss to Goorambat.
Goorambat’s Duane Haebich kicked five goals in the victory to be on 45.
Kiewa-Sandy Creek’s Guy Telford is the big mover on the statewide goalkicking table with a bag of 16 against Wahgunyah to take him to 48 goals for the season.
GRENFELL RETURN TO FORM
A familiar name in the country footy goalkicking stakes returned to form for his new club last Saturday.
Brandyn Grenfell kicked the highest number of goals in the state in 2022 when he booted 154 goals for Marong and backed up with another 110 for the Loddon Valley club the following season.
Last year, Grenfell switched clubs and played for Central Murray league premiers Nyah Nyah West United and booted 89 goals.
This season, Grenfell reunited with his former Marong coach Linton Jacobs at Colbinabbin and had managed only four goals in his first three outings.
But his form returned last Saturday against Elmore when he booted 10 goals.
Colbinabbin and North Bendigo are undefeated in the Heathcote District league.
The biggest bag of goals for the round was kicked by Neerim South’s Mason McGarrity in the Ellinbank District league with 18.
Another Ellinbank District league forward, Jason Wells, has retained his lead in the statewide race for most goals in 2025.
He has 50 goals for the season in sight after another five last Saturday took his tally to 45.
Former Carlton and North Melbourne player Aaron Mullett is one behind on 44 goals for Wandin.
23 GOALS LEAVES SPENCER “WRECKED”
Cudgewa’s John Spencer has booted the biggest bag of goals in country footy this season with an incredible haul of 23 in the Upper Murray league last Saturday.
In only his second match for the club, Spencer helped Cudgewa to a 250-point thrashing of Corryong, which ranks as the fifth biggest win by a club in 2025.
Spencer had 20 goals by three quarter time, matching the number of goals another Cudgewa player, Kylin Morey, kicked in 2021.
“I was wrecked by that stage,” Spencer said.
“There wasn’t much left in the tank.
“I had one bloke on me for the first half with three more for the rest of the match.
“They had plenty of numbers in the twos, so I didn’t think numbers is the issue.
“They’re just missing a few topliners, but to their credit they battled hard.”
Spencer’s previous best haul at senior level was 13 for Brock Burrum Saints in the Hume league.
He booted 17 in the Chiltern reserves last year.
Morey’s big tally came against Federal, which folded at the end of the 2022 season, leaving the Upper Murray as the smallest league in the state with only four teams.
Cudgewa coach Josh Bartel played cricket under Spencer at Kiewa last summer and spent most matches trying to woo the goalkicker to the club following the departure of key forwards from last year, Guy Telford and Adam Prior.
“He kept annoying me every Saturday until I said yes,” Spencer said.
Spencer has also previously played for Rutherglen, North Wangaratta and Holbrook.
It’s still to be confirmed whether his haul is a new league record.
The next biggest bag of goals in 2025 was booted by another Upper Murray player, Bullioh’s Ash Murray, who kicked 16 against Corryong in the season opener.
HIGH FLYER MAKES A MOVE
First-year Whorouly coach Michael Newton has bolstered the strong representation of Ovens & King league players on the statewide goalkicking leaderboard this season.
The former AFL player and Wangaratta star booted 13 goals against Benalla All Blacks last round to move to 27 goals from only three games.
The O&K league has six players in the top-15 forwards in the state — the most by any competition.
A dairy farmer, Newton first played for Whorouly before being drafted to Melbourne where he played 28 matches between 2007 and 2011.
Newton took mark-of-the-year in his first season in the AFL when he soared over teammate David Neitz against North Melbourne.
He followed with a stint with Norwood in the SANFL before heading home and joining Wangaratta where he kicked eight goals in a best-on-ground performance in the 2017 Ovens & Murray grand final.
Goorambat’s Duane Haebich and Milawa’s Brady Bartlett are in joint third place with 31 goals with Haebich also kicking 13 goals in a match recently.
They trail joint leaders on 32 goals, Birchip-Watchem’s Ben Edwards and Longwarry’s Jason Wells.
Edwards missed the Bulls last clash, a thrilling win against Calder United by two points last round.
The other O&K players high on the leaderboard are Bright’s Cooper Thomason, who fell one goal short of kicking 100 last year.
He has 28 goals this season, one more than North Wangaratta’s Corey Smith.
Greta’s Frazer Judd is on 26.
BULLISH START TO SEASON FOR EDWARDS
Birchip-Watchem’s star forward Ben Edwards has opened an early break on his rivals in the race to be the state’s top goalkicker in 2025.
Edwards booted four goals for the Bulls in the North Central league grand final replay against Sea Lake-Nandaly last Saturday to move to 32 goals in only three games.
He leads a chasing pack of four players — Merrivale’s Dylan Weir, Greta’s Frazer Judd, Wandin’s Aaron Mullet and Longwarry’s Jason Wells — who are all on 26 goals.
The big mover was Wells, who booted 13 goals last round.
Wells kicked 91 goals in his first season for the club after switching from Koo Wee Rup.
One behind them are Berrigan recruit Keith Tallent and Goorambat’s Duane Haebich.
Tallent joined Berrigan from North Albury in the Ovens & Murray league after kicking 37 goals last season.
Another North Central forward Jhye Baddeley-Kelly is one further back after a brilliant start to the year with back-to-back bags of 10 goals against Charlton and Donald.
Edwards kicked 28 against the same two clubs.
Boort plays Sea Lake-Nandaly on Saturday.
Bullioh premiership forward Ash Murray made a sensational start to the season by booting 16 goals in the first round of the Upper Murray league against Corryong.
Murray kicked six goals in a best-on-ground performance in the grand final last year as Bullioh upset hot favourites Cudgewa.
GUN GOALKICKER SIDELINED AGAIN
Bears Lagoon-Serpentine star forward Josh Mellington has been sidelined again by injury after resuming his goalkicking exploits in the Loddon Valley opening round.
Mellington was on track to be the first forward in the state last year to boot 100 goals when he had booted 93 after only 10 rounds.
But a serious hamstring injury forced him to miss the rest of the season.
In round 1 against Bridgewater, Mellington kicked eight goals, trumping the six kicked by another league superboot, Bridgewater coach Lachlan Sharp.
But Mellington has suffered an abductor injury and missed round 2.
Bears Lagoon-Serpentine has the bye when the Loddon Valley league resumes this weekend after an Easter break.
Sharp leads the Loddon Valley goalkicking race with 15.
Also going down with injury early in the season is North Albury’s Josh Minogue, who won the Ovens & Murray league Doug Strang Medal for the leading goalkicker in 2024.
Minogue booted 61 goals in the home and away rounds and added another 11 in three finals as North Albury reached the preliminary final.
He broke his thumb in the round 1 loss to reigning premier Wangaratta Rovers.
The statewide leader is Birchip-Watchem’s Ben Edwards on 28 goals, including 15 last round against Donald.
Teammate Joseph Reid also booted 10 goals for Birchip-Watchem, which charged to a 223-point win.
Birchip-Watchem plays Sea Lake-Nandaly in the North Central grand final replay on Saturday.
10 FORWARDS TO WATCH IN 2025
Another country footy season has started and the star forwards are already booting big bags of goals.
Birchip-Watchem’s Ben Edwards booted 13 goals in the opening round of the North Central league to be the early leader in the statewide goalkicking race.
But he’s expected to have some hot competition with some players who also kicked 100 goals backing up for another season.
We’ve listed 10 forwards to keep an eye on in 2025.
BEN EDWARDS, Birchip-Watchem
Kicked more than 100 goals in a team that finished runner-up in the North Central league last season.
Brought up his ton when the Bulls pipped eventual premier Sea Lake-Nandaly in the second semi-final.
Began 2025 in ominous form when he kicked 13 against Charlton and is in line for another big bag in round 2 when the Bulls take on an undermanned Donald.
BRANDYN GRENFELL, Colbinabbin
Played in three flags and kicked more than 350 goals in the last three seasons.
Grenfell booted more than 100 goals for Marong in two premiership wins in 2022-23 before kicking 89 goals in another flag win by Nyah-Nyah West United last year.
JOSH MELLINGTON, Bears Lagoon-Serpentine
A severe hamstring injury last year ended his inevitable march towards kicking 100 goals in a fourth country footy league.
Mellington had booted 93 goals before he went down in round 10.
Has started the 2025 season on a high with eight goals against Bridgewater, which is being coached by Lachlan Sharp, who booted 138 goals in his first season in the Loddon Valley league.
LEIGH WILLIAMS, Yarrawonga
Been a consistent goalkicker since joining the Ovens & Murray club in 2022 when he booted 78 goals and another 65 when the Pigeons won the flag in 2023.
Takes over from Steve Johnson as Yarrawonga coach after the club’s shock grand final defeat last year.
Closing in 1000 career goals with 24 required to bring up four figures.
PATRICK IRELAND, Leongatha
After booting 111 goals in a premiership-winning season for Buln Buln in the Ellinbank District league, Ireland played the first round of 2025 with Leongatha and booted two goals.
He is also on the Casey Demons’ VFL list with another Leongatha player Jenson Garnham, but both will play again for Leongatha in round 2 due to the VFL competition-wide bye.
JAMES LLOYD, Murchison-Toolamba
Kicked the most goals by any player in country footy in 2024 with 137 goals for the eventual premiers in the Kyabram District league.
Booted 19 goals in round 9 and kicked double digit totals on four other occasions.
Started 2025 strongly with seven goals in the season opener against Girgarre.
JOSH RENTSCH, Penshurst
Dream return season to Penshurst for the player who tied for the 2021 Morrish Medal with another country footy star, Flynn Lakey.
Rentsch kicked 93 goals in the Mininera District league, won the league medal and played in a flag in the club’s 150th year.
Has been appointed co-coach of Penshurst with the reigning premiers fronting up against Wickliffe-Lake Bolac in the grand final replay on Saturday.
SAM DUNSTAN, Huntly
Despite kicking 51 goals in a team coming out of recess and winning only one match in one of the state’s strongest leagues, Dunstan won’t be part of the anticipated revival by Corowa-Rutherglen.
Instead, Dunstan will play at his fifth club since 2001 when he lines up for Huntly in the Heathcote District league.
TOM WILLIAMSON, Ararat
Incredible season for Ararat last year when he helped the club to back-to-back flags, won the Wimmera league Toohey Medal, topped the league goalkicking table and won the club’s best and fairest.
Ranked the No. 1 player in country football last year by the Weekly Times.
His 66 goals included six in the second semi-final win against Southern Mallee with a season best nine against Horsham Saints in round 5.
KYLE MUELLER, Congupna
The former Kyabram star made an instant impact on the Murray league when he averaged close to six goals per game in the opening six rounds.
Kicked 15 against Barooga in round 17 and brought up his 100th goal for the season in the one-point grand final win against Finley.
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