SEVEN clubs marked premiership success across last weekend’s Bendigo Bank Bendigo Junior Football League grand finals.
An exciting season to the 2026 season was played out at C and M Oval in Eaglehawk’s Canterbury Park, Queen Elizabeth Oval in Bendigo, Harry Trott Oval in Kennington, and Triple M Park in Strathfieldsaye.
There were 14 clubs represented as 11 matches were played.
Age groups and divisions ranged from under-12 A, B C and D; under-12 Girls; under-14 A, B and C; under-15 Girls; and under-16 A and B.
South Bendigo took honours in under-12A, 12C, 14A and 14B, and was runner-up in under-14C.
Strathfieldsaye Storm surged to victory in the under-16A and 16B matches.
Other clubs to raise the premiership cup were Kangaroo Flat, under-12D; Marong, under-14C; Rochester, under-12 Girls; Sandhurst Navy, under-15 Girls; and White Hills, under-12B.
Teams to cap the season by being runner-up were Castlemaine, under-12B; Eaglehawk, under-16B; Golden Square, under-16A; Heathcote, under-12D; Sandhurst under-14A and 14B; St Kilian’s St Peter’s, under-12C; St Francis Green, under-12 Girls; St Therese’s, under-12A; and Strathfieldsaye, under-15 Girls.
Grand final weekend kicked off with Friday night’s under-12 Girls match between Rochester and St Francis at C and M Oval in Eaglehawk’s Canterbury Park.
The Tigers and Eagles had met in the second semi-final where Rochester charged to a 44-13 victory.
In the “big one” it was Rochester which led 8-0 at quarter-time before St Francis struck back with the only goal in the second term.
Two majors in the third meant the yellow and black was up 20-7 going into the final quarter.
St Francis fought back to score 2.1, but a goal by Rochester clinched a 26-20 victory.
Rochester captain Frankie Hay kicked two goals and was best along with Ava Rasmussen and Ella Forde.
On Saturday morning the under-16A match between Golden Square and Strathfieldsaye was played at Queen Elizabeth Oval in Bendigo.
Both teams had 13-1 records in the home-and-away series.
A hard-fought second semi-final between the Bulldogs and Storm ended in a 48-44 win for Golden Square in White Hills.
Storm struck back to win the preliminary final against South Bendigo by 15 goals.
In the grand final it was Strathfieldsaye which led 22-21 at half-time.
Storm unleashed a five-goal blitz in the third term.
By the last change Strathfieldsaye was up 53-30.
A winning score of 67-32 by Strathfieldsaye featured nine goalkickers.
South Bendigo capped an unbeaten run to be under-12A premiers.
The young Bloods had beaten St Therese’s in the second semi-final by 31 points and faced the Sharks on grand final day at Harry Trott Oval in Kennington.
It was an evenly-fought first half as South Bendigo led 17-14 by the break.
The Bloods won the third term, 20-7, and then scored another three goals in the last to complete a 57-29 victory.
Best for South Bendigo were Nash McMaster, Teddy Taylor and Percy Waterman.
Hugo Pertzel, Lenny Edwards and Lenny Gretgrix were best for the Sharks.
White Hills marked a 19-point win in the under-12B match with Castlemaine at Harry Trott Oval.
The Demons had finished the season on top of the ladder as the Magpies made their way to the grand final from third place.
It was a goalless first half as White Hills led five-four at the break.
The Demons goaled in the third and then added to in the last to complete a 24-5 victory.
Best for White Hills were Jackson and Jovi Boyd, and Oliver Anfuso.
Castlemaine’s best were Reuben O’Sullivan, Fletcher Cheesman and Sid Wiese.
It was a three-point thriller in the under-12C clash between South Bendigo and St Kilian’s-St Peter’s at Harry Trott Oval.
The young Bloods had made their way from the first semi-final as St Kilian’s-St Peter’s finished the home-and-away series in second place.
South Bendigo led 15-7 at half-time of the grand final and then scored 1.2 as St Kilian’s-St Peter’s added a goal in the third.
Pressure was high in the final quarter which St Kilian’s-St Peter’s won, 14-7, but it was the Bloods who led 30-27 at the siren.
South Bendigo’s best were Jye Benbow, Jevan DeAraugo and Flynn Smythe.
Josiah Patton, Jimmy Cox and Massimo Gill played well for St Kilian’s-St Peter’s.
Closest result across the weekend was in under-12D where Kangaroo Flat held on for a 28-26 victory against Heathcote at Harry Trott Oval.
Both teams went 13-2 in the run to the finals.
After a one-point loss to Maiden Gully YCW Eagles in the qualifying final, Kangaroo Flat bounced back to win the first semi against Strathfieldsaye and the preliminary against the Eagles by 33 points.
Heathcote had beaten the Eagles in the second semi by nine points.
The Saints charged to a 26-7 lead by half-time of the grand final.
Kangaroo Flat hit back to win the third, eight-nil.
As the Roos scored 2.1 in the last they grabbed the lead and held on for a 28-26 victory.
Huddo Kent, Sonny Hull and Lachlan Boyd were Kangaroo Flat’s best.
South Bendigo faced Sandhurst in the under-14A match at Triple M Park in Strathfieldsaye’s Tannery Lane.
The Bloods led 20-15 at half-time and then won the crucial third term, 14-9.
Sandhurst hit back to score three straight goals in the last, but the Bloods added two majors to claim a 49-42 victory.
Cael White, Will Waters and Will Shadbolt were best for the Bloods.
The Dragons’ best were Levi Bell, Oliver Lalor and Henry Cooney.
South Bendigo charged to a 37-point win against Sandhurst at Triple M Park to be under-14B premier.
The Bloods were up 18-13 at half-time and then scored 2.4 in the third.
A 20-point lead going into the last increased as South Bendigo added 2.5 on its way to a 51-14 result.
Harry Burchell, Darby Kramer and Brant McRory were best for the Bloods.
Sandhurst’s best were Zach Dyer, Jack Skinner and Sam Gee.
The Panthers from Marong dominated the under-14C clash with South Bendigo to win by 58 points.
Marong had 35 scoring shots at Harry Trott Oval.
The Bloods led 24-20 at quarter-time, but from there it was Marong which controlled a lot of the play.
Marong won the second term, 20-nil.
It was an exciting third quarter in which Marong scored 3.4 and the Bloods added three straight goals.
The Panthers then broke free as they slammed on 5.8 in the final quarter on the way to a 100-42 victory.
Details on Marong’s best were not supplied.
Best for South Bendigo were Hunter Fitzallen, Jake Lawrence and Seb Collie.
Sandhurst Navy won a top contest with Strathfieldsaye in the under-15 Girls grand final at Triple M Park.
Unbeaten in the home-and-away series, Sandhurst Navy won the second semi-final against Sandhurst White by seven points.
Strathfieldsaye struck back from a nine-point loss to Sandhurst White in the qualifying final to win the first semi against Golden Square by 17 points.
Storm then surged into the grand final after a 51-14 win against Sandhurst White in the preliminary final.
A point separated Navy and Storm at three quarter-time of the grand final as Sandhurst led 20-19.
The Dragons turned up the heat and scored two goals as Strathfieldsaye added one.
Ahlyssa Moefaauo was best afield as Sandhurst Navy clinched a 33-25 victory.
Strathfieldsaye’s best were Mia Hirst, Cammie Fitzgerald and Lucy Pollock.
The final match of the season was the under-16B clash between Strathfieldsaye and Eaglehawk at Triple M Park.
Storm had a 13 wins, a loss and a draw in the home-and-away series as the Hawks were in second place on a 12-2-1 record.
Strathfieldsaye led 20-17 at half-time of the grand final and then scored five goals in the third as the Borough added 2.2.
Both teams scored 2.1 in the last as Storm marked a 67-44 win and a premiership.
Strathfieldsaye’s best were Declan Brasher, Oden Dean and Eli Fennell.
The Hawks’ best were Archer Harrison, Jett McConnell and Kaiden Holborn.
Bendigo Bank Bendigo Junior Football League grand final scoreboard:
Under-12 Girls
Rochester 4.2 (26) d St Francis Green 3.2 (20).
GOALS – Rochester: Frankie Hay 2, Ella Forde, Sophie Godden. St Francis Green: not supplied.
BEST – Rochester: Frankie Hay, Ava Rasmussen, Ella Ford, Annemarie Smith, Sophie Godden, Mackenzie Harvey. St Francis Green: not supplied.
Under-12A:
South Bendigo 8.9 (57) d St Therese’s 4.5 (29)
GOALS – South Bendigo: Teddy Taylor 4, Thomas Ashby, Lenny Flaherty, Max Harper, Sonny Rodda. St Therese’s: Lenny Gretgrix 2, Mason Cluff, Parker Findlay.
BEST – South Bendigo: Nash McMaster, Teddy Taylor, Percy Waterman, Max Harper, Rupert Marshall. St Therese’s: Hugo Pertzel, Lenny Edwards, Lenny Gretgrix, Louis Lapthorne, Parker Findlay, Lewis Boxshall.
Under-12B:
White Hills 3.6 (24) d Castlemaine 0.5 (5).
GOALS – White Hills: Jackson Boyd, Bodhi Dinsdale, Bill Neyland.
BEST – White Hills: Jackson Boyd, Jovi Boyd, Oliver Anfuso, Sebastian Watts, Tyler Johnstone, Bill Neyland. Castlemaine: Reuben O’Sullivan, Fletcher Cheesman, Sid Wiese, Darcy Brown, Sandy Atkin, George Cordy.
Under-12C:
South Bendigo 4.6 (30) d St Kilian’s-St Peter’s 4.3 (27).
GOALS – South Bendigo: Levi Bright, Jaxson Brown, Thomas Gould, Charlie Worme. St Kilian’s-St Peter’s: Josiah Patton 2, Heath Barber, Finn Rees.
BEST – South Bendigo: Josiah Patton, Jimmy Cox, Massimo Gill, Finn Rees, Jackson Chapman, Heath Barber. St Kilian’s-St Peter’s: Jye Benbow, Jevan DeAraugo, Flynn Smythe, Ronny Epps, Charlie Worme, Josh Purton.
Under-12D:
Kangaroo Flat 4.4 (28) d Heathcote 4.2 (26).
GOALS – Kangaroo Flat: Sonny Hull 2, Otis Mahon, Taelon Watson. Heathcote: Taj Barrett, Braxton Osborne, Jack Tobin, Josh Vanzin.
BEST – Kangaroo Flat: Sonny Hull, Lachlan Boyd, Huddo Kent, Raine Whyman, Logan Moyle, Otis Mahon. Heathcote: Josh Vanzin (only name supplied).
Under-14A:
South Bendigo 6.13 (49) d Sandhurst 6.6 (42).
GOALS – South Bendigo: Will Shadbolt, Will Waters 2, Henry Macnee, Cael White. Sandhurst: Levi Bell, Harry Rees 2, Xavier Mulqueen, Elijah Willits.
BEST – South Bendigo: Cael White, Will Waters, Will Shadbolt, Flynn Todd, Fraser Maddren, Jed King. Sandhurst: Levi Bell, Oliver Lalor, Henry Cooney, Quinn Casey, Sam Davie, Jimmy Byrne.
Under-14B:
South Bendigo 6.15 (41) d Sandhurst 2.2 (14).
GOALS – South Bendigo: Hudson Membery 3, Arch Stacey 2, Archer Griffin. Sandhurst: Brady Brown, Miller Fletcher.
BEST – South Bendigo: Harry Burchell, Darby Kramer, Brant McRory, Lucas McCarthy, Archie Clarke, Arch Stacey. Sandhurst: Zach Dyer, Jack Skinner, Sam Gee, Brady Brown, Henry Bannan, Archie Smith.
Under-14C:
Marong 13.22 (100) d South Bendigo 7.0 (42).
GOALS – Marong: not supplied. South Bendigo: Bailey Cason 4, Seb Collie 2, Jake Lawrence.
BEST – Marong not supplied. South Bendigo: Hunter Fitzallen, Jake Lawrence, Seb Collie, Kale King, Bailey Cason, Navarre Blake.
Under-15 Girls:
Sandhurst Navy 5.3 (33) d Strathfieldsaye 3.7 (25).
GOALS – Sandhurst Navy: Ahlyssa Moefaauo (only name supplied). Strathfieldsaye: Mia Hirst, Cammie Fitzgerald, Lucy Pollock, Greta Pollock, Layla Hand, Bonnie Bortolotto.
Under-16A:
Strathfieldsaye 10.7 (67) d Golden Square 3.14 (32).
GOALS – Strathfieldsaye: Charlie Giddings 2, James Beattie, Alistair Hughes, Keelan McInerney, Jed Monaghan, Miller Polglase, Chace Powley, Zander Walker, Jed Willis.
BEST– Strathfieldsaye: Dominic Gormly (only name supplied). Golden Square: Adam Holland, Ryan McLean, Carter Andrews, Archer Lethlean, Francis Walls, Jack Allen.
Under-16B:
Strathfieldsaye 10.7 (67) d Eaglehawk 6.8 (44).
GOALS – Strathfieldsaye: Eli Fennell, Isaiah Oataway 3, Oden Dean 2, Harry Freeman. Jed Mannix. Eaglehawk: Archer Harrison 2, Mason Hastings, Aston Rae, Max Scandolera, Taiglan Turton.
BEST – Strathfieldsaye: Declan Brasher, Oden Dean, Eli Fennell, Jed Mannix, Isaiah Oataway, Harvey Young. Eaglehawk: Archer Harrison, Jett McConnell, Kaiden Holborn, Taiglan Turton, Zac Farrow, Max Scandolera.