There were no huge surprises in the Golden Rivers on the weekend, with top 4 teams v bottom 4 teams in most matches.
A slow start for the home team out at Ultima saw the Roos down at half time, with Wandella holding a comfortable a 36-point lead. Seven unanswered goals in the 3rd was the icing on the cake for Wandella, who secured the four points with a 14-goal win. Wandella have a tough run home, so will need to keep in winning form to hold onto their finals foothold. Ultima are out of contention but have the chance to secure a few more wins before the end of the season.
Better players for Ultima were Kyle Symons, Sean O’Reilly, Will Nelson, Martyn Cooper, Jack Gervasi & Riley Haberman; and Wandella bests went to Russell Rich, Kane Timmins, Mitch Collins, Mitchell Treacy, Darren Rushton & Austin Crellin.
Despite some inaccuracy in front of goals, Moulamein managed a convincing, and much needed, win against a young Hay outfit. The 9-goal win sees Moulamein gain a two game buffer from Macorna, who are challenging them for a spot in finals – Moulamein need to keep on the winning track to cement themselves in the top 4. Hay are unable to make finals at this stage but, with a few winnable games in the last three rounds, they will be looking to finish the year strongly with a few more w’s on the board.
Top 6 player for Moulamein were Rodney Reeves, Morgan Turvey, Daniel Aarsman, Nathan Buckley, Josh Flight & Mason Bailey; Brait Headon, Nathan Wilson, Brad Pocock, Simon Bunyan, Angus Gardiner & Trent Lang were stand out’s for Hay.
Macorna, now two games outside the top 4, needed a win on the weekend, however, Nullawil had other ideas, beating the Tigers in a commanding 22 goal victory. Nullawil are currently on top of the ladder, and should stay there, but have a relatively tough run home so can’t afford to take their foot off the pedal just yet. Macorna must win their last three games to give themselves any chance of finals footy this year.
10 goals from an in-form Mitch Farmer gave him b.o.g honours, with Matt Quigley, Jordan Humphreys, Jonathan Casey, Josh Bamford & Zac Kelly also playing well; they couldn’t quite get the job done, but better performers for Macorna were Shaun Haffenden, Dylan Goulding, Lachlan Ritchie, Kansas Varker, Toby Whinfield & Malcolm Neiwand.
Quambatook put in a consistent 4-quarter performance against Murrabit, coming away with an impressive 90-point win. Despite this loss, Murrabit will be looking to finish their season on a high, which is achievable with their last three games against bottom 4 teams. Quambatook are not so lucky with their run home, facing mostly top 4 teams, so will need to continue their strong form to hold onto their second ladder spot.
Murrabit’s better players, in their loss, were Benjamin Gillingham, Michael Grant, Dustin Blake, Nathan O’Toole, Thomas Hetherington & Jordan McNeil; Ricky Wild continued his string of form, kicking 4 majors in a best on ground performance, while Bradley Organ, William Collicoat, Tobie Cameron, Jonty Taylor & Dylan Pascoe also played well for Quambatook.
Written by AFLCV Staff.
Photo Credit – Wandella FNC