Read about all the action from Round 7 in these match reports written by our players!
Men’s Seniors
UHS-VU 8.14.62 – Preston Bullants 7.13.55
Goal Kickers: Fraser Allen 2, Patrick Brookes, Kaidin Jackson, Ethan Clarke, Esubalew Ramsay, Michael Healey
Written by Ethan Clarke
In what has been dubbed Premier C’s northern derby the 2019 grand final rematch was a contest the whole division had an eager eye on. The winner, to be crowned King in the North!
A strong breeze was an early foe the Uni boys as Ezza’s coin tossing skills continued their struggling form. However, a fast start resulted in a golden opportunity for Kaiden to get an early goal was missed, but for perhaps the first time this year Uni High drew first blood on the scoreboard. Fraser Allen stamped his dominance on the opposition ruckman, his ruck craft providing our midfielders first class service. In a tightly contested first quarter Preston, with the help of the breeze, pulled 20 points ahead, which would have been 26 if it were not for Fergus’ magnificent chase down bump tackle which left everyone in awe.
Quarter two was Uni’s time to shine, with the breeze in our back the goals started to flow. Ezza was massive in the engine room, cracking into the contest and leading from the front. Kaiden added to the list of people kicking their first senior goal in 2021 with a great goal from the half forward flank which really lifted the team’s spirit and belief. With the half time siren approaching scores were tight between the two enemies, with UHS desperate to get another goal they needed an unlikely hero to step up. Ethan Clarke from the back pocket wandered too far forward in an ambitious attempt to sneak a snag, thankfully he succeeded with a goal line toe poke giving the team a one goal buffer at half time.
The premiership quarter started off full of promise for Uni with Patty Brookes weaving through traffic and grabbing marks. The quarter was on Uni’s terms early and at the 10-minute mark Fraser Allen grabbed the ball out of a forward ball up and snapped a crucial goal. In what was a tough grinding quarter, James Dimattina’s full speed spin move on the wing was something for the highlight reel. When the three-quarter time siren sounded, Uni High still held the lead by a couple of points.
The scene was set for a massive final quarter, one thing was for certain at least one team would be walking away with their first points for the season. Preston really lifted their intensity in the last quarter and kept knocking at the door, the game was close and could have gone either way. Preston took an early lead in the final quarter after kicking a goal. However, an absolute howler of a kick from a Preston player on the half back flank put the ball in the hands of our trusty leader Ezza, who loaded up from outside the arc and sent it straight through the middle, giving Uni High a one-point lead. Scores were tight for the rest of the game with both teams struggling to get a goal, until Patty Brookes stepped up with the goal line dribbler to give the green and tan a 7-point lead, the siren sounding on this lead.
The team was jubilant with their first win and sung the song with gusto, a special moment for the 11 new players getting their first senior win! A massive thanks to all the supporters and volunteers who cheered Uni on to this famous victory!
Women’s Seniors
UHS-W 2.5.17 – St Bedes/Mentone Tigers 2.12.24
Goal Kickers: Madeline Hince 2
Written by Maddison Stafford
On an uncharacteristically warm Saturday at Brens Oval, and following a win in the Reserves, all eyes were on the senior women to bring home another victory against St. Bedes.
The team came out with unrelenting pressure, securing a four point to zero lead against our opponent at the end of the first quarter.
A goal from Madeline Hince in the second quarter, kept us firmly in the lead until the wind proved to be working in St. Bedes’ favour. A late goal from the Tigers meant we were a single digit down at half time.
Ping pong points continued into the third quarter with UHS-VU holding on by the skin of their teeth, and another snap goal from Maddy saw us enter the final 20 minutes with only a one-point lead.
Mid players including Marlo Zambelli and Abbie Mills entered every contest headfirst, clearing the ball to the anticipating forwards at every opportunity.
A final smother from Ella Keogh in the fourth quarter resulted in a season ending injury (*R.I.P little finger) and a goal from the tenacious Tigers sealed our fate.
In the words of Daz, we’ll get ‘em next time!
Every player gave their all in an attempt to maintain our position as second on the ladder and with half of the season over, and finals looking promising, a new sense of energy is brewing as the team takes on Richmond again next weekend.
*Little finger is firmly back in place, Ella is now using her newfound free time to take the team through its squat, lunge and burpee paces at training.
Women’s Reserves
UHS-W 1.5.11 – St Bedes/Mentone Tigers 1.2.7
Goal Kickers: Lucy-Sue Beukers
Written by Lucy-Sue Beukers
Early last Saturday morning our woman’s reserves played St Bedes/Mentone at home.
Although placed higher on the ladder than us, we did not doubt our chances of gaining another win.
We had a great team ready to play, including first gamers and returned players that had being playing first grade.
The first quarter was mainly dominated by us and although the play was majority up our end of the the field and within our fifty, we were unable to score a goal. Great play from our forward line though, including huge efforts from Bec and Caitlin.
Things remained relatively evenly placed over the second and third quarter with more points scored for both teams and tensions starting to heighten. Great defensive pressure from Lizzie, Kim and Audrey.
Final quarter, running out after a great ‘hype up’ from Daz and Scotty, we decided that we still had it in us to dominate this game and come away with a win. Huge efforts from everyone, along with a winning goal saw us finish above St Bedes/Mentone, with the finally score, 11-8!
Go Ladies! You all rock my socks off.
Men’s Reserves
UHS-VU 6.11.47 – Preston Bullants 8.8.56
Goal Kickers: Otto McKinnon 2, Jack Walter, Nicholas Grapsas, Thomas Cheyne, Patrick Wernert
Written by Sean Rathjen
An uncharacteristically warm and sunny Melbourne day saw the squawkers (Reserves) head over to face old rivals Preston at their home ground W.R. Ruthven Oval. Knowing that the upcoming clash would be a tough battle the twos looked to the well documented words of Sun Tzu in the Art of War “We hate those dogs” to give them an edge. This would be the mantra spurring the determined Vultures on in their clash against the Bullants.
A rev up by captain and birthday boy Jacob ‘Old Man’ Best lead to the boys starting strong and getting the jump on Preston. First gamer Otto ‘Good but Not Ones Good’ Mckinnon showed the veterans how it is done by booting the first goal, setting the team up for a 3 goal to 2 first quarter.
The breeze proved to be a factor though, as with the change of ends Preston took control of the game owning the second quarter and piling on the pressure. Luckily for the Vultures though Darcy ‘I’ll Throw it up Again’ Wall took it upon himself to limit Preston to a 4 goal quarter. Clearly sick of his umpiring stint and needing something to take it out on Darcy made sure to make the Preston players earn the footy whenever he was nearby.
A second rev up by captain Jacob ‘Old Man’ Best gave the boys the inspiration they needed to put the foot down and get back in the game. Not wanting to let the old man down the twos staged an admirable comeback and putting themselves within striking distance going into the final quarter.
The final quarter provided a grim slog, with an abundance of stoppages as both teams turned up the pressure trying to get any edge they could. Sadly, the Vultures failed to take advantage of a multitude of opportunities in the last and went down by a measly 9 points in what was a hard-fought battle all day.
However, despite not coming home triumphant there were positives to take away as many players stepped up throughout the day. Taking the words of Sun Tzu to heart Lindsay ‘Holidays’ Murfett went about the day earning the ire of the Preston players by breaking tackles, ankles and possibly hearts in what was a dominant performance. Jack ‘Ones’ Walter proved dangerous down back getting the best of his direct opponent and then proceeding to rub it in by running off him at leisure. Despite his old age Jacob ‘Old Man’ Best showed he is still a young man at heart with a gritty performance highlighted by hard ball gets and second/third efforts.
Honourable mentions go to Lachie ‘Twinkle Toes’ Brown for making use of his dancing lessons and gracefully pirouetting his formidable frame around Preston players whilst whispering “spin move” to himself. Otto ‘Good but Not Ones Good‘ Mckinnon gets another mention for being the leading goal kicker in his first game, more experienced players have told him to settle down in following weeks as that kind of goal kicking ability leads dangerously close to getting a call up to the ones.
2 things were learnt from the game against the Preston reserves. One, that we don in fact hate those dogs. And two, that they have a pretty good canteen.
Rumour has it that the Vultures will host the Bullants in 4 weeks’ time and there is no doubt that in the next clash the Squawkers will not settle for anything but a win.
Thirds
UHS-VU 5.6.36 – South Melbourne 23.12.150
Goal Kickers: Jack Cumberlidge 2, David Fazakerley 2, Thomas Booth
Written by Brenton Cross
The Thirds traveled to sunny Albert Park to take on a South Melbourne outfit who is coached by former Zookeeper and now blood traitor Will Cheeseman. Fielding a strong team, the Keepers were hoping to notch their second win for the season against a rival whom UHS has traditionally had success against.
The Zookeepers started the game in lackadaisical fashion with South Melbourne racing out of the gates to kick four quick goals. Had it not been for the head-over-the-ball contested work of Korpetutuncu and Darcy Meehan in the midfield to stop South Melbourne’s momentum, the damage on the scoreboard would have been much worse. The Keepers managed to wrestle their way back into the quarter but struggled to provide the forward line with meaningful opportunities. After a much more even second half to the first term, the Keepers headed into quarter time five goals down.
The second quarter was better for the Keepers with the side winning many 1-on-1 contests around the ground. Despite being regularly double manned, Fazakerley managed to mark strongly and goal to give UHS some much needed reward for effort. Not long after, Booth was rewarded for his tenacious attack on the ball to give UHS their second major. Despite the increased pressure and attack displayed by UHS, South Melbourne’s hard running and good use by foot was punishing and gave them a 9 goal lead at the major break.
UHS entered the third quarter with the goal to maintain their good attack on the ball whilst placing greater emphasis on team structures and accountably. Despite an improvement in these areas, the small ground continued to be problematic for the Keepers who were unable to stop South Melbourne’s quick ball movement from turnovers. Young and coach Milicevic battled resolutely in defence, stifling many of South Melbourne’s advances while also providing valuable rebounding from the half back line. A hard fought, opportunistic goal by Cumberlidge was the highlight of an otherwise tough quarter as the Keepers went into the final break 16 goals down.
With the game beyond reach for the Keepers, the aims for the final quarter were to continue being accountable as a team and to contest hard until the final siren. UHS achieved their aim of continuing their attack on the ball and were rewarded with Fazakerley and Cumberlidge both kicking their second goals for the match. On a day in which South Melbourne proved far too good, the Keepers walked away with a good understand of where they need to improve to be competitive in future weeks.
Congratulations to Ben Manassah and Lucas Kenna who made their UHS-VU debuts and played well. In recognition of the VAFAs volunteers week, the Zookeepers would like to thanks Mitch, Pig and Connor who came down and helped out with match days jobs.