VFL finals time

by AJ BRADY

WELL folks, it's that time again, finals in the VFL competition, and this season should see a keenly-contested finals series between eight very worthy and very determined football teams.

The new rule that the VFL has brought in for the finals, saying that each team can only field a maximum of 12 AFL listed players, all of whom must have played at least seven games for that VFL side during the year, will completely change the complexion of things. Teams who were dominant throughout the season thanks to a wealth of AFL-listed talent, suddenly are brought back to the field, and teams like North Ballarat and Tasmania, who are a stand-alone teams, suddenly come into serious premiership contention as they're able to field their best side, who know each other's games well and can play to each other's strengths.

The finals will begin on Saturday at 1.40pm, when second-placed Sandringham take on third-placed Werribee at Port Melbourne's TEAC Oval in the second qualifying final. This definitely looms as one of the feature games of the finals. Sandringham rely heavily on their potent attack, and their numerous goalkicking options has seen them get over many teams this year when their number one forward, Nick Sautner, has been shut out of the game. They also have pinch-hitting players such as Paul Newman and Luke Molan, who can take strong marks and kick valuable goals when required. Their defence, led by Adam Fisher and Matt Warnock is strong and reliable, and their form has been consistent all year. The midfield is solid, without being spectacular, and the Zebras will rely heavily on the likes of Leigh Fletcher and Nathan Carroll to win the contested ball and provide some run through the centre. The Werribee side, on the other hand, are well-balanced throughout the whole field. Their form coming into the finals is very good, defeating some highly-ranked teams in recent weeks, and the form of such players as defender Aaron Rau and midfielder-cum-forward Cameron Faulkner has been exceptional. Their forward structure has been quite efficient all season, and is led by Jaison Lamb, David Mitchell and James Condos, two strong-marking and quick-leading forwards who know where the goals are. Their midfield is fairly quick, and will be led by Dominic Gleeson and Matthew Boyd during the finals. While their defence has been shaky on a few times, the mid-season slump is definitely over with, and the likes of veteran Travis Robertson and Kieran McGuiness have been sturdy and reliable, and should be the vital cogs down back this weekend for the 'Bees. This should be a great game, both teams have renowned forward structures that are capable of kicking winning scores. I just think the Zebras have too much class in the midfield, and should come home with the points in this one.

Only 20 minutes later, over at the Box Hill City Oval, the sixth-placed Coburg Tigers will take on the seventh-placed Box Hill Hawks in the second elimination final in what should again be a very tight tussle. The Tigers come into this game on a real downward spiral, having lost their past couple in ordinary fashion. Their defence, so good early in the season, has struggled in recent times to containt some powerhouse forward lines, and the margins Coburg are getting beaten by have become greater and greater. Still, if they are to win this week and progress through to the semi finals, they will have to rely heavily on their defence led by strong-marking talls Kelvin Moore and captain Leigh Carlson. Their midfield has done okay this year, working hard, and they have some good in-and-under players such as Andrew Raines, and the ruckwork of Ryan O'Connor has been first class this year, playing much more agile than his big frame would suggest he would be allowed. The forward line is a bit hit-and-miss, without any real recognisable targets, rather having to rely on pinch-hitters such as Simon Fletcher and Adam Houlihan, when these players provide, Coburg look a million dollars, when they don't, the 'Burgers are a rabble, so it should be interesting to see how they go on Saturday. The Box Hill Hawks, on the other hand, bring a sensational formline into the finals, having won 10 of their past 12, after losing their first six games. But since their early season slump, the Box Hill boys have hit their straps on all fronts, blowing away some quality opposition in the process. Box Hill really have an across-the-board talented side, their midfield is full of some really hard-working and hard-nosed types, with strong performances and reliance on the likes of Steve Bailey and Michael Osborne to propel the ball forward on every occasion for the Hawks. Their forward line is a good blend of small crumbing-type forwards of the like of Harry Miller, and tall-marking forwards such as Kristan Height, and there's no over-reliance on any one player. Their defence has been quite solid, and with the likes of strong-marking Ben Clifton and Daniel Breese down back, the Hawks have been able to contan many attacks this season. This game looms as a good fight, but I have to sway towards the Box Hill side, their late form, coupled with Coburg's recent inconsistency, show that the Hawks are just looking too good and should bring home the points, particularly with the game being played on their home soil.

The third and final game taking place this Saturday begins at 6.30pm down in York Park, Tasmania, as the Devils take on the Bombers in the first elimination final in what is a repeat of last week‰s match-up, only this time it will be Tasmania, the fifth-placed side, who have the home ground advantage over the eight-placed Bombers. The Devils started the season in magnificent fashion, and initially it seemed as though they were going to be unbeatable at home, but from about midway through the season, they've been inconsistent, shining more often than not away from home, but struggling to put teams away on their once-feared home turf. The key to their performances are through the midfield, with the run of the Geappen brothers, two good, tough in-and-under type players and good running players such as Ian Callinan. Their forward structure is quite talented, but doesn't produce on a consistent basis. They'll be looking for big contributions from the tall-marking players in Trent Bartlett and Justin Plapp, as well as some good pinch-hitting goals from captain Ben Beams. Their defence is reasonable, and has been much more consistent than their forward line, and they'll be relying on the strong-marking of Leigh Walker and Daniel Kirk to provide surety down back. The Bombers, on the other hand, come into this game full of confidence, after some ordinary patches during the year, they've scraped into the finals on the back of some brilliant victories, not least being the one on the weekend by 77 points over Tasmania, giving the Bombers a psychological edge going into this game. Their forward line has been all class of late, with Mark Mercuri and Ben Haynes playing tall and providing marking options, while also being adept at ground level. Jordan Doering in the ruck has been excellent, his agility and pace for a big man being a real stand out. The Bomber midfield is led by the ever-reliable captain Nick Carter, who always racks up contested possessions and uses them efficiently, as well as the fleet-footed Guy Campbell, who should provide much midfield drive throughout the finals for the Bombers. The Bomber defence has been terrific in recent weeks, and they'll be looking towards Ben Cosgriff and Andrew Lovett to provide much run out of defence, using the ball as efficiently as they have done in recent times. This should be a much closer game than last week, with Tasmania being boosted by the home ground advantage. The Bombers recent form is hard to deny, but I think last week was more an aberration on the part of Tasmania than anything else, and I expect the Devils to get home in what will hopefully be an entertaining and close contest.

The final game in the first week of the VFL finals series of 2004 takes place on Sunday at TEAC Oval at 1.10pm, when top-of-the-table Port Melbourne faces North Ballarat in the first qualifying final in what will be another enthralling contest in a first week of finals jam-packed with great matches. These two teams played off a couple of weeks ago at the same ground in an ABC TV game, and Port won handsomely as they dominated North Ballarat all over the ground. Port has been in the top two for most of the season, and has been the most consistent team all year, their firepower comes from their forward structure, with recruit David Pitt being able to play tall or as a crumbing pinch-hitter, as well as Leigh Harding providing a strong-marking and quick-leading forward target who has shown recent ability to kick goals for the club. Their midfield is solid, and relies on players who are good at contested situations, more so than fleet-of-foot players, including guys like Jeremy Clayton and Michael Firrito, who are two very hard nuts and always willing to put their bodies on the line. The defence is led by veteran Shane Clayton, who's played for Port most of the year, and has performed admirably all year, being a good link-man between the defence and midfield, while the reliable Jon Baird has also been a feature down back, providing much run out of defence, and always providing a contest with the opposition forwards. The North Ballarat side has performed exceptionally well this year, after finishing bottom last year, they recruited very smartly over the off-season, and have turned the tables, never an easy thing for a stand-alone club in a competition full of teams with AFL talent. The North Ballarat side has been consistently in the top four all year, and have produced many times against teams also in the top eight. The key to the Roosters outfit lies in their defensive unit, let by captain Julian Field and veteran Marc Greig, very tough and rugged players who have good football brains and can read the play very well, utilising their efficiency in linking defence to midfield. Speaking of the midfield, the North Ballarat one is also very adept, with agile ruckman Steven Jurica leading the way, his around-the-ground work has been exceptional for a few years now, and he is definitely one of the keys in this side, coupled with running midfielders Jarrod McCorkell and Shaune Moloney, who are particularly proficient with the possessions they rack up each game. The forward line of North Ballarat is a good mixture of talls and crumbing smalls, the keys being Nathan Saunders, a real bustling-type half forward flanker, and crumbing forward pocket Djaran Whyman, who certainly knows where the goals are. I don't rate the corresponding game a few weeks back as a good indication of how this match will pan out, Port desperate to taste their first premiership success in 21 years will be keen to put some past horrors behind them early on, including their first-up shock loss in last year's finals. I think Port should get over the Roosters, but I'm tipping yet another close one, as the North Ballarat side lift a few cogs for the finals action.

In what should be a terrific first weekend of the finals, tune into 97.7FM 3SER on both Saturday and Sunday from 1pm to hear all the action of the Coburg vs Box Hill and Port Melbourne vs North Ballarat games. You'll hear expert commentary and special comments from myself, Jeremy Orr, Brad Sinclair, Cameron Scott, Simon Petch and Kain Pollard, ensuring we have every angle covered.

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