By DAVID NAGEL
CRANBOURNE will begin its chase for its fifth-consecutive grand final berth from top-spot on the South East Football Netball League ladder after a destructive 92-point thrashing of Doveton at Casey Fields on Saturday.
The Eagles will be hoping for a change of luck if they do make their way to the big dance, having lost their last three after a drought-breaking premiership win in 2011.
The Eagles, who now get a week off before their second semi-final engagement against either Berwick or Narre Warren, had the game against the Doves in the bag at half time, 58 points up, before cruising home to victory.
Ryan Jones and Michael Theodoridis slotted four each for the Eagles while Glenn Osborne, Mat Fletcher and Max Gearon were super-impressive for four quarters. Shannon Henwood kicked two and was typically resilient for the Doves who will need to lift significantly for this week’s elimination final against Beaconsfield.
Narre Warren has timed its run to perfection, leap-frogging Beaconsfield into third position with a 39-point victory over the Eagles at Kalora Park.
This was a very even contest for three quarters, but a late third-quarter goal to Kerem Baskaya stretched the margin out to three goals and seemed to break the Eagles spirit.
From there the Magpies went on the tear, kicking three goals in the opening seven minutes of the final term to effectively end the contest. Baskaya kicked six second-half goals, and finished the day with seven, while rover Dylan Quirk was brilliant through the midfield. Jake Rose kicked four and Ryan Olsson was good for the Eagles. Pakenham will head into the off-season with a spring in its step after a hard-fought 10-point victory over ROC.
The Lions were an early season contender before injury and illness to key players cruelled their season. Jake Smith kicked three for the winners while Dean Blake and Anthony Young were terrific around the ground. The Kangaroos lost their last 10 games of the season but Sean Roach and Matt Clarke, who finished with four goals, can hold their heads high.
Hampton Park sent coach Matt O’Neil off in style, winning its second game of the season with a 29-victory over Tooradin at Westernport Oval.
After two years at the helm the iconic Gembrook figure will now head back to his former club as an assistant-coach. Luke O’Brien kicked four goals and Nathan Carver three for the Redbacks who won two of their last four games. Julian Suarez, Michael Wallace and Nick Schumann finished 2015 off with fine games for the Seagulls.
