By Blair Burns
Devon Meadows celebrated captain Joel Hillis’ 150th game in style by smashing Karingal by 119 points in Mornington Peninsula Division 2.
Hillis, who is without a doubt one of the best players for the Panthers, and one of the best midfielders in the competition for that matter, had an absolute day out.
The skipper celebrated his milestone with five goals and plenty of the football as his side pulled apart the winless Bulls and boosted its percentage to push into third spot on the ladder.
The game was over at quarter time, as the Panthers kicked 42-1 to set up the result, keeping Karingal goalless until the final quarter of the match.
Devon Meadows co-coach Ryan Hendy was pleased with how the side performed, and happy with where it sat after the first five games of the season.
“It was a nice day for footy and the boys stuck to the task we wanted them to, and played four consistent quarters of footy,” Hendy said.
Hendy said the side moved a few magnets around at half time to try and get as much out of the big win as possible.
“The game was put to bed in the first quarter, but to the boys’ credit, they stuck at it for the entire four quarters,” he said.
“Our third wasn’t as flash as we would’ve liked but we were trying a few different things and using some players in different positions.
“But then we came out in the fourth really sharp and finished the game off well which was pleasing.”
You can say that again, Devon Meadows kicked an impressive 7.3 in the final quarter to extend the lead to over 100 points.
Devon Meadows was defeated by Pearcedale back in round one by 30 points, but since then the side has not put a foot wrong and has passed every challenge with flying colours.
The Panthers destroyed Rye next in round two by 62 points, then Tyabb on Anzac Day by 37 points, with inaccurate kicking of 11.17 costing them from winning by even more.
Somerville was the next team to stand in the way of the Panthers and they didn’t last long, as Devon Meadows cruised to a 42-point victory.
“We lost the first game (against Pearcedale) where we felt like we had our chances, but since then, we have been improving week by week,” Hendy said.
“The boys are starting to really adapt to the game plan and we seem to be travelling alright.”
Karingal was the most recent and the Bulls barely made a sound as the Panthers killed them quickly around the contest, keeping them to just two goals for the match, both of which came in the final term.
Hendy said the players wanted to make it a good outing to celebrate their captain Hillis in his milestone match.
“We jumped them nice and early with a good start, the boys wanted to make sure it was a memorable one,” he said.
“Joel is first class and is probably the best player I have coached, he is also a really likeable bloke, our captain, and all of the boys love him.
“He already has heaps of accolades in his short career including best and fairests and league medals.”
Despite Devon Meadows’ dominant patch of form which sees them on a four-game winning streak, they are yet to face teams like Seaford and Frankston Bombers, but wait no longer.
The Panthers will travel to RF Miles Recreation Reserve this weekend to clash with the Tigers, and then the Bombers at Glover Reserve the following week in what will be a very important two-week period in the season.
“We will watch the tapes and see where Seaford’s strengths and weaknesses are, and what we have to do to get on top of them,” Hendy said.
“It should be a cracking couple of weeks and both games will be really good indicators, but we are up for the challenge.”
If Dean Kent and his men can pass both of these tests, they will have six wins in a row and be riding a huge wave of momentum.
In the other rooms sat Karingal who is yet to win a game after five rounds but will be looking forward to round seven where they take on the only other winless team, Hastings.
Other strong performers for the Panthers were Cody Ray and Nick Battle (both three goals), as well as Jack Wilson, Alex Canal and Nathan Drew.
Zachery Holton did everyone he could to help Karingal to a competitive effort kicking both of his team’s goals and being named best on ground for the Bulls.
In other matches, Pearcedale lost its first game of the season by 36 points as Frankston Bombers skipper Khan Haretuku led the way for his side with 21 disposals and four goals; Jai Block (13 disposals, three goals) was also impressive.
The Bombers are the only team that remains undefeated in the competition and will take some serious beating, while the Dales will look to bounce back when they take on Crib Point.
Pearcedale had a 16-point lead at quarter time, but an eight to two-goal second quarter blew the game out of the water as the Dales kicked poorly for goal, finishing with 8.20.
There was only one scoring shot the difference and if Pearcedale was to kick a bit straighter, it would’ve been game on.
Crib Point defeated a winless Hastings side without much trouble, running away to win by 48 points at the final siren, now sitting at 3-2 this season.
Josh Le Grice (32 disposals, two goals) was the best player on the ground, while Jett Bauer (28 disposals) and Will Stewart (27 disposals, two goals) also had big games; Kade Foster starred for Hastings in the loss with 30 disposals and a goal.
Seaford smashed Tyabb by 90 points as Peter Goulas (four goals), Ryan Jacobs and Seth Kelly (both three goals) dominated inside 50 and the Tigers now sit in second spot on the ladder.
Bonbeach was too strong for Rye and despite the Demons giving it their all and kicking arrow-straight with 14.2, they still fell 39 points short in the high-scoring contest.
Dimitri Fasoulis, Joseph Fischer and Liam Hulett were all focal points at the attacking end with three goals each, while Justin Barnes (23 disposals, three goals, seven tackles) had a day out for the Demons.
Chelsea won its third game of the season, defeating Somerville by 33 points thanks to a strong first quarter which ultimately set up the victory.
Brett O’Hanlon, who played nine AFL games for Richmond back in 2012-14, was at his damaging best for the Seagulls booting five goals and helping his side sink the Eagles.
MORNINGTON PENINSULA DIVISION 2
DEVON MEADOWS 6.6 10.9 13.13 20.16 (136)
KARINGAL 0.1 0.2 0.4 2.5 (17)
Devon Meadows Goals: Joel Hillis 5, Nick Battle, Cody Ray 3, Alex Canal, Thomas Morley, Bailey Phillips, Jack Wilson 2, Daniel Hellyer. Best: Cody Ray, Joel Hillis, Nick Battle, Jack Wilson, Alex Canal.
Karingal Goals: Zachery Holton 2. Best: Zachery Holton, Harry Park, Callan Dixon, Christian Matthews, Taylon Valentine.
FRANKSTON BOMBERS 1.2 9.4 10.7 15.14 (104)
PEARCEDALE 3.6 5.11 7.17 8.20 (68)
Frankston Bombers Goals: Khan Haretuku 4, Jai Block 3, Sam Glenn, Jarrad Grant, Matt Robinson 2, Tyson Barry, Daniel Didomenicantonio. Best: Harrison Prior, Ryan Murdock, Flynn Wood, Bayleigh Welsh, Khan Haretuku.
Pearcedale Goals: Mitchell Davis, Lachlan Hinde 2, Kian Benwell, Luke Daniel, Brett Eddy, Cruiz West. Best: Aaron Hosking, Jake Frawley, Archie McGuiness, Huw Jones, Cruiz West.
OTHER GAMES: Chelsea 13.7 (85) def Somerville 6.16 (52), Crib Point 15.13 (103) def Hastings 8.6 (54), Bonbeach 19.11 (125) def Rye 14.2 (86), Seaford 20.19 (139) def Tyabb 7.7 (49).
LADDER: Frankston Bombers 20, Seaford, Devon Meadows, Pearcedale 16, Bonbeach, Chelsea, Crib Point 12, Somerville 8, Tyabb, Rye 4, Hastings, Karingal 0.
FIXTURE R6: Bonbeach (5) v Hastings (11), Crib Point (7) v Pearcedale (4), Frankston Bombers (1) v Tyabb (9), Karingal (12) v Chelsea (6), Seaford (2) v Devon Meadows (3), Somerville (8) v Rye (10).
