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NFNL 2023 Div 1 discussion

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Grand final
Heidelberg vs Bundoora
Heidelberg
Leading goalkickers
Z Barzen - 46
B Sier - 30
K Kearns - 17
M Jorgensen - 13
6 other players with 10+ goals

Times in best
L Wilson - 14 and massive congratulations on his 2nd league B&F
B Sier - 12
M Smith - 11

12 players have played 16 or more games out of 19 played in season 2023

Bundoora
Leading goalkickers
P McEvoy - 36
S Lloyd - 29
J King - 23
J Maruff - 20 (not playing in gf)
6 other players with 10+ goals in season 2023

Times in best
L East - 11
P McEvoy- 11
H Shepheard - 10

10 players have played 19 or more games out of 21 in 2023.

Replay of last year but with much better weather conditions forecasted, can that Bulls stop a 7 game losing streak to Heidelberg. Those that witnesses last weeks game have said it was the best Bundoora performance for the year, win the ball at the coal face, run, spread and direct to McEvoy, McKernan and Jorgensen, can this be replicated tomorrow.

Gilmore vs Shepheard is huge, Gilmore has got the better of Shepheard in last couple of contests and again Gilmore shapes as the head of the Heidelberg team, can he be stopped or at least nullified, Plenty have tried and failed and he is an elite player of our competition.

The battle between Sier and Lloyd though not directly opposed to each other will also go a long way to helping each side to victory. Both have been in terrific form and pay for the price of admission alone

Who goes to Barzen, is it East or Sturgess who gets the job on Heidelberg’s leading goalkickers?

X-factor for Heidelberg is T Schnerring who continues to just get the job done and Kearns who has kicked 17 goals in 17 games for the Tigers, can he kick 3-4 and get the Tigers over the line.

X-factor for Bundoora is Younan, who has played 20 games and kicked 17 goals. He hasn’t had the write ups like previous seasons but is a big time player, who is capable of kicking 3-4 goals which could be the difference for the Bulls.

Will playing 1 game in 4 weeks be of benefit or hindrance to the Tigers, history shows over the last 10 years more winners have come from preliminary final than 2nd semi final, so can Bundoora follow this trend and cause the upset.

I picked Heidelberg at the start of the season in my pre-season ladder, beating Bundoora in the grand final, I have seen no reason to change my tip, so the Tigers to go back to back
Heidelberg by 17 points

Good luck to both teams, hope it’s a great game of footy

Heidelberg to do the double and win the reserves as well

Enjoy the footy
 
In the end it was
Wallace IN Smith OUT -Heidelberg
McNiece IN Longmire OUT- Bundoora

If Thomas was risky to bring in then so is Mcniece. He's struggled the last 2 months, only play 3 games since July.
I am not buying those ins and outs until I see them run out. Longmire was a very good performer last week and would be very stiff to miss out.
 

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Won't be at all surprised if McNiece doesn't play based on previous injuries, and Bulls continually changing side that runs out from what is announced
Tbh Every team seems to doit
 
12 per side last night in the AFL…. 39 less than this game…

This is what fans want. Put the whistle away. You don’t need to find a free in everything.
GWS possibly disagree!!!
 

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Way too good. Heidelberg put the cue in the rack in the last and Bundoora kicked a few.

The worry for every other team is that Heidelberg are fairly young and if they keep the majority of that list it, could be a period of sustained dominance.
 
Way too good. Heidelberg put the cue in the rack in the last and Bundoora kicked a few.

The worry for every other team is that Heidelberg are fairly young and if they keep the majority of that list it, could be a period of sustained dominance.
how long will some the blokes that played in the reserves stick around for? Some very handy players playing twos today for them.
 
The mighty tigers have done it again. Was interesting watching some of the supporters when the siren went, they reacted like someone had just called out the winning number for the meat try. I guess they are used to/expect success.
 

Herald Sun

Heidelberg defeats Bundoora to win back-to-back Northern Division 1 premierships​

For the 30th time and second season in a row Heidelberg is champion, defeating Bundoora in perfect conditions at Preston City Oval.

Heidelberg are Kings of the North … again.
For the second season in a row the Tigers were too good for Bundoora, clinching back-to-back NFNL Division 1 premierships with a 22-point victory at Preston City Oval.

The 15.7 (96) to 11.8 (74) triumph is the club’s 30th senior premiership, 22st in the NFNL’s top flight, and incredibly the 10th time it has won consecutive flags.

Heidelberg has lost just two games in the past two seasons, a remarkable era of dominance for the league’s dominant club.

The Tigers also claimed the reserve grade title with a 50-point win over Montmorency, bouncing back from a shock grand final defeat last season.

Matt Smith was adjusted best-on-ground, powering the Tigers midfield with his ability to win the contested ball and deliver inside 50m.

Taking over from Danny Nolan this season, Vinny Dattoli wins his second premiership as coach 13 years after guiding West Preston-Lakeside to the title in 2010.

“It’s pretty special isn’t it, (back-to-back) sounds good,” Dattoli said.

“I’m not sure how to put it into words at the moment but it’s great reward for all the boys who have trained over the last couple of years.

“The reserves have been super consistent as well, they’ve lost one game in two years and that was the grand final last year, they deserved that win as well, so the club has got a big celebration ahead.”

Heidelberg burst out of the blocks with a stunning four-goal salvo in the first quarter.

Nathan Honey kicked the first goal of the game and had a hand in the next two in a red-hot start to the game.

Tigers captain Sam Gilmore then soared over the pack to take a spectacular mark and converted to get the crowd on its feet.

It took until the 22nd minute of the term for Bundoora to hit the scoreboard, awarded a contentious deliberate rushed behind free kick, which Danny Younan converted.

The Bulls got a second rushed behind free kick just before the siren, Shaun McKernan kicking the goal, to narrow Heidelberg’s lead to six points at quarter-time.

However, it would be as close as Bundoora would get.

Matt Signorello and Jess Gedi quickly restored an 18-point lead.

John Jorgensen got one back for Bundoora with a great snap under immense pressure but Brayden Sier answered almost immediately.

Kai Kearns intercepted a Jackson Bowne shank, punishing the error with a goal, and Nathan Honey scored his second to take Heidelberg’s lead to 32 points at half-time.

Gilmore once again wowed the PCO crowd with an audacious kick after the siren, launching a 75m torpedo that came close to scoring but fell just wide and out of bounds on the full.

Heidelberg’s skill and swift ball movement were on full display, in stark contrast to Bundoora, which turned the ball over time and time again.

“We were pretty happy, we felt in control of the game all day,” Dattoli said.

“Our start to the game was enormous, we’ve prided ourselves on that all year, and to kick four goals with probably a two-goal breeze and have our noses in front we were pretty confident.

“There’s a lot of statistics around first quarters winning games of footy, everyone thinks it’s the third but it’s actually the first.”

Bundoora came out strongly after half-time as Jorgensen and Brent Marshall got the margin back to 19 points.

The Tigers and Bulls traded goals as the momentum swung wildly in a high-scoring third quarter with nine goals kicked.

However, Zane Barzen would have the last say, kicking his third goal of the term after the three-quarter-time siren to earn Heidelberg a 26-point buffer.

When Dylan Clarke’s long kick from the centre square somehow bounced through for the first goal of the fourth term and Barzen punished another Bulls turnover shortly after the match was all but over.

Bundoora fought the game out valiantly as Peter McEvoy goalled to cap a strong display and Sam Lloyd booted his second.

Smith was outstanding all day, along with Brayden Sier, while Jess Gedi was highly influential when the game was up for grabs early.

Gilmore had a strong day but was arguably out-pointed by Hamish Shepheard in the ruck, while Zane Barzen finished with four majors.

“Matty Smith is a super professional, he’d probably get a lot more footy if he spent less time organising,” Dattoli said.

“The stuff he does is unbelievable, he’s a phenomenal human and phenomenal player.

“Jess has grown and grown as a footballer as the year has gone on.

“He started out as a forward in the first four to six weeks and contributing well but not hitting the scoreboard so we threw him down back and he’s become a lock, averaging 22-24 touches a game.

“We need to acknowledge Sammy Gilmore’s efforts as captain.

“For him to become back-to-back premiership captain, and now he’s won three at the club, it’s outstanding – another super human.”

For Bundoora, Jackson Davies was outstanding in defence, intercepting the ball and providing rebound, while Shepheard, Jedd Longmire, Ryan Sturgess and skipper Luke Collins were also strong contributors.

Bulls coach Michael Ryan said he couldn’t have been prouder of his team.

“Vinny and the group, been brilliant, been the best team in the comp for the past two years,” he said post-match.

“To Bundoora, all you can ever ask for as a coach is effort and that’s all you guys have given today, all year and the past four years.

“It’s been a privilege to coach you guys and lead Bundoora Football Club, we did everything we possibly could today to give ourselves a chance so keep your heads high, I’m bloody proud of you.”

In the reserves, Heidelberg made up for last season’s loss with a 13.16 (94) to 6.8 (44) win over Montmorency, Mackenzie Hogg winning the best-on-ground medal.

In the under-19s, Eltham’s hopes of a premiership sweep fell short as Greensborough cruised to a 16.12 (108) to 6.8 (44) victory.
 

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NFNL 2023 Div 1 discussion

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