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2nd Elimination Final - Sunday 2nd September @ Romsey
Vs
Romsey - 3rd Position, 14 wins - 4 losses.
Melton Centrals - 6th Position, 9 wins - 8 losses - 1 Draw.
Last Time: Romsey 4.4.28 def by Melton Centrals 6.10.46
We only have to go back 2 weeks for when these two sides faced each other, and in that contest, it was Centrals getting the upset win and locking in a finals spot. That day of course was the day of the great RDFL floods and Centrals handles the conditions far better than the Redbacks who were without a host of stars. The Redbacks will this week welcome back a host of stars that have missed the last couple of games, while Centrals will go in full of confidence from the win 2 weeks ago as well as last week's come back where they rattled home to fall just short of the Cats.
Romsey - The Redbacks premiership defense has been an interesting one, they dropped the first game of the season to Riddell in a game they probably should have won, before going on a long winning streak which included an inspiring come from behind win against Sunbury and a demolition of ladder leader Diggers Rest. Then the Redbacks season hit a brick wall in the form of our wet winter, they seemed to struggle in the slippery and muddy conditions, a big loss to Riddell was followed by a tough loss to the Kangaroos and the dropped game to Centrals, but after all of that, the Redbacks managed to finish the season in 3rd position, a spot widely considered as the plumb place to finish.
Postive: The return of several stars into the line up will provide a massive boost to the confidence at Romsey Park, with a full list to pick from, it will be a very different Romsey side that runs out this week than the previous few weeks.
Negative: Performances in the wet have been below par, the Redbacks will need to respond if it rains all weekend and face a tough opponent who have big bodies and like a contested game style. Will also need to control their discipline if the game gets tight.
Key: The Redbacks list is chock full of talent, on every line they have star players capable of turning a game on it's head, these type of players live for finals football, it is where they perform at their best and where they will have their biggest impact of the season. The Redbacks need to manufacture some space on their home ground for Matt Davidson to work in, several times this year he has been forced to contend with extra opponents when teammates bring their direct opponents inside the forward 50, if the Redbacks can isolate each contest up forward then each of those contests will be tough to shut down one on one. The midfield need to carry and spread the ball to provide opportunities, at times the Redbacks midfield can blaze forward, and the backline needs to regenerate the run they had in the earlier parts of the year.
Wildcard: Mitch Farmer - Coming off a two week suspension will run into this game nice and fresh. His use of the ball is unmatched in the competition, the Redbacks in and under workers just need to do what they can to work the ball to the outside and give him space, if he has the ball in space 10 times going inside 50, the Redbacks will get 8 or 9 set shots.
Melton Centrals - What a fantastic year from Centrals and their first year coach Brian Wheelahan, they had a brilliant start to the year, disposing easily of the Tigers and Kilmore before having a run of terrible results that looked to have them on the back foot and out of the race for finals, but to the credit of the entire side, they were able to do what Centrals sides before them, had been unable to do, they worked through it and stayed positive, a draw against Macedon started to turn the tide and by the time they defeated Romsey in Round 17, Centrals were playing finals for the first time in a very long time.
Postive: The list is playing with confidence, and most importantly, they have identified the individual roles within the team and carry them out. The players have bought into Wheelahan's game style and are executing it well, the disappointing loss in the final round shouldn't dent the confidence too much as they were able to rattle home after a disappointing start to the contest.
Negative: Depth within the team might be tested now that we hit finals, it's a completely different level of football that needs to be displayed this week. A fantastic season to date will be all for nothing come the first bounce on Sunday, they have to be able to lift that output to another level again and it will be interesting to see how they respond.
Key: Making it a contest all over the ground, if the Redbacks are able to find their best players and ball users in space, they will hurt Centrals and hurt them badly, if Centrals are able to shut down and make the game stoppage after stoppage, they could be right in the contest. Around stoppages this year, Centrals have been fantastic, if they can create the stoppages and break from there, they have a forward line capable of scoring, they just have to avoid clear losses in the contest across the ground, if they continually create 50/50 contests it will frustrate the Redbacks into errors and give Centrals opportunity to score on the counter.
Wildcard: Jono O'Brien - Can play anywhere and in any role, this young Centrals utility just gets better every year he plays, has an enormous leap, so can ruck, but it is his ability to push to contests around the ground that give him the edge, if he is able to get around the ground to contests, then the Centrals forwards will get opportunities.
Prediction: It was only 2 weeks ago that Centrals knocked the Redbacks over, but the task will be far tougher here, Romsey will run out with a far different side to last time and will be eager to atone for that loss on their home paddock, on the flip side, if the Redbacks take Centrals lightly in any way, they will be in for a massive surprise. This list busted their butt to get to this final and are not going to go away without a fight, the Centrals line up will be well and truly up for this contest and they will push the Redbacks. Expect a close one until half way through the 3rd, where the Redbacks gain control and get the win.
Romsey by 30 points.
Romsey - 3rd Position, 14 wins - 4 losses.
Melton Centrals - 6th Position, 9 wins - 8 losses - 1 Draw.
Last Time: Romsey 4.4.28 def by Melton Centrals 6.10.46
We only have to go back 2 weeks for when these two sides faced each other, and in that contest, it was Centrals getting the upset win and locking in a finals spot. That day of course was the day of the great RDFL floods and Centrals handles the conditions far better than the Redbacks who were without a host of stars. The Redbacks will this week welcome back a host of stars that have missed the last couple of games, while Centrals will go in full of confidence from the win 2 weeks ago as well as last week's come back where they rattled home to fall just short of the Cats.
Romsey - The Redbacks premiership defense has been an interesting one, they dropped the first game of the season to Riddell in a game they probably should have won, before going on a long winning streak which included an inspiring come from behind win against Sunbury and a demolition of ladder leader Diggers Rest. Then the Redbacks season hit a brick wall in the form of our wet winter, they seemed to struggle in the slippery and muddy conditions, a big loss to Riddell was followed by a tough loss to the Kangaroos and the dropped game to Centrals, but after all of that, the Redbacks managed to finish the season in 3rd position, a spot widely considered as the plumb place to finish.
Postive: The return of several stars into the line up will provide a massive boost to the confidence at Romsey Park, with a full list to pick from, it will be a very different Romsey side that runs out this week than the previous few weeks.
Negative: Performances in the wet have been below par, the Redbacks will need to respond if it rains all weekend and face a tough opponent who have big bodies and like a contested game style. Will also need to control their discipline if the game gets tight.
Key: The Redbacks list is chock full of talent, on every line they have star players capable of turning a game on it's head, these type of players live for finals football, it is where they perform at their best and where they will have their biggest impact of the season. The Redbacks need to manufacture some space on their home ground for Matt Davidson to work in, several times this year he has been forced to contend with extra opponents when teammates bring their direct opponents inside the forward 50, if the Redbacks can isolate each contest up forward then each of those contests will be tough to shut down one on one. The midfield need to carry and spread the ball to provide opportunities, at times the Redbacks midfield can blaze forward, and the backline needs to regenerate the run they had in the earlier parts of the year.
Wildcard: Mitch Farmer - Coming off a two week suspension will run into this game nice and fresh. His use of the ball is unmatched in the competition, the Redbacks in and under workers just need to do what they can to work the ball to the outside and give him space, if he has the ball in space 10 times going inside 50, the Redbacks will get 8 or 9 set shots.
Melton Centrals - What a fantastic year from Centrals and their first year coach Brian Wheelahan, they had a brilliant start to the year, disposing easily of the Tigers and Kilmore before having a run of terrible results that looked to have them on the back foot and out of the race for finals, but to the credit of the entire side, they were able to do what Centrals sides before them, had been unable to do, they worked through it and stayed positive, a draw against Macedon started to turn the tide and by the time they defeated Romsey in Round 17, Centrals were playing finals for the first time in a very long time.
Postive: The list is playing with confidence, and most importantly, they have identified the individual roles within the team and carry them out. The players have bought into Wheelahan's game style and are executing it well, the disappointing loss in the final round shouldn't dent the confidence too much as they were able to rattle home after a disappointing start to the contest.
Negative: Depth within the team might be tested now that we hit finals, it's a completely different level of football that needs to be displayed this week. A fantastic season to date will be all for nothing come the first bounce on Sunday, they have to be able to lift that output to another level again and it will be interesting to see how they respond.
Key: Making it a contest all over the ground, if the Redbacks are able to find their best players and ball users in space, they will hurt Centrals and hurt them badly, if Centrals are able to shut down and make the game stoppage after stoppage, they could be right in the contest. Around stoppages this year, Centrals have been fantastic, if they can create the stoppages and break from there, they have a forward line capable of scoring, they just have to avoid clear losses in the contest across the ground, if they continually create 50/50 contests it will frustrate the Redbacks into errors and give Centrals opportunity to score on the counter.
Wildcard: Jono O'Brien - Can play anywhere and in any role, this young Centrals utility just gets better every year he plays, has an enormous leap, so can ruck, but it is his ability to push to contests around the ground that give him the edge, if he is able to get around the ground to contests, then the Centrals forwards will get opportunities.
Prediction: It was only 2 weeks ago that Centrals knocked the Redbacks over, but the task will be far tougher here, Romsey will run out with a far different side to last time and will be eager to atone for that loss on their home paddock, on the flip side, if the Redbacks take Centrals lightly in any way, they will be in for a massive surprise. This list busted their butt to get to this final and are not going to go away without a fight, the Centrals line up will be well and truly up for this contest and they will push the Redbacks. Expect a close one until half way through the 3rd, where the Redbacks gain control and get the win.
Romsey by 30 points.