DANDENONG Stingrays have kicked away to a 31-point win over Greater Western Victoria (GWV) in their quarter-final clash at Mars Stadium on Sunday. Fresh off a Wildcard Round bye, the Stingrays ran out the game strongly with seven goals to one in the final term to overcome a three-quarter time deficit.

In what was a game largely dictated by the scoring end, Dandenong took toll with 12 of its 16 goals kicked with the wind. Having trailed by four points heading into the final break, the ‘Rays snagged three quick goals to claim the lead and slammed on four more late in the piece to consolidate their victory.

Over-age tall Dylan Linden did most of the damage with a haul of six majors, including three in the fourth quarter. Livewire small Marcus Prasad joined in with a hat-trick of his own while enjoying some midfield minutes. The Stingrays will go on to face Eastern Ranges in Sunday’s preliminary final, also in Ballarat.

DANDENONG STINGRAYS 2.1 | 7.4 | 9.5 | 16.6 (102)
GWV REBELS 2.5 | 4.6 | 9.9 | 10.11 (71)

GOALS:
Dandenong Stingrays: D. Linden 6, M. Prasad 3, J. Phillips 2, M. Toner 2, B. Avenell, N. Wisken, C. Stuart
GWV Rebels: A. Beattie 2, A. Elliott 2, P. McKenna 2, L. Byrne, E. Drever, L. Petrie, H. Welsh

BEST:
Dandenong Stingrays: D. Linden, M. Prasad, K. Sullivan, D. Szerszyn, A. Sousa, J. Phillips
GWV Rebels: K. Nicholls, A. Elliott, E. Drever, H. Welsh, J. O’Brien, P. McKenna

DANDENONG STINGRAYS:

#1 Darcy Szerszyn
Tall Defender | 188cm | 20/05/2008

Stats: 13 disposals, 4 marks, 5 tackles, 5 rebound 50s

Tasked with the matchup on Vic Country teammate Archie Elliott, Szerszyn did well to nullify the forward’s aerial impact. He played the back shoulder and attacked high defensive-50 entries hard, backing himself to split packs or intercept. Szerszyn did his best to hang with Elliott at ground level and laid some crunching tackles on the follow-up. The versatile defender’s speed and power were also evident on the rebound as he looked to drive and launch the ball forward. The facet keeping him from being even more potent in that space is his kicking execution on the run.

#4 Marcus Prasad
Small Forward/Midfielder | 167cm | 23/03/2008

Stats: 14 disposals, 6 tackles, 5 inside 50s, 3 goals

It was a typically crafty outing from Prasad, who slotted home three excellent goals. The diminutive forward swooped on the loose ball and was electric at ground level, hardly fumbling in the process of flicking out creative disposals by hand and foot. He dished out contact better than he absorbed it, but his pressure was terrific and indicative of a good small forward. Prasad also got a run in midfield and enjoyed filling his boots with a couple of late majors. He’s so clever in tight spaces.

#7 Andrio Sousa
Wing | 182cm | 11/08/2008

Stats: 14 disposals, 3 marks, 3 tackles, 3 inside 50s

Sousa’s late shift into the centre ball-ups was a long time coming given how he was going about things on the wing. While deadly as a transitional player on the outside, he was prepared to fold in on the contest where his clean hands and slick turn of foot were outstanding. Sousa chased and tackled to compliment his damaging work with ball in hand, running terrific patterns to connect each line and launch scoring chains. He’s relatively lightly build, but goes hard.

#8 Wil Antrobus
Defender | 182cm | 18/04/2008

Stats: 18 disposals, 4 tackles, 8 rebound 50s

Dandenong’s most trusted distributor from defence, Antrobus’ kicking was a real weapon. The left-footer pulled off some elite kick-ins up the middle, delivering the ball low and with great penetration. He was also pinpoint in the short-range and set the game up efficiently. While much of his contribution was made across the last line, Antrobus sought to do damage higher up the ground and was prepared to compete to win his own ball. He’s quite solid aerially and in one-on-one duels.

#9 Dylan Linden
Tall Forward | 191cm | 18/02/2007

Stats: 15 disposals, 5 marks, 6 goals

Linden had a day out, booting six goals and helping Dandenong kick away into the final four. His scores proved to be ample reward for effort, with the mobile tall adding three in the final term to round out a fantastic outing. Linden was most prolific as a leading target where his speed and clean hands overhead were difficult to combat. While strong in the air, the over-ager also forged opportunities with his follow-up work – tackling hard and competing well as a forward-50 ruckman. You couldn’t question his endeavour throughout what was a very fruitful day.

#11 Jackson Phillips
Midfielder/Wing | 182cm | 30/01/2008

Stats: 18 disposals, 4 marks, 2 goals

Picking up 13 of his 18 disposals in the first half, Phillips looked on track for a huge outing. He was shifted out to the wing after half time and faded out of the game, but served a reminder of his talent with a lovely set shot goal from the angle to cap off proceedings. That goal was his second, the first being a ridiculous finish hemmed in on the same boundary under enormous pressure. He hit it flush. Phillips’ elite foot skills and smooth movement served him well in the patches he dominated, looking just about untouchable at his best. He’s just incredibly poised with ball in hand.

GWV REBELS:

#4 Ethan Drever
Midfielder | 188cm | 10/07/2008

Stats: 23 disposals, 9 tackles, 11 clearances, 1 goal

Drever capped off a consistent season with flashes of the driving force he has become in 2026. The powerful midfielder showcased lightning-quick hands in the clinches and desperate pressure acts during the early stages, playing up to the finals occasion. He began to find more room to be expansive and attack the corridor with his burst speed, often launching the ball long on the end of his short spurts. The best example of Drever’s kicking power came with his lone goal, as he only needed a couple of steps to slam home a checkside out of the forward-50 stoppage. His execution was a little scrappier around the ground, but the effort was always there.

#6 Harrison Welsh
Midfielder | 179cm | 23/08/2009

Stats: 25 disposals, 4 clearances, 6 inside 50s, 1 goal

Welsh teamed up nicely with Drever in midfield to manufacture penetrative stoppage exits, often receiving or dishing handballs out the back. The bottom-ager is a surge player who likes to drive his legs and take on tacklers, although was made to dump long kicks forward at times under the finals pressure. Despite some inefficiency by foot, Welsh had no trouble getting his hands on the ball and showed good work rate in the attacking phase. His steady goal on the run was a sign of what he is capable of with a bit of time and space.

#14 Archie Elliott
Forward | 182cm | 10/08/2008

Stats: 16 disposals, 5 tackles, 6 inside 50s, 2 goals

With Darcy Szerszyn for company throughout the day, Elliott put in an absolute shift to ensure he could impact proceedings. The lively forward usually presents like a tall with his lead-up work and strong hands overhead, but having been contained in the air, used his speed to get a leg-up at ground level. He attacked each contest hard and followed up with as much vigour to either tackle or recover the ball en route to goal. He snared a major in either half for his efforts and showed great smarts to read quick entries better than his opponent, taking advantage of being given front position.

#22 Klay Nicholls
Tall Defender | 187cm | 15/05/2008

Stats: 17 disposals, 5 marks, 12 rebound 50s

Nicholls was GWV’s most prolific interceptor down back, playing slightly taller than his 187cm standing to impact in the air. He read the flight of the ball beautifully and was prepared to put his body on the line to win it, reeling in some terrific marks across the defensive 50. Nicholls was also a trusted distributor out of the last line and showed decent range in his kicks to clear 50 metres. He can get dangerous with overlap runs higher up the ground, although made most of his impact in a deeper-lying role this time out.

#23 Jackson O’Brien
Ruck | 205cm | 05/06/2008

Stats: 18 disposals, 35 hitouts, 5 clearances, 6 inside 50s

As usual, O’Brien made good on his superior size and reach in the ruck to chalk up plenty of hitouts, guiding the ball down to dangerous zones or clearing the pack altogether. The towering tall was a handy outlet target when GWV rebounded out of defence, although that contested marking element is something he can continue to enhance. O’Brien was typically clean and poised by hand while making a concerted effort to add to his hit work with several clearances of his own.