THERE was plenty happening across all levels of footy across SA, with young talent on show in the U15 Championships, plus some League debuts for some U18 talent and a host of top end players returning to their school College football commitments .

National Under 15 Championships – Boys and Girls

Last week the U15 National Championships were held in Adelaide for Boys and Girls. The week long competition had some tough windy conditions and the Victorian teams were victorius in the Grand final for both Boys and Girls.

Boys:

Grand Final: Victoria  11.6 (72) defeated SA 6.3 (39)

VICTORIA

Goal Kickers: J. Ward 2, J. Sinn 2, N. Dear, I. Parish, R. Martin, B. Hobbs, C. Molan, M. Ktona, C. Macdonald
Best Players: B. Hobbs, J. Gibcus, J. Sinn, J. Ward, J. Davies

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Goal Kickers: I. Dudley 2, B. Calvett, H. Tunkin, J. Davis, A. D”Aloia
Best Players: M. Coorey, H. Tunkin, C. Murley, I. Dudley, M. Roberts, W. Verrall

It was a solid tournament with SA and Victoria the 2 standout sides which was reflected in the All Australian side with 14 players coming from the 2 states. SA players to make the All Australian side were Matthew Dnistriansky, Isaiah Dudley,Cooper Murley, Matthew Roberts, Brock Thomson, and Kane Viska.

Girls:

Victoria defeated New South Wales in the Girls Grand final by 9 points. South Australia managed to win third place in the tournament, defeating Western Australia for the bronze.

South Australian players to make the All Australian side were Gypsy Schirmer, Georgia Swan, Zoe Venning, Lauren Young, and Bethany Bell.

SANFL League

SANFL flag favourite Norwood easily accounted for Eagles. Forward Jack Lukosius was back in the goals finishing with one goal, 14 disposals and five marks.

In a high scoring game for Roosters over Adelaide Crows, youngster Boyd Woodcock was very good in his second League game finishing with three goals from 10 possessions up forward. Fellow North forward Connor Rozee earned himself a Breakthrough Player nomination after another solid game of 15 disposals and a goal.

South destroyed Port Magpies, and this game saw Hayden Sampson (son of Adelaide Crow Clay) make his League debut and he slotted into the pace well, finishing 17 disposals and two goal assists. Fellow young forward and 2017 Under 18 South Australian state representateive Nathan Krueger was impressive as well, with 11 marks and two goals, three behinds, which should have been five goals. Both young Panthers earned themselves Breakthrough Player nominations as well.

Izak Rankine finished with one goal in the Bloods loss to Glenelg. The West Adelaide forward has not quite hit the heights of the recent championships, but he always looks dangerous with the footy in hand or in his area.

Sturt big man Hugo Munn continues to keep scoring each week finishing with another 1 goal in the Double Blues victory over Centrals. Young players Jackson Hately for Centrals kept finding the footy while backman Jez McLennan was a bit quieter after his first game last week.

SANFL  Reserves

Norwood won a close one over the Eagles by 15 points. Eagle James Rowe was best afield in the loss finishing with four goals and 17 disposals. Under 18s player Martin Frederick was given another opportunity in the strong Eagles line up down back.

In South’s easy victory over Port Adelaide, Tate Coleman was in the best with an all-around 24-disposal one-goal game. Mitchell Mead (son of Ports Darren Mead) was best for the Magpies and battled all day.

Glenelg got over West in a close one by six points, led by youngsters Josh Koster (son of Adelaide’s Kym) as well as U18 SA player Finn Betterman who finished with a goal and 19 disposals, along with Seb Kerrish also hitting the board with a goal and 13 contested out of his 22 disposals.

Centrals won by four points over Sturt, and potential father son Casey Voss again is making his claim towards draft time. Another solid performance with 23-disposal and three-clearance game earned him best, and fellow Double Blue Tom Lewis was a bull again with 16 contested ball, while ball magnet Ed Allan clocked up a huge 44 disposals in a losing side. Midfielder from the Bulldogs and U18 South Australian player Aaron Nietschke showed his work rate clocking up 24 disposals and a goal.

SANFL Under 18:

Glenelg was victorious over West by five points in a high scoring game and 2020 father/son Luke Edwards (son of Tyson) was again best for the Bays finishing with five goals from 20 disposals. South Australian Under-16 talent from the Bloods, ruck Riley Thilthorpe and forward Jye Sinderberry continued their good form.

Eagles forward Tyson Francis added another four goals to his season tally while father/son Jackson Mead (son of Darren) shone with 11 marks, and 11 of his 28 possessions contested in their victory over Norwood. Norwood’s midfielders Jed Spence and Kade Chandler were best for the Redlegs and they combined for 13 clearances.

South Australia’s Under 16 Most Valuable Player (MVP) midfielder Corey Durdin had a best afield performance for Centrals earning him a Powerade Under-18 MVP nomination after 31 possessions and a goal dominance in a two-point victory over Sturt.

The big forward for South hit the scoreboard against North, as Daniel Sladojevic finished with six goals in their win over North. Luke Bogle’s consistent year continued as the midfielder clocked up 30 disposal and 14 clearances. Possession winner Bailey Coleman-Oakes again was good for North managing 11 clearances in a losing side.

College Footy

Prince Alfred College 7.17 (59) defeated Sacred Heart College 6.10 (46)

This match was played at Sacred Heart College (SHC) and to be fair Prince Alfred College’s (PAC) inaccuracy flattered the home team, as it always felt like the Reds were in control. For the Hearts, Darcy Le Cornu up forward presented well and was a real threat on the lead, and Angus Weir was dynamic around the ball and provided a lot of drive into attack.  For PAC, captain Tom Sparrow was dominant in the midfield and won a lot of the hard ball, and when that ball got outside the Reds exploded into attack. In defence Karl Finlay was outstanding with a number of intercept marks, many contested. Will Gould started on the ball for the Reds then after half-time reverted to a key role off half-back and was always dangerous. In terms of the Premier League Championship this result makes it very hard for Sacred Heart to win the lot and they will need to beat Rostrevor and then have Rostrevor beat PAC to have a chance.

Rostrevor accounted for St Peters easily, and the next round of games with SHC taking on Rostrevor in their annual Intercol match will be a huge one. Rostrevor have plenty of talent in 2018 and look hard to beat, but SHC will be determined to charge towards finals.

Scotch College won by 25 points over Westminster.