ONLY a third placed win by Darebin over Caulfield in the Under 15 Boys upset the status quo of the top two teams reaching their respective M-League Junior Finals in the Victorian Men’s and Mixed Netball Association (VMNNA) semi-finals last Wednesday.

UNDER 18 MIXED:

The top two sides will battle it out for glory in the Under 18 Mixed Premier Division after DDNA and WDNA Red both won their respective semi-finals. The Doncaster and Waverley Netball Associations will face off in the decider, after WDNA Red made light work of Darebin and DDNA fought past St Therese in the second-against-third clash. In that match, St Therese lead at quarter time before DDNA took control and ran away with the contest after the main break.

St Therese held a narrow 15-13 lead heading into quarter time, before DDNA bounced back with a 14-11 second term to regain the advantage by one at half-time. Though still tight, it was a dominant second half from DDNA (33-21) that separated the sides, and saw Doncaster come away with the 60-47 win. Leona Hristovska scored a massive 47 goals in goal attack, pairing well with Angus Hood (eight goals) in the first half, and Jemma Conte (six) in the second half.

In the other match WDNA Red piled on 11 goals to one in the first term which set the tone for the top-against-bottom battle. Already looking ominous, Waverley extended its lead to 18 goals by half-time, and then won each quarter to skip away with the 52-25 victory. Deejay Elliot put up 19 goals across three quarters for the winners, whilst Sophia Bloch continued her good season with an eye-catching 31. Darebin had a massive 12 players rotate on court throughout the experience, with only Riley Colafella playing all four quarters, shooting 10 goals in a dominant third term – and 14 for the second half – after playing in goal defence prior to the main break.

SEMI-FINALS RESULTS:

DDNA (60) defeated St Therese (47)
WDNA Red (52) defeated Darebin (25)

UNDER 18 BOYS:

Darebin reversed its two-goal loss to Wyndham in the final round of the season to get up in a thrilling one-goal victory. The first quarter really set up the eventual winners, piling on 15 goals to four, lead by goal shooter Jamie Shannon who put up 10 first term goals. He continued that into the second term to score another nine goals, but Wyndham bounced back with a 12-10 term to cut the half-time deficit to nine at the main break.

Darebin got back on top with a 10-8 third quarter to re-establish the advantage head into the last break, before Wyndham geared up for a huge finish. Blake Cachia (15 goals in the firs three quarters) moved from goal attack into goal shooter, whilst Christian Doukas came on to replace Achilles O’Donnell at wing defence. The changes seemed to work, as they piled on 15 goals to five, and Cachia (six goals) and Brodie McLeish (nine) combined well in the goal circle.

Despite that, Wyndham fell heartbreakingly short, going down by a goal to Darebin, who through the work of Shannon (30 goals) secured its spot in the grand final. Cachia (21 goals) was a standout for Wyndham, whilst Hudson Ebbage worked hard in defence for the winners. Now Darebin has to somehow find a way to topple minor premiers WDNA Black in the final.

SEMI-FINALS RESULTS:

Darebin (40) defeated Wyndham (39)

UNDER 15 BOYS:

The only Junior Division where the third placed side upset the second placed team was at Under 15s level, with Darebin defeating Caulfield by seven goals. In a nail-biter, the third placed Darebin only finished two points behind Caulfield, but came good on the semi-final day, getting up to repeat the win it had back in Round 8. Though Darebin suffered a shock loss to Kew on the eve of the finals, it bounced back for the semi-finals, and now will take on the incredible WDNA Black who brushed aside Kew by 44 goals.

In the tighter match, Darebin lead by a goal at quarter time, but then Caulfield piled on 11 goals to five in the second term to take a five-goal advantage into the main break. Nathaniel Takarua (six goals) and Campbell Brown (five) combined well in the term for Caulfield. That advantage did not last long though, as Darebin shooting pair, Benjamin Lambiase and Luke Mensingh – who swapped bibs in the second half – combined for 20 goals to Caulfield’s eight for the last two quarters, and recorded the 31-24 victory. Michael Jones and Christopher Petroyiannis did well to contain the Caulfield shooters in the second half.

In the other match, there was little doubt who the team to beat was, with WDNA Black piling on 54 goals to Kew’s 10 to run away with the contest. The minor premiers scored 31 goals to six in he opening half to put Kew to the sword. It did not get much better rom there, with WDNA showcasing all of his full court potential, piling on 23 goals to four in a 44-goal victory. Nic Ormond scored 27 goals for the winner, with and Kai Hickcox (14) Hayden Zani (13) both productive. Midcourter Matt Lorbach stood out in the win, with Kew defender Patrick Graham the best on the losing side.

SEMI-FINALS RESULTS:

WDNA Black (54) defeated Kew (10)
Darebin (31) defeated Caulfield (24)