By Jonty Ralphsmith
Southern Football Netball League Division Three club Endeavour Hills remains undefeated 11 games into the home-and-away season after comfortably accounting for Narre South Saints on Saturday.
The Falcons’ average winning margin is 59 points, with a 25-point victory over then undefeated Frankston Dolphins in round six, establishing themselves as this year’s team to beat.
Highlighting the depth, the reserves team is also undefeated, with a percentage of 335.
After losing former captain and best and fairest winner Nick Gay from the 2022 list, which finished fifth with nine wins and a draw from 18 matches, there was a sense the club might take a step back before challenging.
The Falcons have been competitive in recent years but lacked top-end star power to put themselves in premiership calculations, with Gay’s loss compounding that stigma.
But Knox recruit John Rafferty has come in and expertly led the midfield, while the club’s go-to target inside 50, Ryan Johnson, is also new and averaging three goals per game.
Playing assistant coach Rowan Scott’s leadership on-field, along with standard-setters Nathan Reid and Ben Holland have elevated the squad’s accountability.
Those contributions, combined with a buy-in from the group has catalysed the rise according to coach Matt Peake.
He says the sliding doors moment was midway through last year, with those recruits providing further ingredients to progress.
After starting 2022 with one win from six games, the Falcons went undefeated for seven weeks, a period which contained six wins and a draw.
Having regained some key players from injury, that run was started with wins over each of the Division Three finalists: Murrumbeena, Black Rock, Ashwood and Carrum Patterson Lakes.
Experiencing that success provided the impetus for an excellent preseason which has carried over into 2023.
Youngsters Luke Peters, Liam Hasler and Bailey Bowman are among the under-19s who have transitioned seamlessly into senior footy this season, which has evolved the team’s dynamic.
Endeavour Hills is also the local club of Jacob Grant, who represented Vic Metro on Friday night against Western Australia, and has been playing good footy as a key forward for Dandenong Stingrays in the Coates Talent League.
The club is in good shape and has several players to return from injury imminently, but after fluctuating from 1-5 to 7-5-1 so quickly last year, Peake remains focused on the process.
“There’s just been a good vibe,” Peake said.
“We’re not getting ahead of ourselves.
“Every club wants to win flags but our focus is on developing as a team but also individually.
“If we focus on that, hopefully we are playing our best footy when it counts.
“We want to be accountable and disciplined in how we go about it.
“We defend the ground quite well, restrict the opposition and get offensive on the back of that.
“We like to be pretty organised in what we do and I just need guys to play their role in the team.”
