By Marcus Uhe
They meet again.
Twelve months on from the corresponding clash in 2022, a spot in the grand final is up for grabs when Wandin face Narre Warren on Saturday in the second semi-final.
While it’s the same jumpers who’ll take to the field this time around, plenty has changed since last year’s contest.
Jarrod Smith, Josh Tonna, Hayden Stagg and Matthew Suckling are all out for the Magpies, replaced by the likes of Jesse Davies, Ryan Patterson, Daniel Toner and Declan Brown.
In red white and blue, Jordan Jaworski and Aaron Mullett have proven to be worth every penny for Wandin, as has the inclusion of Damien Furey.
As the only side to have beaten the Magpies this season, Wandin know what it takes, and won’t lack in confidence.
But with Will Howe and Kurt Mutimer absent through injury in the loss, there’s plenty of room for growth in black and white.
Aaron Mullett got through his first full game of football unscathed on Saturday, having missed much of the year to a persistent hamstring injury, including, crucially, the return bout against the Magpies at Kalora Park in round 11.
In short, neither side has been at full strength in either clash during the season, but this week will be as close as we’ve had.
Narre Warren will sweat on the fitness of Tom Miller and Tom Toner, who both missed round 18 with hamstring and foot injuries respectively, while Wandin will hope Tom Merlino recovers from his own hamstring injury in time to take his spot in the forward pocket.
With evenly matched midfields and more forward options than you could poke a stick at, the respective back lines shape as the areas to watch for both sides.
Trent Papworth, Joel Zietsman, Travis Callahan and co’s high press against the assertive approach of the likes of Todd Garner, Leiwyn Jones, Thomas Hinds will be fascinating.
“We’re excited to get into it,” Wandin coach Nick Adam said.
“This is the reason we play footy and put all the time and put the work into it; to play finals in front of crowds like we did on Saturday against Woori Yallock. We know what that rivalry always brings and then to give ourselves an opportunity to get a crack at Narre is something that we’re really excited about.
“Physically we’re in pretty good nick and we’ve played some good footy over the last month.”
It’s a toss of the coin, but Narre Warren’s rest might give them a slight edge.
Elsewhere in Premier Division, Woori Yallock will tackle a liberated Pakenham side playing with nothing to lose.
Pakenham were forced to play elimination final-type football for much of the season, battle-tested in cut-throat situations.
When challenged against Upwey Tecoma last week, an even spread of contributors, right down to Nathan Kannemeyer and Ben Power, all played their part in the stirring victory.
Woori Yallock, however, will be eager to make-amends for last week’s loss against Wandin, forced to go the hard way to qualify for another grand final.
While the Tigers just snuck home in round two at Toomuc Reserve, the return fixture in round 11 was a much-different story, the Tigers cruising to a 52-point victory.
But without inspirational leader Jake Barclay, who missed under the league’s concussion protocols, the Lions are a different side.
Can Kannemeyer repeat his heroics of the elimination final? Can D’Angelo Taito slow down star Tigers ruck Zach Monkhorst? Will the young Pakenham side have enough bigger bodies to match the strength of the Tigers around the ball?
Woori Yallock will be confident, but rest assured Pakenham will make them earn everything they get.
In Division One, all eyes will be on Emerald and how they respond to last week’s overtime heart-breaker against Berwick Springs.
The combination of the extra six minutes of action in Sunday’s heat, the limited rotations due to injuries to David Johnson and Noah Van Haren, and the emotion of the manner of defeat, all makes for a nasty cocktail to swallow.
Without the talismanic Johnson and his 52 goals ahead of the football, the Bombers were forced to improvise with a smaller forward line that nearly got the job done, but ultimately couldn’t kick winning score.
Callum White is expected to return to offer more of a focal point to offer more crumbing opportunities for Rogan Goonan and his fellow smalls.
Healesville will be carrying fatigue of their own after the last-gasp win over Seville, but have pushed the Bombers in the two meetings this year, losing by 28 and 30 points respectively.
Emerald were top of the table all year for a reason, and should weather the injury storm, but the Bloods won’t be pushovers.
TIPS
Premier Division: NARRE WARREN v Wandin, WOORI YALLOCK v Pakenham.
Division One: EMERALD v Healesville.
