**It was a huge day for the MILLER family at KOOWEERUP with Ellie Miller playing her 300th game on Saturday. Ellie is the wife of Demon’s favourite son Tim Miller and they have a daughter Marlee together. Ellie’s twin sister Sarah Wedlock also played in the D Grade game on Saturday, and was one of the first to congratulate Ellie after the regular defender moved to Gaol Attack and scored her first-ever goal in 300 games of netball. Ellie’s sister-in-law’s, Logan Dickson and Jaydee Miller, were also watching on.
**With finals now upon us, we thought it a great time to send out a timely reminder to coaches about what can happen when defensive structures break down. The 2007 ELLINBANK (EDFL) senior grand final played at Cora Lynn is the prime example, with NYORA 39.21(255) defeating CATANI 18.9(117). For Nyora, Nathan Osler kicked 11 goals, Cory Wilson and Brad Francis 5, and Brad Miles and Dean Alger 4, while superstar Owen Fitzpatrick kicked nine goals in a losing grand final for the Blues. For the record, Nyora booted 11.2 in the first quarter and 11.5 in the third. And just to prove us journos have got absolutely no idea what’s going on…two of our three tipsters (Ken Moore and Max Papley) picked Catani to win that day. The goal umpires would have needed a good sleep that night after the waving flags on 87 occasions!
**While on goalkicking exploits, we’re hearing there’s a push from within West Gippsland to have the league goalkicking award named the Nathan Gardiner Medal…after the current CORA LYNN champion who is hunting down his third-consecutive 100-goal season. Now we here at the Gazette are some of Nathan’s biggest fans, but surely this can’t happen until the goal-kicking freak retires. It would be a very rare occurrence to have someone having their own medal placed around their neck! But if the WGFNC clubs are voting on this; especially via their preferred method of a secret ballot…with no accountability attached…then who knows what might get through!
**While on Nathan Gardiner, the champs’ push for his third 100-goal season on the trot has stumbled somewhat, having kicked just six goals across his last three games to reach 94 goals for the year. Gards has a round-20 fixture against NAR NAR GOON this week to come, before a potential elimination final match up against WARRAGUL INDUSTRIALS at Bass. We’re backing Gards to get the ton that day, before a second-week match-up against PHILLIP ISLAND at Inverloch.
**Footy Shorts ran a story a few weeks ago about BUNYIP’s brilliant under-16 team which to that point of the season was undefeated. After triumphing in their first 14 games of the season, Bunyip has had back-to-back losses heading into finals. It’s not dissimilar to the form slump they had mid-season, which was just the awakening they needed. Fingers crossed they can turn it around and seriously contend for the premiership – that club deserves some success.
**Congratulations to PAKENHAM netballer Eliza Molino who was named in the VNL 23-and-under Team of the Year. Molino was named as a defender after being a crucial piece of the NORTH EAST BLAZE this season.
**Congratulations to GEMBROOK COCKATOO champion Michael ‘Spud’ Firrito who played his 100th game for the Brookers this past weekend. Firrito has been a much-loved member of the Gembrook faithful, including being the club’s playing coach for the past two seasons. After over 450 games at all levels of the game, Firrito announced he will be retiring and stepping down as senior coach of the Brookers after Saturday’s game against Healesville. Here’s to a stellar career, Spud.
**ELLINBANK LEAGUE grand finals are set to be shared around this finals series and LONGWARRY is set to be a major beneficiary this weekend. Longwarry was locked in as the club to host the qualifying final before the final ladder was locked in, meaning that, by finishing second, Longwarry will get to host a final against TRAFALGAR. The elimination final between Buln Buln and Ellinbank will be at Bunyip Recreation Reserve. Neerim South will play the winner of Longwarry and Trafalgar at Catani, while the other semi-final will be at Nyora. The preliminary final is set for Lang Lang before the grand final at Trafalgar. That grand final venue could become a talking point given the Bloods are viewed by many as the most likely to square off against undefeated Neerim South on the last day of the season.
**For those who enquired on the weekend, here’s a reminder of the WGFNC final venues for this year. WEEK 1: Sat 30 Aug at Nar Nar Goon (Elimination Final 3 v 6). Sun 31 Aug at Bass (Elimination Final 4 v 5). WEEK 2: Sat 6 Sept at Warragul (Second Semi-Final 1 v 2). Sun 7 Sept at Inverloch (First Semi-Final – Elimination Final winners). WEEK 3: Sat 13 Sept at Dalyston (Preliminary Final). WEEK 4: Sat 20 Sept at Garfield (Grand Final).
**The playing surface at TOORADIN may be a quagmire, but at least patrons can watch the mud-wrestling with a nice full belly after the Seagulls’ canteen was voted the best in the business after a Facebook poll was run by AFL Gippsland. The Tooradin faithful sent 3299 votes to the poll, to defeat NAR NAR GOON on 1925. KORUMBURRA-BENA was third on 1166.
**It will be interesting to see how the finals campaigns of CASEY DEMONS in the VFL and NAR NAR GOON in the WGFNC intertwine over the coming weeks. Casey coach Taylor Whitford was a senior premiership player with the Goon last year and has currently played five games for the Goon this season. Casey has the bye this week ahead of finals, so Whitford is eligible to play for the Goon in its home clash against CORA LYNN this week. The Goon then has a rest in week one of finals, on the same weekend that Casey plays in a VFL elimination final. If the Demons get knocked out at that stage, then Whitford will be eligible to take his place in the second semi-final for the Goon against TOORDAIN-DALMORE at Warragul on Saturday 6 September. Whitford is an absolute gun who provides a powerful presence up forward and through the midfield!
