2015 Bendigo Bank MCDFNL Grand Final
Navarre v Carisbrook
Princes Park, Sunday 20th September, 2:35pm
For the second year in a row, Navarre will face off against Carisbrook for the MCDFNL’s ultimate prize, with the competition’s two powerhouse sides set to face off for the 2015 premiership at Princes Park on Sunday.
After 19 weeks, the grand final rematch that many predicted, even before the start of the season, has come to fruition, with the Redbacks out to topple the reigning premiers, who are currently on a 40-game winning streak in pursuit of their third successive flag. In the sides’ two meetings so far in season 2015, it’s been Navarre that has come out on top, taking out the round one clash by 14 points, and scoring a decisive 46 point win in round 14. Now, the Redbacks need to attempt to reverse that result at Princes Park on Sunday, and thankfully for them, they’ll enter the season decider battle-hardened and in red-hot finals form after defeating fellow top four sides Lexton and Natte Bealiba en route to Sunday’s decider. Standing in their way however, is one of the strongest teams the MCDFNL may have ever seen, with the Grasshoppers boasting the longest current winning streak in country Victorian football at the current time.
In their opening two matches of the 2015 finals series, the Redbacks have found themselves with their backs against the wall, and yet, against both Lexton in their qualifying final clash and Natte in last week’s preliminary final clash, the Brookers have willed themselves over the line. In particular, Carisbrook’s ability to come from behind against the Swans was ultra impressive, as was their ability to create goals from out of nowhere. While much of the talk has been about the stars of the Brook forward line in Nathan Wright and Matt Bilton this season, it was the likes of Luke Treacy, Travis Cornwill, Mitch Whelan and defender Jake Bucknall, who booted five goals, that presented the most dangerous threat up forward last week. If the Redbacks can again find such a wide spread of goalkickers, it will go a long way towards finally finding a way to defeat the Grasshoppers.
For many MCDFNL supporters, a third straight premiership appears a mere formality for Navarre, such has been its dominance in 2015. However, the Grasshoppers will be wary of complacency on Sunday, as they cannot afford to give Carisbrook a sniff. In last year’s decider, the Redbacks got the jump on Navarre, leading most of the first half, and requiring a herculean effort from the Grasshoppers to regain the lead. Navarre will be ken to avoid a repeat of that, and will focus its attention on doing what the Grasshoppers do best – winning. Spearheaded by the trio of Driscoll brothers, Ash, Josh and Cody, but with stars on every line, the Hoppers are one of the most formidable teams the MCDFNL may have ever seen, hallmarked by their slick ball movement and ability to win the ball in close.
Come Sunday night, one of these sides will be celebrating a premiership, while the other will be rueing a missed chance to make history. While the result is still yet to be decided, one thing that can’t be questioned is the calibre of this game, with the competition’s two top sides for much of the year set to square off in an epic conclusion to season 2015.
Navarre
B: Josh Driscoll, Danny Grellet, Matt Newton
HB: Billy Parry, Brent Flood, Jayden Fowkes
C: Bryce Tickner, Sam Kaye, Lachlan Slorach
HF: Riley Bibby, Ashley Driscoll, Nicholas Murphy
F: Jesse Hannett, Cody Driscoll, Ben Scott
R: Rhett Murphy, Daniel Reading, Louis Hannett
Int: Harley McKenny, Josh Fowkes, Daniel Parkin, Zach Parry
Emg: Aaron Slorach, Aiden Lee, Jeremy Harrington
Carisbrook
B: Timothy Heenan, Kurt Bruechert, Hayden Barby
HB: Jonathon Gray, Adam Hurse, Nathan O'Keefe
C: Jake Bucknall, Luke Treacy, Riley Herd
HF: Matthew Jukes, Joel Riske, Patrick Jenes
F: Nichlos Wright, Nathan Wright, Mitchell Whelan
R: Brady Neill, Lachlan Edwards, Matthew Bilton
Int: Jordan Bolding, Benjamin Kick, Ty Stewart, Jack Ross, Jakob Tidyman, Travis Cornwill, Ashley Robinson
In: Benjamin Kick, Jack Ross, Jordan Bolding
Last Modified on 17/09/2015 21:35