Well footy heads, the time we have all been waiting for is here! It is AFL Ontario Finals time and what an exciting season it has been for all with many ups and downs along the way.
This week features 2 x Elimination Finals and 1 x Qualifying Final in Division 1. In addition is an Elimination Final in Division 2 plus Elimination and Qualifying Finals in the Women's Division.
Four losing teams will see the end to their season, who will it be? An interesting thing about this Finals Series is that only one team in the league is not making an appearance in at least one Division. Who do you think it could be?
My Week 1 AFL Ontario Finals Predictions as follows!
Toronto Eagles v High Park Demons - 9am Humber South
The Eagles were flying high early in the season and undefeated for the first 6 rounds. In recent weeks they have struggled to get their best team on the park and in turn suffered a 10 goal defeat to the Swans in their final game, giving the Swans a maiden finals appearance.
No doubt the Eagles are embarrassed to lose their last two straight in the Nation’s Capital. But there is no doubt that the Eagles will have everyone back in this week and they certainly have both the depth and the Finals experience to take out the Demons. The big question though, is do they have the ability to kick much needed goals to win the game?
Hamburglar has been average this year and hasn't been kicking many. Don’t let his numbers fool you, it was all from some great early season form. You wouldn’t expect him to get any awards after this average season. Unfortunately their only other goal threat "Mr. 19" won't be factor either as he's been shipped back to Australia and is no longer an option.
The Eagles can't rely on their goal kicking coach alone to put a big score on the board! Can their bearded defender actually hit target or better yet, have a decent disposal? Maybe Cappa or Patty Larkins will put their head over the ball? Is Koens expected to do everything?
The Demons on the other hand had a couple of early wins this season and El Presidente was calling them flag favourites. Then they dropped off considerably and did very well to get back into the mix and then beat the Dingos and Rebels to secure their finals berth. Once again though, El Presidente is calling them Premiership contenders to anyone who will listen.
While the Demons do not have as much experience or depth (a few too many irish maybe?) as the Eagles, they do have a lot more pace and I am sure they will be looking to use this to their advantage. Not known for being overly hard at the football, the Demons will have to play some of their best football to have a chance of beating the proud Eagles boys.
While Mitchell and Martin will need to be competitive for a change and put their heads over it, Loughnane, Kelly and Quigley have been put on notice and will need to step up big time on Saturday morning.
Phantom Prediction - The Eagles while floundering late in the season should have too much experience in this one! Eagles by 6 points in a close one!
Broadview Hawks v Toronto Dingos - 11am Humber South
Broadview come into this game the clear Premiership favourites having lost only 2 games for the 2013 season - one of those being against the Dingos early in the season, so no doubt they will be primed for a big game.
The only other game the Hawks lost so far this season was against the Blues while they were undermanned and in reality that one meant nothing anyway. It is probably long forgotten by the Broadview Pretty boys.
The Dingos are limping into the finals to say the least. The veteran Stewy is apparently 50/50 (thanks for the tweet) and rumour has it that Big Wade is still wobbling from a hit he copped a few weeks back. Hard to imagine how a bloke with a head that size could come off second best, but the word is he couldn't even stand up on the day it happened!
Without these two up front kicking multiple goals, the Dingos wouldn't be in the position they are. They really need both guys firing in the side and firing so they can challenge the Hawks defence who haven't had much to contend with of late. Butch isn't going to give them many hassles that's for sure.
The Dingos will need to watch Dullard closely as everyone always does. Not sure if they have anyone who to stop him, let alone the loud mouth leading Goal Kicker Shuttleworth. No doubt he'll be squeaking right from the first bounce.
Another couple to keep an eye on is Mitchell across Half Back who lends a lot of support to Willis and also provides run. These 4 guys are really keys to the Hawks game, when they all play they generally win.
Phantom Prediction - Hawks too strong in this one taking the win by 5 goals!
Toronto Rebels v Ottawa Swans - 3pm Humber South
In the last Division 1 game of the day at Humber South, the Ottawa Swans travel to Toronto for the first time since the middle of July!
Hard to believe isn't it but the Swans are clearly the team who has benefitted from the 12 round season the most. Take nothing away from the very much improved Swans, but 3 trips to Toronto instead of 5 is a blessing to say the least, especially considering the poor numbers a lot of teams have taken up there in 2013.
That all said, the Swans earned their spot (with a little help from a friend in orange) and took 5th place. They have won 5 in a row and at one stage in the season were a mere 1 win 4 losses and looking like no chance of making the September action! How things have changed in the second half of the season!
The Swans will be looking to their top players in Strom, Kozlowski, Shanghnessy,and Roffey to have big games. Backed by Woods and Beardmore and an all-round solid team effort. After a draw against the Rebels in Ottawa, the Swans bounced back to five of their last six games. A finals win is definitely not beyond them, but they are travelling for 4 hours so you never know how they will pull up.
In a complete opposite, the Rebels started the season 4-1 and have lost 4 of their last 6 games since the draw with Ottawa. Hard to know what happened there but they did have a solid win over the Roos last Thursday to secure 4th place. Improving over the last season or so, the Rebels looked solid early but have fallen away since mid-July and really lacked consistency.
With King out of action for the rest of the season the Rebels will be looking to Fabbri, Karavias and Bodnar to continue on their strong form and lead their boys to victory. Generally pretty strong in defence, the real question is can the kick the Rebels a winning score? Duffy and Love will need to step up and have a serious impact. Older guys like Monty and Paps are not going to set the world on fire, it's 2013 not 2003.
Phantom Prediction – This one could go either way but the Reb’s should be too strong for the travelling Swans. Rebels by 10 points!
WOMEN
High Park Demons v Hamilton Wildcats - 1pm Humber South
The Top 2 Women's Division teams face off first on Saturday in what is only their second time facing each other this year! Back in Round 1 it was the Grand Final rematch and the Wildcats really took it to the Demons.
The second match was scheduled for July but the Demons forfeited, their only official loss of the year. Apparently Erin Loughnane was unavailable to play and the Demons didn't want to actually lose a game of footy! Pretty disappointing if that one is true.
Regardless of that, the Demons come into this game as red hot favourites and will be looking to continue their form with a win on Saturday. A win will mean that they advance straight to the Grand Final. They will be looking for Loughnane to lead from the front as per usual, with support from the likes of Czyzo, Valaitis and Roarty to play well also. If Loughnane not firing though they normally struggle and they could be in trouble!
The Wildcats may be the underdogs, but they are known for being hard at the football and tackling well. Captain Kendra Heil will be primed for a big game and support should come from the likes of Fluit, Kwan, Pepper and Comolli.
One interesting fact about this game is that since July 20, the Demons have only played one game which was against the Swans in Ottawa on August 10. 1 game in 7 weeks - I wonder what kind of form the Demons will be in?
Phantom Prediction - While it's been a while since they've played a game, The Dee's, lead by Loughnane should hold on in this one. Demons by 5 points!
Etobicoke Kangaroos v Ottawa Swans - 2pm Humber South
In the Women's Division Elimination Final the Ottawan Swans travel to Toronto to take on the Etobicoke Kangaroos. These two teams have faced each other twice this season, with the Roos winning by 21 points in Round 1 and the Swans winning in Round 9 by 28 points. It is safe to say the teams are pretty evenly match and this should be a great battle.
The Roos have been strong in the month of August with wins over the Blues and Wildcats. They are the only team to have defeated the Wildcats twice this season. The Amaral sisters will be primed and ready for a big game while DeBrabandere will provide a lot for the Roos out of the middle.
The Swans come into this game full of steam following a big win over the Central Blues in their last game of the season. Similar to their Men's team, the Swans have played their final 4 games at home but haven't travelled well.
They were 0-4 to start the season after games in Toronto and Guelph, but have managed to get enough wins to secure 4th place and a finals spot. Emma Dickinson will lead the charge and be pumped for a big game, but she will really all hands on deck if the Swans want their first win of the season away from Ottawa to be a final!
Phantom Prediction - This will probably be the closest game of the day, but I have to lean towards the home team on this one. Roos by 12 points!
And there it is! Predictions done and dusted.. The first round of finals should be a cracker. Make sure to keep up-to-date via the league's flashy new website, Facebook and their twitter use use #AFLOFinals and #AFLOFinalsR1 to link up your tweets! Oh and don't forget to keep the banter going with yours truly at .
All the best for finals..
The Ghost Who HandBalls!
Last Modified on 07/09/2013 04:17