Round 6 wrap: Seniors, Reserves, Unders victorious

Saturday saw three wins for Blacks teams and one heartbreaking loss as the Phoenix went down to Old Xavs with the final kick of the game. 

The Reserves chalked up one of their biggest ever victories, cracking the magical 200-point barrier while the Seniors and Unders had comfotable wins against their respective opposition.

Seniors vs Old Haileybury

The Senior side moved its record to 5-1 after a comfortable 49-point win over Old Haileybury at Princes Park on Saturday.

The contest was hot early as the midtable Bloods looked to defend their home patch, but the Blacks’ six goals to two opened up a 26-point lead at the first change. Andrew Yates kicked a terrific running goal on debut to the delight of his teammates.

The midfield was where the battle was being won with the usual suspects of Steadman, Swift and Curnow getting their hands on the Sherrin with regularity. Campbell Moorfield also played an outstanding game in the back half, claiming a number of intercept marks throughout the afternoon.

A 40-point half time lead was extended to 51 at the final change, and that’s where the lead hovered for the final term as the Blacks took home the win. Daniel McCulllough continued his red-hot goal kicking form, finishing with an eight-goal haul in what Reserves coach Jordan Foster described as an “official bag”.

Lahy, Huntington and Roysmith also kicked multiples on the day and Joel Beasley caused the Bloods headaches all day with his agility and creative ball use.

The win sets up a mouth-watering clash with Old Scotch next week, with the winner to claim outright second spot on the ladder. The match will be livestreamed, so if you can’t get to the game you can still get your Blacks fix.

Reserves vs Old Haileybury

The Reserves had an absolute day out in the early game at Princes Park, dismantling a depleted Old Haileybury side by a whopping 206 points. 

Nine goals to none in the opening term set the tone for the match as the Blacks dominated around the ball and were far too polished by hand and foot for the Bloods. To the home side's credit however the second term was an arm wrestle as the Blacks could only manage three goals for the quarter to extend the lead to 82 points at the long break. 

But from then on it was a Blacks domination - the visitors kicked 19 second-half goals including 12 of those in the third term. Old Haileybury started the game without a full bench and with injuries stacking up could only manage 16 fit men come the end of the game. 

Morgan Fawcett was the star of the show as he put on a goal kicking masterclass to finish with ten majors, while Sam McKenzie and and Charlie Richardson finished with four apiece. Harry King was the dominant midfielder on the ground with Jordan Tunbridge, Max Gray and Tom Cousins also putting in stellar displays. 

The Reserves face their toughest test of the season to date so far next week, as they head to Camberwell to take on an undefeated Old Scotch outfit. 

Phoenix vs Old Xavs

The Phoenix couldn't hold off Old Xaverians at the Crawford on Saturday morning, with the visitors snatching victory from the jaws of defeat with the last kick of the game.

The lead changed hands at every break and the margin at each interval never go beyond a straight kick in what was one of the most even contests of the season. 

Scott Myers and Dave Restrepo acted as a dangerous forward pairing throughout the match to finish with a couple of goals each, while Julian Di Nezza, Will Hayward, Angus Mcintyre and Josh Bowden were also on song.

A promising opening six rounds of the season has the Phoenix placed third on the Premier Thirds ladder with four wins and two losses to its name, with those losses coming to teams around them on the ladder. The Thirds will kick off a triple header at Camberwell Sports Ground next Saturday as they take on Old Scotch who are undefeated at this level. 

Unders vs Collegians

A dominant final term from the Unders propelled them to their second win of the 2019 season, accounting for Collegians by 41 points at Harry Trott Oval. 

Contending with a 4.45pm start time, the boys led at every break in a game which wasn't broken open until the final 25 minutes. With just seven points separating both teams at three quarter time, the Blacks slammed on six goals to one to turn a seven point advantage into a big final margin. 

Lachlan Russell booted five goals and Maximus Ludbrook kicked three, while Lachlan Devlin, Alex King and Patrick Milner were prominent contributors to an excellent win.

The Unders will be eyeing off a third win against Old Melburnians at Elsternwick Park on Saturday afternoon.