SYDNEY AFL PRELIMINARY FINAL 2016
Article and Premier Division Photos by Michael Shillito
Grand Final Photos thanks to www.sydneyafl.com.au

The stakes were high on Sunday evening as St George took on North Shore in the Preliminary Final at Blacktown. For the winner, a spot in the Grand Final; for the loser, time to put the jumpers in mothballs for the off-season. But in the end, there was a clear gulf in class between the two teams and the game would end in a blowout.
St George had finished third after the regular season. A win over UTS and then a loss to East Coast had got them into the Prelim Final. For the last three years the Dragons� season had ended in the Prelim Final; but this year they had hopes of it being fourth time lucky.
North Shore�s home and away season finished with them in fourth place; with wins over Pennant Hills and UTS getting them to the penultimate game of the season.

The Dragons burst out of the blocks in the opening minutes of the game, their lightning start meaning that North Shore would be forced to chase the game. Three goals in the first five minutes, as loose men were everywhere and the route to goal was uncluttered. The Bombers managed to tighten the game up after that, but the damage was done and the Dragons already had an impressive lead. Each side would score one more goal for the quarter; but the Dragons were holding an 18-point advantage at the first change.
North Shore played better in the second half, but coming from behind was always going to be challenging; and at no stage of the quarter were the Bombers able to take the lead. There was some attractive, running footy being played; and with North Shore putting in a good workrate during the second term were looking set to get themselves back into the contest. The Bombers won the quarter by four goals to two, and hopes were rising of a close finish.

But after being jumped at the start, the Bombers were again caught napping at the opening of the third quarter, as Paul Sain was left on his own within an easy kick at goal to take an uncontested mark and goal. Nick Ryan added another just a couple of minutes later; and all of North Shore�s hard work in the second quarter was undone.
North Shore had been major improvers in 2016, coming from a second-last finish last year to make it to the second last game of the season. But this was as far as their challenge would go. Having worked so hard all season, they had nothing more to give. Increasing numbers of Bomber players on the bench were sporting ice-packs; and a sense of inevitability of the end of the season had set in.
It was four goals to one for the third term, with the Dragons� lead out to 29 points at the last change. But the Bombers can be thankful for some missed Dragon shots at goal for being even that close. But the vibe had set in; and there was no doubt where this game was going.
The Dragons were on fire, the run of play on the field matched only by the St George crowd on the northern hill. Their ghetto blaster was pumping out the music after every Dragon goal, their raucous chorus of �I�d rather be in Baghdad than North Shore� the atmosphere in a final quarter that would be a Dragon benefit show.
North Shore would be disappointed in their final quarter capitulation, leading to what was their heaviest defeat of the season. But this was St George�s night, as they dominated all facets of the game during a one-sided term of footy. Finding loose men at will, and facing little more than token resistance, the goals flowed with regularity. Having fallen at the last hurdle in the quest for a Grand Final berth in the last three years in a row, a spot in the premiership decider was secure. And the one-sided final quarter will give them some handy momentum for next week�s match.
In the end, it was ten goals to one for the quarter, with the Dragons taking out a comprehensive 85-point win. There were no shortage of players willing to step up and score goals; but the standout contributors on the forward line were Nick Ryan with five goals and Paul Sain with four. Around the ground, Ryan Mercer, Nick Shipley and Michael Milner featured prominently. But it was a subdued singing of the song in the rooms after the game; with the knowledge that the toughest test is still to come.
Sam Carruthers, Will Bradley and Ned Campbell were best for the Bombers. But their season, one that had delivered some substantial success, is over.

And so we�re down to the last two teams. Next Saturday at Blacktown, East Coast Eagles will play St George for the right to hold the premiership silverware. The Eagles were top after the regular season, and have beaten the Dragons three times this season already. But all of that counts for nothing unless they can win on Saturday.
Will the Eagles be able to get the job done in the Grand Final, going one step further than last year, and drink from the premiership cup? Or will it be the Dragons to break a 24-year premiership drought? All will be revealed next Saturday.


Premier Division:
Preliminary Final
St George 4.3 6.5 10.11 20.13 (133)
North Shore 1.3 5.5 6.6 7.6 (48)
Goals : St George �
N Ryan 5, P Sain 4, J Brown 2, N Kenny 2, R Mercer 2, D Tomlins, A Wynn, E Shaw, X Stevenson, K Merson. North Shore � E Strudwick, D Roberts, S Lee-Steere, W Blackburne, M Varjavandi.
Best : St George � R Mercer, N Shipley, M Milner, N Kenny, E Shaw, N Shaw. North Shore � S Carruthers, W Bradley, N Campbell, E Strudwick, M Varjavandi, T Weston.
At Blacktown International Sportspark, Sunday 11th September 2016.

Division One:
Preliminary Final
St George 2.1 4.6 9.9 14.11 (95)
Western Magic 4.4 6.5 7.5 8.6 (54)
Goals : St George �
D Donohue 4, M Holmes 3, K Anu 2, D Cooper, J Hill, J Maldigri, B Jones, N McKenzie-Hicks. Magic � J Schwarze 2, J Morrison 2, M Collins, A Moeller, W Stoitse, E Barclay.
Best : St George � R Craig, J Hill, D Donohue, M Holmes, S Wilsen, D Cooper. Magic � S O�Connor, J Schwarze, W Stoitse, B Akmens, M Collins, J Mann.
At Blacktown International Sportspark, Sunday 11th September 2016.

Under 19s One:
Preliminary Final
UNSW-ES 4.3 7.6 9.6 12.8 (80)
Pennant Hills 0.3 1.5 3.9 5.12 (42)
Goals : UNSW-ES �
J Cann 3, N Blakey 2, J Pawle 2, J Buckley, R Doering. Pennant Hills � M Carroll 2, J Corbett, J Stern, K Briggs.
Best : UNSW-ES � J Buckley, J Cann, J Bartholomaeus, J Dever, R Danne, J Wachman. Pennant Hills � M Carroll, B Clark, J Carroll, N Eynaud, K Briggs, I Pearson.
At Blacktown International Sportspark, Sunday 11th September 2016.


SECOND GRAND FINAL DAY:
Blacktown International Sportspark was bathed in sunshine on Saturday for the second Grand Final day of the season. Three premiership titles were up for grabs.
Division Three
The day started with the Division Three decider, with Pennant Hills taking on Wollondilly.
The Demons were minor premiers and first to qualify for the Grand Final, but it would be the Knights who would get the early jump and do the early front-running. The Knights kicked all three of the goals that would be scored in the first term, as they powered away to record an 18-point quarter time lead.
The Demons would break their goal drought in the second term, but the Knights continued to have the run of play around the ground and would add another two for the quarter to lead by 24 points at half time.
The Demons threw caution to the wind in the third quarter, desperately searching for the break that would get them back into the contest. But in doing so, their defensive lines were held vulnerable. A high-scoring quarter saw the Knights add five goals to one, stretching their lead to 41 points at the last change.
The Demons won the final quarter by three goals to two, but it wasn�t enough for the Demons to launch a comeback win.
The final margin was 30 points, despite both teams ending up with the same number of scoring shots. Daniel Hockey, Max McIllhatton and James Weston featured prominently for the Knights; who in their first season after being promoted to Division Three have taken out the title. Jackson Preedy, Scott Brain and Regan Pinker were the Demons� best.
Wollondilly 3.2 5.3 10.3 12.3 (75)
Pennant Hills 0.2 1.3 3.6 6.9 (45)
Goals : Wollondilly �
J Haddock 3, C Wolfe 2, D Hockey 2, M Jensen, C Fitzsimmons, A Stamoulos, J Hamilton, S Paget. Pennant Hills � J Mott 2, J Preedy, F Nixon, C Baglin, D Smith.
Best : Wollondilly � D Hockey, M McIllhatton, J Weston, J Watkins, S Baget, L Bolwell. Pennant Hills � J Preedy, S Brain, R Pinker, H Angel, S Hodges, J Mott.
At Blacktown International Sportspark, Saturday 10th September 2016.

Division Two
Next up was the Division Two competition, with Camden taking on North Shore. The Cats were minor premiers and had only needed to play one game to make it through to the Grand Final.
The first quarter was a defensive slog, a physical contest in which there were plenty of nervous errors and plenty of heavy hits, but little in the way of open ball movement. The Cats would score the only goal of the quarter, to lead by nine points at the first change; but it was already clear that this wasn�t going to be a game in which there would be any easy use of the footy.
It was two goals apiece in the second quarter, as the Cats stayed in front throughout but the Bombers were coming up with the answering goals to keep themselves within striking distance. The Cats were leading by eight points at the long break, but close enough to keep the Bombers interested.
The Cats were getting plenty more of the ball in the third quarter, but the lopsided possession count wasn�t fully reflected on the scoreboard. An inaccurate return of 2.9 would frustrate the Cats at a time when they had the potential to post what would have been an insurmountable lead. But the Bombers were held to a single goal for the quarter, the Cats extending their lead to 22 points at three quarter time.
Camden would go on with the job in the final quarter, with three goals to one extending the final margin to 33 points. Josh Van Luenen, Josiah Ayling and Mark Maher were best for the Cats; who after losing the last two Grand Finals in Division Two are finally able to claim some silverware. Mick Montague, Jack Prato and Anthony Johnson were North Shore�s standout performers.
Camden 1.3 3.6 5.15 8.15 (63)
North Shore 0.0 2.4 3.5 4.6 (30)
Goals : Camden �
M Lecek 2, M Withers 2, B Pearce 2, J Van Luenen, C Murray. North Shore � N Wright, N Hurrell, A Reddie, B Hickey.
Best : Camden � J Ven Luenen, J Ayling, M Maher, B McParland, B Pearce, M Withers. North Shore � M Montague, J Prato, A Johnson, M Marquez, P Codling.
At Blacktown International Sportspark, Saturday 10th September 2016.

Womens Premier Division
The final game for the day was the Womens Premier Division, a clash between UNSW-ES Stingrays and Sydney Uni Bombers.
The Stingrays had been first through to the Grand Final, but struggled early against a barrage of pressure from the Bombers. The Bombers would score both of the goals to be scored in the first term, to lead by 14 points at quarter time.
But the Stingrays fought back in the second term, getting in front at the marking contests and matching the aggression that the Bombers had shown earlier in the game. And the bounce of the ball started to run the Stingrays� way as they kicked three goals to one in the second term to reduce the deficit to two points at half time.
The momentum had swung, and that continued as the Stingrays took the lead in the third term. It wasn�t a high-scoring quarter of footy, with the Stingrays scoring the only two goals to be kicked; but enough to make it clear that the tide had turned their way and the progression to the premiership was apparent.
The margin may have only been nine points at three-quarter time, but the movement in general play suggested it should have been more. And the Stingrays would go on with the job in the last quarter, shutting the Bombers out of possession in almost every contest and pumped the ball into their forward line with regularity. Three unanswered goals in the final term was enough to deliver a 27-point win and the premiership.
Madelane Collier, Emma McKay and Mai Nguyen were ball magnets for the Stingrays; while Rachael Stack, Nicola Barr and Alice Wood were Sydney Uni�s best. But this was UNSW-ES�s day, the minor premiership being followed up with the silverware.
UNSW-ES 0.0 3.1 5.2 8.3 (51)
Sydney Uni 2.2 3.3 3.5 3.6 (24)
Goals : UNSW-ES �
R Beeson 2, R McGee 2, S Banki, M Collier, R Still, R Godman. Sydney Uni � C Samuels, R Stack, N Barr.
Best : UNSW-ES � M Collier, E McKay, M Nguyen, M Morriss, T Bool, H Turnbull. Sydney Uni � R Stack, N Barr, A Wood, A Johnson, J Lew, C Samuels.
At Blacktown International Sportspark, Saturday 10th September 2016.


ONE DAY IN SEPTEMBER
And so just one day of the footy season remains. Next Saturday at Blacktown International Sportspark, the last three premierships are on the line. The program for the day is:
9:45am � Under 19s Division One � North Shore v UNSW-ES
12:15pm � Division One � UTS v St George
3:15pm � Premier Division � East Coast v St George