Photo: TJ Yelds
1. Coorparoo are a game out of the eight
Coorparoo have snuck back into finals contention after defeating Mt Gravatt by 20 points. They are now tied with Aspley for ninth place and are just a game away from Noosa who sit precariously in eighth spot. It was a very impressive game from the Kings who were challenged at stages by a competitive Vultures outfit but Coorparoo’s youngsters stood up when it mattered, including rising star nominated Noah Polinski who racked up a team high 25 tackles and 13 clearances, along with eight tackles. He was joined by Lachlan Taylor who contributed 23 disposals of his own to go with eight clearances and a game high eight inside 50’s. Jack Wratten was elite up forward kicking five goals and two behinds and Kyah Moncur was at times brilliant, with two handy goals and even pinch hitting in the ruck. Ashlon Prindable played a great game on the wing as well, with 21 touches and two goals. Ben Hogan led the way in defence along with Sam Cowley, with the duo setting up Coorparoo’s plays of the halfback line. Hogan was extremely damaging by foot going at 92% efficiency and Cowley helped provide the link up play going at 87% via handball and controlled the air with a game high four intercept marks.
2. Morningside’s squad runs deep
How Morningside have been playing in recent weeks should start to worry the top teams as this squad runs deep. They played a team game in their excellent win against Noosa away from home and it started in the stacked midfield. Tristan Hobley surprised no one with yet another great performance, this week with 41 touches, seven inside 50’s nine clearances, backing up last week’s 29 disposal and two goal game against the Sharks. Garrett Mcdonagh stood up as well with 30 touches, six inside 50’s and a goal and Kai Purslow had 29 touches. Oscar Tanks had 24, Kelly Castle had 23, quite nearly half of their team had over 20 touches and it showed with the Panthers smashing their game average of 356 touches to get 410 disposals this game. Other notable performances include Shaq McLeod with eight scoring shots resulting in three goals and five behinds, while Kelly Castle and Jake Howson combined for seven. Elsewhere, Darcy Cameron-Reeves and Hayden Bertoli-Simmonds chipped in for two goals each. In defence, Liam Dawson and Jack Melican were amazing, with Dawson dominating aerially with six intercept marks and five spoils, and Melican went at 100% disposal efficiency to go along with his three intercept marks and two spoils. Overall, a great team effort from the Panthers.
3. Sherwood’s young guns get it done again
Four weeks ago, the Magpies had no wins and sat last on the ladder. Now they have won three of their last four, including huge upsets to Noosa and the Roos this week. It has all been led by their young players. Jacob Edwards has been a standout the last couple of weeks and he was great again with two goals and 14 touches, but it was ex-Lions academy duo Ryan Glider and Owen Collins that really tore apart this game in the midfield and defence against some quality players in Benjamin Thomas and Aaron Wilson. Collins racked up 28 touches alongside six clearances, three inside 50’s and one goal and one behind, and Glider went at 100% handball efficiency with 24 touches and four intercept marks off half back. He set up the play well and also registered three inside 50’s. Other stand outs included Elijah Glass, another graduate from Lions academy in 2023, who snagged three goals alongside 14 touches. The Lion’s academy has helped created a really young, fun, and dangerous team who can take it up to the best.
4. The Demons forwards strike again
In the battle of the cross-town rivals, Surfers Paradise took the chocolates with a 53-point win over Broadbeach, and it was the Demons forward line who looked the scariest. Joe Kennedy was as good as ever with four goals straight and Oscar Wood chipped in with five scoring shots, kicking three goals and two behinds. Kane Gordon and Jamison Scott also kicked three goals apiece, showing the widespread talent of Surfers Paradise’s forward line. Other stand out performances from the game included ex-AFL players Zac Smith and Hugh Greenwood, with the latter laying a game high 13 tackles and the former racking up 28 touches with 15 hitouts and a goal. Matt Doran also contributed nicely, with a now somewhat expected 35 touches alongside nine tackles and four inside 50’s. In fact, the whole Demons team racked it up, with only three players in the team getting under ten disposals, and in turn smashing their team year average of 376 disposals per game by getting 410 this week.
5. The Lions big men are scary
Matt Hammelmann has been the main talking point to be the best forward in the league, but Levi Casboult just threw his hat in the ring with a huge 10 goal display against the Hornets in front of a home crowd this week. He did not miss a shot and grabbed eight forward 50 marks. He also racked up 19 touches and seven hitouts when he pinched hit in the ruck. Speaking of the ruck, Tom Hickey was excellent, with 23 touches and 17 hitouts alongside six clearances and six inside 50’s. He nearly added two goals as well, but missed them for two behinds. Down back, Liam Jones slotted back in seamlessly, with 12, yes 12, intercept marks in one game. He also got 27 touches and went at 89% disposal efficiency of half back, dominating this game and help setting up the Lions run and carry. If these three keep this up, the Lions will be a very hard team to beat. (Oh, and Tom Simpson returned with a paltry 42 touches, 9 marks, 9 clearances, 14 inside 50’s and 2 goals. WOW.)
6. Sharks hunting for a return to the top 4
With the win over the Gorillas this week, the Sharks are now only percentage out of the top four, sitting in fifth place behind the Roos. The Sharks had a good performance this week in an 84-point win over Wilston Grange but bigger questions will be asked of them in the coming weeks when they take on the Lions, then Demons and then the unpredictable Sherwood. They definitely have the talent, even looking at this week alone. Campbell Aston, Scott Miller and ruck Craig Malone can all take care of business in the middle of the ground, with 34 touches from Aston, 28 from Miller and 27 and 41 hitouts from Malone. In the forward line they have the best performed forward in the competition in Matt Hammelmann who kicked nine this week, paired with the handy Joshua Brown who kicked four. Then in defence, they have the elite run and dash from ex-Lion James Madden, as well as stalwart Adrian Williams, who is elite at reading the ball in the air, and had seven intercept marks this week. They have the tools, now they need to stand up in the next three weeks.