Round Two of Finals ? ? ?

FOOTBALL ? ? ?
Under 19s ?
Traditional local rivals Monbulk and Emerald met in the knockout 1st Semi Final of the Under 19s at Avonsleigh on Sunday morning. During the home and away season there had been little to separate these sides as they had each claimed a narrow win over the other, the Bombers getting up by 2 points in Round 1 and the Hawks saluting by a margin of 8 points in Round 10.
The Hawks had close to their full squad available as a few players came back from injury and others who had played in the Seniors recently were also free to play. As usual, the Monbulk side was not short of support as the maroon and gold faithful turned out in numbers. The conditions were a little slippery after recent rains but the surface was firm and would allow for plenty of run and skill to be on display.

Both sides attacked the contest hard and neither team was afforded the luxury of easy possessions. The resultant pressure game meant that goals were at a premium. Ben Smith put the Hawks a goal up at the first change but the Bombers responded with three goals to one in the second term to go in at the half with a seven point advantage.
Monbulk worked hard in the second half to reel in the lead but the Emerald defence thwarted them time and again. It wasn’t until late in the last term that Emerald were able to score their fifth major and break clear to secure the win by 12 points. The loss ended Monbulk’s season but the promising form shown by this group, 8 of whom had played seniors this year, augurs well for the future, particularly with so many bottom age players.

Monbulk 3.6.24 def by Emerald 5.6.36
Best: Tully Ford, William Henderson, Patrick Snoxell, Jake Niclasen, Ziggy Hatherley, Benjamin Grimes
Goals: Ziggy Hatherley 1, Benjamin Smith 1, Harry Fleming 1

NETBALL ? ? ?
B Grade ?
With the Under 19s eliminated, the Monbulk supporters headed over to Woori Yallock to cheer on the B Grade Netball team who were playing in the 2nd Semi-Final. Monbulk were playing Narre Warren, with the winner gaining direct access into the Grand Final. The Magpies have been the benchmark side in B Grade, as they had been in all grades, and they had only lost one match in the regular season, being to Monbulk in Round 11.
This was a match that ebbed and flowed. At first Narre Warren took control and were out by as much as 7 goals early on before the Hawks found their rhythm. In the second quarter Monbulk dominated possession and pressured Narre into numerous turnovers, resulting in a 13 goal to 5 stanza which left the Hawks with a two goal lead by the half time break.
Good sides are hard to keep down all day and the Magpies produced a strong third term which yielded 9 goals to 4. Some great defensive play by Georgia, Fleur and Bonnie created turnovers that weren’t capitalised on as chains of passes were broken up further down the court. The three goal margin at three quarter-time was to also be the final margin as both sides added 10 goals in the last period of play.
The Hawks had shown that they could again compete with the yardsticks of the competition and, having earned the double chance, will now play ROC next Sunday in the Preliminary Final to try and earn another shot at Narre Warren in the Grand Final.

Narre Warren 39 def Monbulk 36
Best: Georgia Himmelreich, Iris de Wit, Olivia Crook
Goals: Iris de Wit 29, Olivia Crook 7

Once again we are very proud of our Under 19s and their season ?
We ask that everyone heads to Healesville next Sunday to cheer on B Grade at 12:20pm ?