X-MEN BARGE THEIR WAY TO BIG WIN

Old Xaverians won through to another Grand Final with a convincing win over St Kevin's at Trevor Barker Oval today.

Playing on the Sandringham ground that was at one stage their home, St Kevin’s had two quick goals on the board before the Xaverians had wiped the sleep from their eyes. The Red ‘n’ Blacks replied eventually, but alas, twice with just single calicos. At 16 minutes, Oscar Duncan pumped through the X-Men’s first, and by the twenty-minute mark, Harry Bird had goaled twice. Xavs by eight points, but then the Tricolours pulled one back very late in the term.

The second term was again a rather even affair, with goals hard to come by. Xavs shot wide a couple of times and then at 12 minutes, SKOB goaled. The teams traded behinds and at 22 minutes, Hayden Troiani kicked the Red ‘n Blacks’ fourth goal. Again, the Tricolours had the last word with a late goal that restored their lead.

Finals, as they say, are a different ball-game, but at the long break there must have been a recall of the teams’ earlier season clashes.

At TH King in Round 2, the X-Men trailed by 20 points at the half, but after half-time kicked ten goals to three to win by 24 points.

At Toorak Park in Round 10, St Kevin's led by 17 points at the first change, but thereafter added just 2.5 to the Claret and Stout's 12.8, and the home team streeted the Tricolours by 46 points.

Since then, both teams had lost to Uni Blues but were otherwise untroubled in a competition that had far too teams well below this section’s historical standards.

The Kevins opened with a goal three minutes in to the third stanza, but Ted Kennedy found the uprights two minutes later. Matt Exell hit one at eight minutes to give the Claret and Stout a two-point lead.  Kevs scored a behind at 12 minutes, but then Jack Boyd, Josh Cumberlidge landed sixers and the Senator struck again. The X-Men missed late in the long term, but they went to the lemons leading by a game-high 22 points.

It looked a match-winning lead, but the Kevs struck at four minutes to throw some doubt over that proposition. Jeromy Lucas responded for the Xavs at eight minutes and Dan Tuddenham slotted home the reigning premier’s eleventh and the margin had boxed out to 28 points.Troiani pushed it out by another half dozen and it wasn’t until 20 minutes that the Skobbers answered.

The teams traded minor scores late in the piece, then Lucas and Cumberlidge goaled again. Kevs added one more, but the lights were already out as the Xaverian crowd readied for the short trip north to Elsternwick.

The Old Xavs kicked themselves into another grand final with another solid performance, particularly after half-time when they scored ten goals to four. The veteran Hayden Troiani kicked a couple and was best on ground, while Sam Ralph impressed with a strong game.

 BEST: Hayden Troiani, Sam Ralph, Josh Cumberlidge, Harry Bird, Oscar Duncan, William Egan

GOALS: Hayden Troiani 2, Josh Cumberlidge 2, Jeromy Lucas 2, Ted Kennedy 2, Harry Bird 2, Oscar Duncan, Jack Boyd, Matt Exell, Dan Tuddenham

TONNER STUNNER

At headquarters, in the knockout first semi-final, third-placed Uni Blues began strongly and led by three goals at the first change. The second term belonged to Old Brighton, but at three quarter time, just two points separated them. Both teams scored goals early in the last, and ten minutes in, the margin was just a point. But it was the Tonners who came late, scoring four goals in ten minutes to book a meeting with SKOB next Saturday. Uni Blues, victors over both second semi-finalists in the season’s second half, are done for the year.

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