Jaidyn masterclass falls short; son of a Dons gun stars

It was delight for two clubs who won their way into the VFL finals and heartbreak for two others looking to create history as a remarkable home and away season came to a close at the weekend.

A history-making top-four berth was secured, a top-four team slumped to the wildcards, another reached its highest position of the season at exactly the right time and a fourth found itself outside the top 10 for the first time at exactly the wrong time.

It all means Sydney will host Frankston in one wildcard final at Blacktown International Sports Park and Williamstown welcomes Carlton to DSV Stadium, both at 11.05am on Saturday, with the highest-placed winner travelling to Port Melbourne and the lowest to Essendon for elimination finals, while Tasmania will be in Geelong and Box Hill goes to Werribee for qualifying finals in week two.

In a round of big goal bags, here’s what happened in Round 21 of the VFL.

PROUD SHARKS FIRE ONE LAST SHOT TO DEVASTATE STEPHENSON’S LIONS

Southport’s season has been destroyed by injuries to key players, but there is still plenty of quality in the line-up and the Sharks reminded us all of that as they overcame a masterclass from Jaidyn Stephenson to pip Coburg by six points in a thriller at Barry Plant Park on Saturday.

The Sharks led by 16 points early, fell 20 points behind midway through the second term but responded brilliantly to break the hearts of Lions fans everywhere.

Leading by a point at the last change, Shark superstars Jacob Dawson (27, 19 contested, 13 clearances) and Zac Foot (26) broke their tags and Brayden Crossley (16, 40 hitouts, two goals) donned their superman capes, although in-form defender Max Spencer (35, 15 marks, 11 intercepts, six rebounds), reborn defender-cum-forward Matt McGuinness (five goals), Christian Webster (22, 11 marks) and tagger Finn Hay’s blanketing of Jack Bytel (13 disposals) were also outstanding.

Stephenson was unstoppable once again despite the close attention of Elijah Reardon, showing all the class that won him the 2018 AFL Rising Star award in booting 8.1 from 10 kicks, while Ingo Dammersmith (20, 10 marks, 10 intercepts despite an ankle injury), Joel Trudgeon (28) and Cooper Keogh (22, 33 hitouts) were also terrific, but Braedyn Gillard’s 100th game ended in despair.

With other results going against them, Coburg was left to rue a second-straight 11th-placed finish, missing the finals by 0.4 per cent, or one solitary goal.

SEAGULLS BOUNCE BACK TO SECURE FINALS ACTION

Faced with a win-or-die situation to save their season, Williamstown did just that, crushing Frankston by 42 points at DSV Stadium on Saturday to surge in a home wildcard final.

The Seagulls put themselves in jeopardy with a poor performance against Coburg a week earlier, but traded punches with the Dolphins for nearly three quarters before overwhelming them with eight unanswered goals either side of the final break.

Toby Triffett (33, 17 contested, 14 clearances) was back to his best in his 100th game while veteran rebounder Jake Greiser continued his purple patch with 34 touches and 13 marks and Jack Toner (28) also fired.

Defenders Aidan Bonar (21, 12 marks, 11 intercepts), Ned Pendergast (17, 12 marks) and Luke Parks (17, 10 marks, nine intercepts) picked off Frankston attacks time and again, with Angus Seivers (five) and Nathan Colenso (four) capping it all off in attack.

Corey Ellison kicked three goals for Frankston to reach 52 and become the first Dolphin to win the Frosty Miller Medal since Aaron Edwards in 2006, with Tyson Milne (27, 13 rebounds, one goal), Darby Hipwell (26, eight clearances) doing their best to keep them in it, with the two late goals they kicked in time-on ultimately being the reason they made the finals.

GRESHAM BRILLIANCE SECURES HOME FINAL

Essendon’s finishing spot of fifth is the highest it has been all season after Jade Gresham produced a second consecutive best afield effort to bomb Sydney into submission in a 27-point win at Windy Hill on Saturday.

The Swans looked in control early, growing their lead throughout the first 2½ quarters and pushing 21 points clear midway through the third, but injuries to Hayden McLean (concussion) and Tom Hanily (ankle) proved fatal once the Bombers got their running game going.

Two quick goals cut the three quarter-time margin to six before Essendon banged on the first seven goals of the last term to blow the game wide open.

After booting four goals in a match-winning effort against Collingwood last week, Gresham slammed on another five to secure a sixth-straight win and a home elimination final, while Tom Edwards (22, three goals) had his best game of the year and Elijah Tsatas (37, nine clearances, 11 inside-50s, one goal) and Jackson Hately (35, nine clearances, nine entries, one goal) did as they pleased.

Caiden Cleary (30, 16 tackles, one goal), Angus Sheldrick (27, one goal), Corey Warner (28) and Harry Cunningham (21, 12 rebounds) put their hands up for AFL recalls, but they couldn’t prevent a costly loss that saw the Swans slump from their long-time spot in the top four all the way to seventh and a wildcard final.

LIONS FEAST AS SHARKS FINALLY HIT THE WALL

Port Melbourne youngster Luca Alessio turned in a career game at the best possible to help the Borough break a seven-year finals drought with a come-from-behind 26-point win over Collingwood at ETU Stadium on Saturday.

Needing to win to make the finals, the Borough saw a nine-point quarter-time lead turn into a nine-point deficit at the final change, but with their destiny in their own hands they exploded with seven goals to two in the last quarter to not only qualify, but secure a home elimination final in a fortnight.

Key forward Alessio, the son of Essendon premiership hero Steve Alessio, was averaging six disposals and had kicked 11 goals in 12 games before Saturday, but exploded with 6.0 from seven kicks in a breakout display.

Liston Medal fancy Ben Hobbs (29, 14 contested, eight clearances, eight tackles, 10 entries, one goal) again starred alongside Connor Downie (27, one goal), Matt Gahan (22, eight marks, one goal) and Dom Bedendo (19, three goals).

Collingwood had plenty of stars, led by first-year forward Jai Saxena’s career-best five goals and Frosty Miller Medal runner-up Mitch Podhajski’s four, while Harry Demattia (26, 11 inside-50s) and Harrison Coe (15, five marks, 44 hitouts) put their hands up for AFL debuts, while Brady Grey (25, one goal) and Jakob Ryan (20, nine rebounds) also impressed.

DEVILS SLAY GIANTS TO NAIL DOWN DOUBLE CHANCE

Tasmania was seeking a historic double chance in its first season, GWS was chasing a maiden VFL finals appearance, and it was the Devils who won easily by 39 points at Tom Wills Oval on Sunday.

In an amazing scenario, the Devils would have finished fourth with a win and eighth with a loss, while the Giant possibilities were a more amazing fourth for a win and 12th for defeat, and it was the latter that occurred as Tasmania controlled the game from start to finish.

Experienced big man Hugh Dixon (26 disposals, 11 marks, 16 hitouts) led from the front alongside captain Robbie Fox (21, nine marks) and deputy Jye Menzie (24, 14 marks, one goal), while Fothergill-Round-Mitchell Medal chance Harry Elmer (23, two goals) also impressed.

Jack Ough (32, 18 contested, 11 clearances) worked hard for the Giants and former Port Melbourne captain Harvey Hooper (24, nine clearances, one goal) wasn’t far behind, but they were never in the contest.

BLUES SURGE INTO FINALS IN CONFIDENT FASHION

Carlton bounced back from last week’s disappointing loss to St Kilda to qualify for the finals and end Footscray’s miserable premiership defence in style by 31 points at Mission Whitten Oval on Sunday.

Jack Billings goalled in the opening minute for the Bulldogs but the Blues responded with five in a row and were never seriously threatened, answering every challenge to win easing away.

Ollie Hollands (31, seven tackles) was best afield for the Blues, capping his day with the match-sealing goal in the last quarter, while Lucas Camporeale (32, 12 marks), Adam Saad (26, 11 intercepts) and Lachie Fogarty (25, eight marks) continued to bang down Josh Fraser’s door in a fifth win in six games.

Norm Goss medallist Cooper Craig-Peters (31, 17 contested, 10 clearances), Jedd Busslinger (31, 10 marks, eight intercepts, 10 rebounds), Luke Cleary (28, nine marks, 10 intercepts) and Billings (25, two goals) were magnificent for the Bulldogs, while Tom McGuane (22, six marks) had his best VFL game.

ELSEWHERE...

Anthony Depasquale kicked a stunning career-best seven goals and Jack Riding five from 27 disposals and nine marks to lead Werribee to a runaway 59-point win over Sandringham at Avalon Airport Oval, with Jaelen Pavlidis (26, 12 marks, 10 intercepts), Jordan Busuttil (27, one goal) and Xavier Ivisic (24, two goals) all starring to deny Kynan Brown (35, seven clearances, seven tackles) and Andreas Stefanakis (four goals).

Former Melbourne captain Jack Viney put in a solid shift in his first game of the season after achilles and back injuries with 20 possessions (12 contested), 10 clearances, seven tackles and a goal, but Casey Demons were no match for Box Hill Hawks, going down by 57 points at Box Hill City Oval on the back of 34 touches and nine marks for Bodie Ryan plus 30 and eight for Trent Bianco, while Riley Bonner had 33 for the Demons.

Richmond broke a seven-match losing streak, upsetting St Kilda by 48 points at RSEA Park to avoid the wooden spoon on the back of four goals from Samson Ryan, 26 possessions and 12 marks from Zach O’Keefe and 28 touches plus nine clearances from Kane McAuliffe, with Liam Henry (32, nine clearances, one goal), Kye Fincher (29, 11 marks, eight rebounds) and captain Billy McGee-Galimberti (23, 10 marks, 10 intercepts) performing well for the Saints.

Geelong had little trouble dealing with North Melbourne at Arden St, winning by 34 points easing up after blasting as much as 70 clear in the third term as George Stevens (35, one goal, Mitch Knevitt (27, one goal) and Rhys Stanley (19, 19 hitouts, two goals) proved too powerful and Jesse Mellor (five goals) and Jameson Ballantyne (four) cashed in, while Cooper Harvey (43, 13 marks, 12 rebounds), Bailey Scott (41, eight marks, eight tackles) and Zac Fisher (31, one goal) were prolific in an under-siege Roos backline and youngsters Kieran Rice (29, eight marks) and Felix Kneipp (21) also impressed.

The Brisbane Lions embarrassed Gold Coast by 103 points in their season-closing QClash at Brighton Homes Arena, piling on 21 goals to six after quarter-time to finish on a high as James Tunstill (32, nine clearances, 11 tackles, nine entries, two goals), Bruce Reville (33) and Keidean Coleman (27, eight marks, one goal) reminded Chris Fagan that they are ready to go, while Ben Jepson (36), Jai Murray (32) and Zeke Uwland (30, one goal) couldn’t stop the Suns slumping from premiers to spooners in just three years.

MRP NEWS

A quiet week for the VFL MRP this week, with only two charges laid.

Werribee's Lachlan Charleson has accepted a reprimand (down from a $150 fine) for misconduct in the third quarter of the win over the Zebras on Saturday.

Port Melbourne's Lachie Rankin has accepted a reprimand (down from a $150 fine) for careless umpire contact in the last quarter of the win over Collingwood on Saturday.

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