Well you can feel it in the air.
Grand Final time is upon us for Division’s Two and Three this weekend and the WRFL community is truly abuzz with excitement.
With Grand Finals comes the opportunity to not only reach premiership glory, but also be rewarded for individual performances, with the Rex Swann Medal in Division Two and the Division Three Best on Ground Medal up for grabs.
In anticipation of this weekend’s senior grand finals, we take a look at all the key match ups and standout players in order to predict who this year’s Best on Ground recipients will be.
First up, on Saturday September 6, the Division Three Grand Final takes place at Hogans Road Reserve in Hoppers Crossing between Albanvale and Braybrook. These two sides only met two weeks ago with Albanvale prevailing to advance to the Grand Final, while Braybrook earned a grand final berth with a comprehensive win over Sanctuary Lakes last week.
For Albanvale, Darren Borg starred in the Qualifying Final win two weeks ago and his pace and run through the middle is a stand out. He has had a very consistent year to date and should figure prominently in Saturday’s big match. Goals are likely to come in this game if past history is anything to go by, so John Sirianni and Michael Bassi could be amongst the contenders, while Justin Henderson off half back will be a chance if Albanvale should get the chocolates.
Braybrook on the other hand has had a very consistent side this year and if they were to greet the judges there would be no shortage of medal candidates. Steven Pearce is coming off a best on ground display last week and if he gets amongst the goals again, it would be hard to look past him. Midfielders Levi Wallace and Hung Lai have been solid contributors for Braybrook all year and should feature prominently in this game. An outside contender could also be Peter Krueger who is another hard-working player who can often fly under the radar.
On Sunday September 7 at Avalon Airport Oval also kicking off at 2:15pm, we have the Division Two Grand Final between Parkside and West Footscray where one player will receive the Rex Swann medal. Parkside advanced into the Grand Final by thrashing Wyndhamvale in the opening week of finals while West Footscray have done it the hard way battling through two do-or-die finals to be in the big dance this week.
Parkside, who appear on paper to be favorites, will look to some of their more consistent performers this year with the likes of Jason Shaw and Michael Licciardo to be prominent on the day. Full-Forward Nick Grigg is likely to be amongst the goal kickers if Parkside are to be premiers, while midfielder Guy Barbuto has also had a sensational season and is another likely candidate to pick up the Rex Swann Medal.
West Footscray will be hoping that their fairytale run to the Grand Final lasts another four quarters and for them to do so they will need strong outings from some of their key men. Damien Yze up forward will need to be at his poaching best and if he is, he could have the Rex Swann Medal going home with his premiership medallion. Jadyn Trowsdale has been amongst the best afield in every game this year and will be hard to stop while Tobi Bray and Samuel Young will be a chance to win the medal as well, should the Roosters sail home.
However while many football fans may have their own standout players in mind to take home the coveted best on ground medal, the final decision thankfully rests with the adjudicators.
To see who you think should earn best on ground honours, ensure you head down to Hogans Road Reserve (Sep 6) and Avalon Airport Oval (Sep 7) from 2:15pm for all the live Grand Final action or catch all the highlights from across the weekend on 88.9 WYN FM.
BY CHRIS CHICK
Follow Chris on Twitter @chrischick24
Last Modified on 05/09/2014 17:00