Round 15 Match Review, 2026
Senior Men's Match Report
St Kevin’s Old Boys 2.3 4.9 10.13 18.20 (128)
Old Haileyburians 4.4 7.4 10.5 12.8 (80)
Goals: H.Nosiara 3, A.Stefanakis 3, J.Bell, J.Connell, Cody Goonewardene, C.Harrop, B.Seccull, D.Seccull
Best: H.Nosiara, D.Seccull, L.Riley, C.Harrop, B.Seccull, M.Sievers
How the VAFA saw the match:
The final game of the round saw St Kevin’s keep their Top 2 hopes alive with an 8-goal win over Old Haileyburians at TH King Oval. SKOB kicked the opening two goals of the game, before the Bloods ramped up their tackle pressure (23 Tackles to 11) and profited from the turnovers they generated, kicking 4.4 to 2.3 to lead SKOB by 13 points at quarter-time – young gun Jasper Russell enjoying an enormous opening term with 12 disposals, four marks and four Rebound 50s.
Jack Bell added another major for the Bloods to give them a three goal lead nine minutes into the second term, and when Andreas Stefanakis and Charlie Harrop both hit the scoresheet, it was the visitors by 23 points approaching time-on. St Kevin’s were starting to get on top around the contest, and, despite being outscored, were actually controlling territory (20 Inside 50s to 6). Second-gamer Will Cooper dragged a goal back entering time-on, before four consecutive behinds saw the hosts head to half-time trailing by 13 points.
SKOB then really turned up the heat in the third term, dominating ground ball, taking territory and finding targets Inside 50 (nine marks inside their forward arc for the quarter). Their pressure was finally taking its toll on the Bloods, whose kick efficiency fell to just 48% and St Kevin’s feasted on the opportunities as theirs rose to 62% for the term. The result was four goals in six minutes midway through the term, as regular defender Ethan Phillips enjoyed a rare stint forward, booting a couple of goals as SKOB went from a couple of goals down to a couple of goals up entering time-on in the third.
Durras Seccull and Hugo Nosiara responded with two in two minutes for the Bloods to make it a one point game, before Phillips gathered a bouncing ball at the top of the goal square, turned and snapped truly – his third goal of the term sending SKOB to the final huddle with an eight point lead. The home team then stepped it up early in the last, kicking the first three goals to crack the game open with a 27-point lead nine minutes in – Phillips involved once again, as Anthony Lynch’s positional masterstroke delivered The Big Easy’s fourth goal of the second half. Given he’d entered the day with just three goals from his 24 VAFA games, it proved to be quite the day out!
However, the Bloods weren’t going away quietly, and goals to James Connell and Andreas Stefanakis reduced the margin to 16 points approaching time-on in the final term. But St Kevin’s put the game to bed with authority, slamming on the last five goals of the game to explode away to a deceptively large 48-point win in a game that was much closer than that all afternoon.
Ben Mansfield and Liam Gunson both had a ton of the football for SKOB, finishing with 30 disposals apiece and shared 14 Inside 50s and 14 Score Involvements. Billy Coates had an engaging duel with Brodie Findlay and collected 28 disposals (23 contested), 47 hit-outs, 13 clearances, 7 Inside 50s and a goal. VAFA Rising Star nominee Jasper Russell did his chances no harm, with another 28 disposals, 7 marks and 13 Rebound 50s, while Hugo Nosiara, Durras Seccull, and Lachie Riley were all named in the best in what was an even midfield performance from Guy Martyn’s side.
This defeat has dropped the Bloods back into the drop zone for the first time since Round 11, and they are suddenly the favourites to finish ninth and face relegation. On the horizon is their blockbuster final-round visit to the Blacks at Melbourne Uni, which may well decide who drops back to Premier B in 2027. The Blacks are favoured to survive over the Bloods at this point purely because of the relative strengths of schedule – the Blacks have Old Trinity & Old Scotch in the coming fortnight, compared to Old Haileybury’s run home featuring two premiership contenders in Old Brighton & Old Xavs. One win can potentially change everything in an instant, so if the Bloods can pull off an upset in the next couple of weeks, and/or knock off the Blacks in the final round, they can dodge the bullet and survive in the top tier next season.
Guy Martyn (Old Haileyburians): “It was an interesting game. We were really pleased with our first half and went into half-time about 15 points up. We’re well aware SKOB aren’t at full strength at the moment, but neither are we, and probably no side is at this stage of the season. Unfortunately, it was a very different game after half-time. They lifted their intensity and pressure, and we probably didn’t handle that well enough. We also lost a couple of important players to injury in the first half, including Jack Bell, which hurt our structure given he’s such an important forward target for us as well as our back-up ruckman.
“But ultimately, SKOB just took control of the game after the break. The third quarter was particularly telling. They really got on top through the midfield, and we struggled to get our hands on the footy. Then when we did win it back, we turned it over too easily. I thought the midfield battle had been pretty even, if not slightly in our favour, during the first half, so their ability to turn that around was probably the biggest difference in the game.
“We fought it out reasonably well, and there were still some positives. Hugo Nosiara, Brede Seccull and Lach Riley all had some good moments through the midfield, but ultimately we were beaten by the better side. We’ve got three really important games remaining, and know we need to find at least one win in there. As for SKOB, they’re going to take some beating come finals time, particularly as they get some players back. It looks like being a really interesting Top four and finals series. I think any of those sides can beat each other on their day, which should make September pretty entertaining.”
For full pictorial coverage of the Seniors' match against St Kevin's Old Boys go to the Gallery
Hearts Match Report
Caulfield Grammarians 3 0.1 1.1 2.2 2.4 (16)
Old Haileyburians 4.1 5.2 8.5 8.5 (53)
Goals: R.Barbakas 4, G.Folwell 3, I.Cunnington
Best: R.Hartney, I.Compton, M.Nailon, L.Connell, J.Bettess, G.Folwell
How the VAFA saw the match:
It was a dominant performance from Old Haileyburians boosting their percentage to sit second on the ladder. A four goal first quarter set up the victory for the Hearts as Reanna Barbakas kicked four majors. The third quarter ensured victory for away side, kicking four goals and extending the lead to 39 points at three quarter time. In the end it was a 37-point win for Old Haileyburians that sets them up to potentially snag top spot if Parkdale falters this weekend.
Caulfield coach Lachy Worthy lauded his team’s effort and highlighted the strength of the opposition. “Old Haileyburians showed why they are the benchmark in Div 3. They came out from the start with strong marking and quick ball movement to hit the scoreboard early which had us on the back foot for the rest of the day.
Men's Reserves Match Report
St Kevin’s Old Boys 4.2 10.4 17.5 20.9 (129)
Old Haileyburians 3.1 3.1 4.3 5.3 (33)
Goals: A.Bonwick, K.Christie, S.Connolly, L.Kirkwood-Scott, S.Stefanakis
Best: T.Antonis, A.Bonwick, Matthew Cowell, L.Kirkwood-Scott, J,Tuffley, J.Hewitt
Under 19's Match Report
St Bede’s/Mentone 1.1 1.2 2.2 6.3 (39)
Old Haileyburians 4.5 10.8 14.14 20.17 (137)
Goals: J.Paitaridis 5, L.Hornblower 2, J.Lasscock 2, O.Murphy 2, M.Riedel 2, B.Woodman 2, J.Chamberlain, J.Hardeman, W.Hardeman, S.Herman, N.Law