MILESTONES
Congratulations to Courtney Witt on playing her 50th game for Monbulk FNC, you are amazing – both on and off the court!

FOOTBALL
Seniors
Monbulk travelled to Toomuc Reserve in Pakenham for their Round 17 match against the Lions. The Hawks had to win to remain with a real chance of making the finals. The morning drizzle had stopped and conditions were close to ideal with little wind and a cloud cover as the game commenced. Pakenham quickly settled into their game style and succeeded in slotting four first quarter goals to establish a handy 25 point lead by the first break. Monbulk fought back several times over the next two quarters, only to see the Lions respond to the challenge each time. By the final quarter Monbulk were down by five goals. The Hawks fought out the match but any chance of a comeback was lost when they were only able to register 1 goal and 5 points as Pakenham ran out deserving winners by 39 points.

Monbulk still has a faint possibility of making the finals but it is coming down to mathematics. If the Hawks can defeat the fifth placed Upwey-Tecoma by about 12 goals or more they would sneak in on percentage. Monbulk will join Upwey next week to celebrate the life of Gary Wragg who passed away this week. Gary was a Monbulk FNC Life Member and past president, a four time premiership player at Upwey-Tecoma and a former League president.

Pakenham 13.8.86 def Monbulk 6.11.47
Best: Lochlan Beecroft, Max Thornton, Thomas Taylor, Lachlan Sheppard, Noah Rutherford, Bailey Rutherford
Goals: William Mutschler 2, Lochlan Beecroft 1, Josh Wentworth 1, Ziggy Hatherley 1, Lachlan Sheppard 1

Reserves
Monbulk fielded a patched up side in the penultimate round of the home and away season. The slippery conditions kept scoring low as the Hawks established an early lead through Shane Williams who kicked two goals and set up another in the first quarter. By quarter time they had a nine point lead and still led by 1 point at half time. The Lions played the big ground better and gradually worked their way in front as Monbulk only managed one goal after quarter time to go down by 14 points. After having had a good start to the season, any hope of making the finals was lost with this match.

Pakenham 5.9.39 def Monbulk 4.1.25
Best: Brodie Emmett, Shane Williams, Nick Taylor, Lachlan Smith, Nick Selleck, Lachlan Hancock-Wolfe
Goals: Shane Williams 3, Lachlan Smith 1

NETBALL
A Grade
Neither Monbulk (sixth) nor Pakenham (eighth) were in the running for a finals spot and both sides were playing for pride only. A large and vocal crowd watched the match and cheered on their respective teams as both sides were keen to finish the year with a positive showing. The court had dried out in time for this match and it allowed for a fast and interesting tustle. Monbulk’s defensive half put enormous pressure on the Lions, restricting them to just 19 goals for the first three quarters as the Hawks held a commanding ten goal lead. The final term opened up a bit more and Monbulk won that period 14-11 to clinch a well earned 13 goal victory. They will aim for back-to-back wins to finish off the year next week against traditional rivals Upwey-Tecoma, who are currently seventh.

Pakenham 30 def by Monbulk 43
Best: Jamie Clark, Peri Reid, Abbey Whitaker
Goals: Peri Reid 33, Jen Dewhurst 10

B Grade
The match of the day as far as netball went was played in B Grade. On a wet and slippery court both sides gave it their all in a day long arm-wrestle. Pakenham had a handy three goal break by quarter time but Monbulk then stormed back to take a one goal lead into half time. A 12-8 third term by Pakenham left the Lions with a lead of 3 at the last change. The Hawks fought back in a nail biting finish as the crowd were erupting to the play of both sides. When the final siren sounded Pakenham had snatched a one goal win in a match where both teams had given their all.

Pakenham 43 def Monbulk 42
Best: Rihanna Kelly, Elizabeth Cutting, Chloe Schmidtke
Goals: Paige Rondinella 37, Chloe Schmidtke 5

C Grade
Pakenham’s C Grade team still had a minor chance of making finals and played a determined match against the Hawks. Monbulk conceded a six goal lead at quarter time but were able to reduce it to three by half time. In the second half the Lions regained control of the game and ran out 15 goal winners. A highlight for Monbulk was the play of D Grade’s Kate Smith, who was named Monbulk’s best player in consecutive matches when she filled in for C Grade. Kate is also captain of the Monbulk Under 16s girls football team and is a member of the Eastern Ranges development squad.

Pakenham 35 def Monbulk 20
Best: Kate Smith, Laura Del Biondo, Courtney Witt
Goals: Jamie Sands 18, Kate Smith 2

D Grade
Monbulk faced the fourth placed Pakenham side in treacherous conditions on a slippery wet court where a number of players came to grief. The young Hawks left their best play to the second half where they were competitive and put together several promising chains of play.

Pakenham 30 def Monbulk 10
Best: Kate Smith, Jessica Steele, Leah Hansby
Goals: Kate Smith 9, Eireann Lawson 1

Next week we head back to the Nest for our final round of the Home and Away Season!!