Lang Lang vs Longwarry

The Tigers find themselves in some different territory after winning back-to-back games and will go into the game against the reigning premiers with some confidence.

They are the underdogs, but it’s the first trip down to Caldermeade Rd for the Crows and the Tigers have shown they know how to play the new deck well.

The deep pockets could be advantageous for them and with Daniel Lewis booting six in his first game for the season, the forward line looks dangerous with Clint Fulton ready to snaffle and snap through anything that hits the ground, providing he proves his fitness on the track after only managing half a game last week. Travis Kitchin and Aaron Rose are out injured.

If the Tigers are to win three in a row, Luke Collie, Joseph Dalgleish and Luke Edgar may be the ones to have a big hand in making it happen.

Longwarry let a 28-point lead at the final break slip against Poowong and will want to make amends quickly. It’s a good match up for the strong side, but they have some injury worries. Coach Aaron Paxton will be missing with a hamstring that could cost him 3-4 weeks, while Nick Walsh will miss weeks with a broken collarbone. 

AJ Lees was a late out with a quad last week which is carrying over to this week, but the depth Longwarry have in the reserves side is showing how important it really is. They’ll see a couple come up and slot in, which coach Paxton said was an opportunity for some who found themselves missing out in the early rounds. 

Kane Oldham may be leading the league best and fairest after the first three rounds and Lang Lang will need to put time into him at the stoppages, while Jedd Serong and Jason Wells will be the key if Longwarry are to improve on last Saturday’s 9.15 score line in front of goal. 

Expect the Tigers to claw all afternoon, but Longwarry won’t want to lose two in a row. Both sides will be up for the fight. 

Ellinbank vs Catani

Ellinbank did what they needed to do against Buln and after working into the contest, made sure they weren’t going to be challenged to remain undefeated.

Veteran Mick Urie has wound the clock back, putting in two brilliant performances and he’ll be a key factor again.

Ellinbank’s backline has stood so far and young Bryce Joyce showed his prowess against Buln, helping control the forward attacks alongside Tim Farthing. 

Shaun Phelan may be tough for the Catani defenders, the crafty forward already kicking six goals in his first two games, the bag of four coming in a time that saw Ellinbank break the game open. 

The Blues have battled injury troubles and missed big forward Matt Barrand against Lang Lang. Midfielders who hit the scoreboard are gold and Brett Williams is that player for Catani. He’s seen plenty of the footy but was able to get forward and kick two majors as well, he’s the danger man for Ellinbank and they will need to pay close attention to him. 

Jackson Caddy could give the side an advantage in the ruck and has worked with Williams well so far and Lauchlan Gregson will be a big factor in the defensive half if the Blues are to cause an upset over the highly fancied Eagles. 

Nilma Darnum vs Neerim Neerim South

The Bombers got on the board with a big win over Yarragon and will feel like they could rattle the cage again as they face Neerim Neerim South. 

After playing through a groin injury the week before, Clay Ketchen produced arguably his best game in the red and black finishing with 10 majors and the Cats will want to keep him under wraps and out of the contest from the first bounce.

Casey Thomsen down back will again be key for the Bombers, as will the Cann brothers Blake and Dylan.

They run all day and if they’re able to get off the chain, could see Nilma-Darnum break the Neerim lines. Ruckman Nick Carrigy has hit peak form early, competing all over the ground, giving his side a big advantage.

Tom Crole was the star for Neerim, but may return to Gippsland Power duties. It could be the battle of the forward line with Chris Urie coming off a bag of six. Tom Muir’s addition to the halfback line and wing has been enormous for the team, much of the sides attacking play beginning off his boot. 

Kody Wilson copped a tag against Nyora but was still able to find the footy. It remains to be seen what Nilma coach Matt Shorey will do with the star midfielder to try and nullify his impact, if it can be nullified at all going by his first two performances. 

The Cats should start favourite, but they’ll be met by a much-improved Nilma-Darnum side and will be faced by some tough matchups across the ground.

Trafalgar vs Nyora

The Bloods had the week off and it was one that enabled Chris Kyriacou’s team to freshen up and recover from some small nagging injuries. 

Against the Saints, they may look to take advantage of big man Dylan Farrell in the middle, the ruckman able to put the ball wherever his midfielders want it. 

Kyriacou himself has been the general across the halfback line and Klay Butler will be sure to feature heavily if the Bloods begin to get on top.  

Nyora hung around in the first quarter and showed some signs that pushed their Neerim opponents, but the young side fell away once the game got on Neerim Neerim South’s terms. They didn’t give up however, kicking five goals after halftime to showing  some fight late.

If the Saints are to beat the red-hot Trafalgar side, they’ll need another big display from Jesse Heylen, coach Dylan Heylen and Kallon Rigby who have started the season in fine form. 

The Saints should remember that just a week ago they came out on top against Yarragon and will use that confidence to take it up to Trafalgar, who they’ll be facing for the first time.

Poowong vs Yarragon

It’s been Poowong’s best start in a long time, the side that won four wooden spoons in the last decade sitting on top of the EDFL ladder at 4-0.

The one sour note is their mounting injury toll that is threatening to derail the season. Chris Doria said across both the seniors and reserves they’ve suffered 14 injuries, just four weeks into the year.

Despite that, they will face bottom of the table Yarragon and will look to make it five on the trot and Jack Hazendonk will again lead the way if Poowong are to triumph. 

He had close to 40 disposals last week according to his coach and kicked a couple of goals to lead the comeback over the Crows. The experience in Nick Visser and Steve McInnes helped the side over the line last week and they'll lean on them again as they go into this contest.

Mick Hawken and Doria showed they weren’t deterred from swinging the changes and it will be interesting to see if those changes made in the second half last week stick against the Panthers on Saturday.

Yarragon have taken some steps in improving under Brad Wheller, but fell to Nilma-Darnum last week in a game they probably felt was an opportunity to hit the winners list.

Beau Runnalls will be the man to test the depth of the Poowong backline, one that has been dismantled by injury.

If the ball comes in clean, he could find himself with several shots on goal. Tyler Hotchkin and Anthony Daraio will need to have a major impact if Yarragon are to cause an upset.