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VAFA William Buck Premier Men's Round 16 Review
Jason Bennett • August 18th, 2025 8:14 pm
Blues land body blow on Blacks, while the Lions fall agonisingly short of a huge upset
Both the Finals & Relegation races remain alive entering the final fortnight of the home & away season. Here’s Round 16 of Premier Men’s in review.
University Blues have won three in a row to kick clear of the drop zone after posting a comfortable 30-point win over University Blacks in a massive Uni Derby at Melbourne Uni Oval.
The stakes were high for both teams, but for different reasons, as the Blues looked to escape the relegation zone, while the Blacks looked to draw level with Old Haileybury in the race for fourth.
The Blacks got the jump with the first 2 goals to Tom St.Clair & Matthew Grocott, before Trent Cossar kicked a beauty for the Blues deep into time-on to reduce the margin to 5 points at the first break.
The second quarter proved to be the decisive one, as the Blues got their contested and intercept games going to control the term. They capitalised with 7 goals to 2 (including a monster torpedo from Darcy Chirgwin on the half-time siren) to open a handy 28-point half-time lead.
The Blues dominated territory again in the third, but the Blacks’ defence held back the tide - both teams adding just 1.2 for the term.
But when the Blues booted the opening three goals of the last quarter, the margin blew out to 46 points. Credit to the Blacks, who responded with 3 goals in 4 minutes, but the damage was done – the Blues continuing their late-season revival with a critical 5-goal win that moves them 6 points clear of the relegation zone, given they finish with matches against the Top 2.
The Blacks have now lost 4 of their last 6, and while they’re still a chance to steal fourth from the Bloods, they’ll need to win their last two and hope that Old Haileybury lose their last two (against St Bernard’s & Old Scotch).
THE RUN HOME:
Uni Blues: Old Xavs (Away) Old Brighton (H)
Uni Blacks: Old Scotch (Home) Old Xaverians (A)
Matt Smith (Uni Blues): “Arguably our best four-quarter performance of the year. Although it didn’t show on the scoreboard in the first quarter, it felt as though we had controlled territory for the majority of it.
“In the second quarter, everything came together for us. We dominated territory, and everything we touched in front of goal worked.
“We knew the Blacks would come out hard in the second half, and we’ve had a tendency to let teams back into the contest. But to the boys’ credit, they stuck to playing their role and continued to suffocate with pressure.
“It was nice to be able to enjoy a quarter of relatively stress-free footy in the last!”
Dale Bower (Uni Blacks): “The Blues beat us in pretty much every aspect of the game and fully deserved the win. We need to get back to our best quickly and redeem ourselves against Old Scotch this week.”
The Blacks’ loss meant that Old Haileybury could effectively wrap up fourth spot if they could defeat St Kevin’s at Haileybury College.
It’s always a special day for the Bloods when they get to play at the school, and they booted the last couple of goals of the opening term to lead by 7 points at the first change.
But the second quarter belonged to the visitors as SKOB took control around the contest and booted 5 unanswered goals to open a 25-point half-time advantage – Jack Ball with two second-quarter majors for St Kevin’s.
Leading goalkicker Andreas Stefanakis threatened to bring the Bloods back into the game with a couple of early third-quarter goals, but St Kevin’s held firm and responded with two of their own early in time-on.
But Stefanakis wasn’t done. He booted 2 goals in 2 minutes late in the quarter to give him four for the term, keeping the Bloods alive as they headed to the break 23 points down and still in with a chance.
The hosts added a couple of minor scores to begin the last term, but 2 goals in 3 minutes pushed the margin out beyond 30 points, and, from there, Anthony Lynch’s men were able to control the game and post a comfortable win that effectively locks them into third spot and their seventh consecutive finals campaign.
While the chance to secure fourth spot slipped from the Bloods’ hands, they still maintain a strong hold on that last finals position. Win either of their last two games, and they will qualify for September.
THE RUN HOME:
St Kevin’s: De La Salle (H) St Bernard’s (A)
Old Haileybury: St Bernard’s (A) Old Scotch (H)
Anthony Lynch (St Kevin’s): “Haileybury were right on top of us in the first quarter in terms of their intensity and pressure, which was disappointing from our perspective given the significance of the game.
“Fortunately for us, they were not able to get too far away from a scoreboard perspective, and quarter time enabled us to reset.
“I was really happy with our game after quarter time, and although there are always things to improve on, the signs were good against a team we really rate.
“In such a challenging and even competition, I’m incredibly proud that for the seventh season in a row we have qualified ourselves into a finals campaign, and I think this group is building at the right time.”
Daniel Ward (Old Haileybury): “We matched their intensity early and deserved to have a lead at quarter time.
“St Kevin’s won crucial contests and territory to dominate the second term, and that was the difference in the game. Credit to Plugger and his group, who, despite significant changes, were able to stay disciplined and play their roles.
“We still have our destiny in our own hands but need to find our best footy fast.”
Old Xaverians survived an almighty scare from a gallant Collegians at Harry Trott.
The visitors led by a couple of goals at the first break, before the Lions bit back hard in the second term, dominating contested possession and controlling territory to boot 5 goals to 2, and lead by 9 points at the half.
The third quarter was all Old Xavs, who locked the ball in at their end with a whopping 17 Inside 50s to 1, yet only converted those into 1.4 as Collegians defended grimly – scores locked together at the final break – but Xavs without guns Josh Kennedy and Alec Spralja, who were both out of the game due to injury.
The last quarter was just as quirky as the third, with the Lions dominating territory but unable to score. They had 14 Inside 50s to 7, yet the game hung in the balance to the final siren.
Sam Hansen struck first for Xavs to give them a 6-point lead, which held until Dylan Thomas tied things back up 15 minutes in.
Tex Wanganeen gave Xavs the lead once again entering time-on, but their 8-point lead was reduced back to 2 points when Alex Lukic goaled at the 30-minute mark to set the scene for yet another thrilling finish at the Trott.
Collegians won the ensuing centre break and launched it forward, looking for the winner. Xavs cleared momentarily, but the ball went back Inside 50 to an Alex Lukic contest as the siren sounded to give Xavs a nailbiting 2-point win.
Heartbreak once again for Collegians, who suffered their fifth single-digit loss of the season (they are 0-5 plus a draw from six thrillers) after once again proving themselves capable of stretching a contender - yet they remain squarely in the relegation race with a fortnight to play.
THE RUN HOME:
Old Xaverians: Uni Blues (H) Uni Blacks (H)
Collegians: Old Brighton (A) De La Salle (H)
Dan Donati (Old Xavs): “I was rapt to get the 4 points in the end. We’ve had a challenging couple of weeks, and then going two men down early in a tough contest meant we had to dig really deep for this one.
“After half-time our effort went up, and whilst we had the territory in the third, just couldn’t find the scoreboard while Collegians defended the ground extremely well.
“In the end, it could’ve gone either way, as both sides just kept going at it. They’re always nice to win those games, as the effort required was enormous from both teams.”
Jordie McKenzie (Collegians): “It was a hard-fought arm wrestle against Xavs on the weekend. Neither side gave an inch, and goals were hard to come by.
“Our best quarter was our second quarter, when we won the territory battle and hit the scoreboard on the back of some great teamwork. The momentum changed multiple times, and ultimately, Xavs came out victors. Our boys kept trying right to the end, but much like many games this year, we couldn’t find a way to salute.”
Old Scotch took a giant step towards safety with a critical win over St Bernard’s at Camberwell.
The stakes were high, with both teams battling to avoid relegation and the winner gaining valuable breathing room.
The opening quarter was an entertaining, free-flowing shootout with both teams booting 5.3 apiece, before the Cardinals edged their way to a 16-point half-time lead, courtesy of greater efficiency with ball in hand (the Snowdogs going at just 46% by foot, committing 21 turnovers to 11 in the second term).
The even contest continued into the third quarter, with the Dogs increasing their ascendancy on the inside but not converting that into territory and score as both teams struggled to string together meaningful possession chains. Two goals apiece resulted as the Cards headed to the final change with a 15-point lead.
Old Scotch finally managed to get their uncontested game going in the last quarter, controlling the tempo with uncontested marks giving them the ability to set up behind the ball and defend their advantage.
One goal for the entire quarter was the result, and it went the Cardinals’ way, courtesy of skipper Andy Jelbart at the 25-minute mark, as the reigning premiers all but secured their place in Premier Men’s for 2026 with a hard-fought 22-point win that leaves the Snowdogs stranded in ninth and likely needing to win their final two matches and have other results go their way.
THE RUN HOME:
Old Scotch: Uni Blacks (A) Old Haileybury (A)
St Bernard’s: Old Haileybury (H) St Kevin’s (H)
Mark Gnatt (Old Scotch): “It was great to get back on the winners list! The boys have been putting in the work and deserved some reward for effort.
“St Bernard’s certainly came to play and made us work for it. The match was tight all day, with both sides having the momentum at various stages. Our leaders brought the energy and really stood up when it mattered.
“Rhys Galvin was outstanding in defence and has taken his game to another level. Henry Brown dominated in the midfield and has had a very consistent season.”
Steve Alessio (St Bernard’s): “The endeavour of our group was really good. We persisted all game, and the last quarter was a real arm wrestle with no score for about 20 minutes. It was a fantastic contest.
“If we scored, the margin would have been under 10 points late in the quarter. Unfortunately, a 50 metre penalty at a crucial time stopped what looked to be an enthralling finish to the game.
“We move on and do everything in our control to try and avoid relegation.”
The final game of the weekend saw top visit bottom as Old Brighton headed to Waverley Oval to face De La Salle.
And, as has been the case so often this season, De La served it up to a contender for an extended period but couldn’t go hard enough for long enough.
They led the Tonners by 3 points at the first break, and it took the league-leaders 12 minutes in the second term to find a major, but their pressure eventually took its toll, and Old Brighton took control of field position from which they booted the only 3 goals of the quarter to lead by 17 points at the long break.
The third term was last year’s minor premiers at their best. They slammed 7.3 to 0.1 to blow the game wide open by completing dominating the contest and hauling in an incredible 11 Marks Inside 50 for the term.
Trailing by 61 points at the final change, De La rolled up their sleeves in the last quarter and, to their credit, managed to break even in the stoppage and territory battles. What could have been a triple-figure defeat turned out to be 66 points as Old Brighton moved a step closer to back-to-back minor premierships.
Rising Star nominee Charlie Richardson delivered another eye-catching performance with 4 goals, while Tom Fisher led the way in the midfield with 38 disposals, 9 tackles and 7 clearances.
Nick Bufalo racked up 31 disposals, 9 tackles and 7 clearances for De La, while Jacob Williams rebounded tirelessly on his way to 29 touches, 9 marks and 8 Rebound 50s.
THE RUN HOME:
Old Brighton: Collegians (H) Uni Blues (A)
De La Salle: St Kevin’s (A) Collegians (A)
Marcel Bruin (Old Brighton): “In the first half, we couldn’t get our hands on the ball effectively, and we were lax defensively. De La had the better of the stoppages and put great pressure on our possession.
“In the second half, we needed to lift our intensity across the ground and, off the back of being a lot cleaner, we were able to set up better defensively and offensively shift the ball more effectively. This helped to create good shots on goal.
“It’s a great feeling to be able to lock in Top 2 and get another finals opportunity with two more really challenging games against in-form teams to finish the home and away season.”
Nick Hyland (De La Salle): “Our first half was actually pretty good. We matched Old Brighton in the contest, and our pressure was up all over the field. We were unlucky not to be a little closer at the main break.
“Third quarter was really disappointing. We completely lost our way when Old Brighton ramped things up. Credit to Marcel and his playing group, when they can chain out from stoppage, they are very potent.
“I was pleased with the way we responded in the final quarter to fight out the contest. A clear positive was that we matched the ladder leaders in the first half, as always, though, our challenge has been sustaining that across four quarters.”
WILLIAM BUCK PREMIER MEN’S – ROUND 17
SATURDAY AUGUST 23 – 2pm:
Old Xaverians vs University Blues - VAFA.com.au & SEN app – 1.45pm
Old Brighton vs Collegians Kommunity - TV double-header – 11.35am
University Blacks vs Old Scotch - VAFA.com.au LIVE STREAM – 1.55pm
St Bernard’s vs Old Haileybury - VAFA.com.au LIVE STREAM – 1.55pm
St Kevin’s vs De La Salle
(Photo credit: @bruceatobin)
