- May 8, 2001
- 5,667
- 818
- AFL Club
- Adelaide
- Other Teams
- CDFC (SANFL), Port Melb (VFL)
Hi Footy fans...
It's that time of year once more, we are now in survival mode as we kick off the 2023 SANFL Finals Series. Five teams, four weekends, the last team standing wins the prize. For the second time in the last three season, the Tigers are minor premiers and were watching in the stands, waiting in the wings for whoever would rise to challenge. In second place, you have the Double Blues, followed by the Crows. The AFL-backed side had a strong second half of the season, with several big wins including ones over the Blues and the top-placed Glenelg. The Blues on the other hand had more than their share of lucky escapes, but with some goal-kicking issues they've had to rely on a hardened defence for victory. Then there's the sudden death zone of the table, taken up by the Bulldogs and the Magpies. The Dogs are probably lucky to be in September footy, with a pair of fighting wins to finish the season. One of those was against the Magpies only last week, however only by the good graces of the Blues and their win against North, they were kept in contention. The football action now takes us to the Adelaide Oval, league headquarters and hallowed turf to many SA footy-heads. For the next few weekends, teams will fall off the wagon, leaving two to battle for the premiership flag and the Thomas Seymour-Hill Trophy. This is Finals Football.
Welcome to the Finals Week One edition of the SANFL Wrap-Up.
We start the finals action as we always do, with a cut-throat Elimination Final. This time around, its the Bulldogs facing off against the Magpies. These two sides have taken a victory each in this year's minor round, beginning with the Magpies' victory back in Round 9. The Dogs' second quarter was a waste, unable to take advantage of the 'Pies wayward shooting. They closed to within two kicks at the final change, but Port finished stronger to run out 23-point winnners. But last week, Centrals ended the seven-match streak of losses with a stirring come-from-behind win at Elizabeth, an eight to three goal final quarter sealing their September spot with a 15-point win after being behind by as much at three quarter-time. This would be only the second time these sides have met in an Elimination Final, it was a quarter century ago that the Magpies hammered the Dogs by 61 points in the 1998 edition on their way to that year's title at the old Football Park. Since that time, the two sides have met only a further three times in finals football, the 2000 Qualifying Final, the 2005 2nd Semi-Final and more recent was the 2015 1st Semi, all Bulldogs victories. In terms of success in this type of final, the Redlegs have won 13 eliminators from 19 appearances since the inception of the format in the 1973 season. In that half century, only 13 teams have won through to the Grand Final and only three have gone all the way to take home the premiership. Of course there was the aforementioned Magpies of '98 who finished fourth that season, while the Redlegs of 1984 and the Roosters of 2018 were able to do it from fifth. Glenelg holds the highest score of 24.22 against Woodville in the 1987 edition, though Norwood's effort against the Bloods in 1981 yielded the most goals with 25. Both Centrals and Port have appeared in seven Elimination Finals, with the Magpies having won three, the Dogs didn't win any until their 2015 and 2017 outings. Since last weekend, many would have expected the Magpies to not underestimate the Bulldogs after that final term drop-off and adapt as such, though motivation was well on the side of Centrals after that fighting finish and entering their first finals series in six seasons. What was played out was probably one of the most thrilling and entertaining outings between these sides in recent memory.
The Magpies were a bit more cautious in their approach early on, the Dogs proving to still be a pain in the rear end with their ball movement. Despite the better handling, the Bulldogs attack in the later stages of the opening term repeatedly missed the mark, unable to capitalise on some prime opportunities. Port would manage a late major to make sure the gap was well within strike, altogether they kicked three goals without a miss to Centrals' 3.4 as the Dogs went into the first change with a four-point lead. It was a bit of tit-for-tat scoring in the second quarter, the deficit not reaching any more than a couple of straight kicks for over 20 minutes with more missed chances on goal from both sides. But then in the last six minutes of the term leading into the long break, the Magpies nailed a trio of unanswered goals to overturn the Dogs' lead in their favour. Port scored 4.5 to Centrals' 2.2, the 'Pies leading by 11 points at half-time. When play resumed, Port could have really put space between themselves and the Dogs, but after spraying through a couple of early chances to open the second half, the gap was back down once more to just a single straight shot by the final change. A couple of Centrals' majors during the third term would definitely be making the highlights reels, they kicked 4.1 to the Magpies' 3.2 to have a difference of six points Port's way at three quarter-time. Three times during the final quarter was the scores tied, the first with the Dogs' first goal of the term, then again at the 15 minute mark and then on the cusp of time-on. Centrals would then bag a goal at the beginning of the added period and a late behind made it a two-kick gap, which would prove to be the killer blow for the Magpies, Centrals winners by seven points and advancing to a 1st Semi-Final. Harry Grant was named best for the Doggies, with 22 disposals, 10 tackles and six clearances. Mention definitely must be made of Aiden Grace's third term antics, two goals coming from Tony Hall-esque angles among the five he scored. For the Magpies, it was Jackson Mead with 19 disposals, eight tackles and five clearances. Jed Hagan and Orazio Fantasia combined for seven goals, while Scott Lycett was pushing for Power selection with 35 hitouts in the middle.
That now brings us to the Qualifying Final, this season it was the Double Blues against the Crows to decide who would challenge the minor premiers. The points from the two outings this season were also shared. Sturt would win the first back in Round 6 at Unley, an almighty tussle right to the end. The gap at the breaks was never more than a single straight kick, but for the bulk of the match it was Adelaide in front until three quarter-time when scores were levelled. The Blues defenders had their work cut out for them in the final stanza, but with the only goal in the quarter they would finish up 10-point winners. But then a fortnight ago, the Crows returned the favour at Oxford Terrace, holding the Blues to one major while bagging six of their own for a 16-point win. These sides haven't met in an Qualifying Final before, but in their only meeting in a final, it was the 2016 Preliminary Final where the Blues won by 35 points on their way to the premiership. Adelaide have appeared twice, the first was back in 2019 in a loss to the Magpies, then last season against the Redlegs which they won. For the Blues, historically the Qualifying Final has not been kind to them. They've appeared in 14 games with just four victories, their last game in 2018 resulting in a 21-point loss to the Eagles, which they didn't recover from as they were bounced from finals in straight sets. But they have recovered in the past, bouncing back from losses in 1976 and 2017 to take out the flag. The best record in Qualifiers belongs of course to the Magpies, with 12 wins from 17 appearances, while on the other end of the spectrum its the Panthers with no triumph to their name from three games. Port also holds the best score of 23.17 against the Dogs in the 1989 series and the Eagles with the most goals with 24 scored in 1992. There have been 19 winners of the Qualifying Final that have gone on to win the season, while the losers have come back four times. There was the aforementioned Sturt outfits, as well as the Eagles of 2011 and the Norwood side of last season.
The Blues went into this match on the back of a win against the Roosters at Prospect last week, while the Crows went down to the formerly defending premiers in Norwood at The Parade. Adelaide's stocks have been tested as of late, with some injuries to key players and of course the qualification rules set forth by the league that came into effect with their seniors failing to reach September football. As a result, the AFL-listed contingent was down to 13 for this match. The Blues wasted little time getting onto the goals column, booting the opener in under two minutes. For the next 18 minutes, both sides could only find minor scores, Adelaide blowing several prime chances as they fell back to a four-kick gap come quarter-time. The Blues bagged five goals to one to go into the first change leading by 23 points, the board reading 5.3 to 1.4. From here though, the goals were much harder to come by for the Blues, but the Crows were still unable to capitalise on their chances especially in the second term. Adelaide did, however, manage to keep the gap at four kicks going into the changerooms at the long break. The Crows chipped two points off the Blues earlier advantage, scoring 2.3 to 2.1 as the deficit was down to 21 points come half-time. When play resumed, the Crows kicked three straight goals before the Blues replied with any of their own. Sturt's lead would be shrunk down again after their last shot on goal went wide for an overall third term tally of 2.1, a third major would have restored their 21-point lead but instead would be only 16 points in front at the final change. With the loss of an influential ruckman during the third quarter, things in the middle started to turn Adelaide's way and the Blues game-plan was about to unravel. The Crows would ram through 5.2, with Sturt managing one behind in the interim. The Blues finally put one on the board deep in added time, but a further pair of missed chances would find them heading to a sudden-death Semi-Final next week. The Crows won by seven points to set up a Grand Final play-off against the minor premiers. Jackson Hately was Adelaide's best afield, with 22 disposals and eight tackles, other contributors included Billy Dowling who inflicted nine tackles, while Tyler Brown had seven clearances. For the Blues, James Battersby was best with 32 disposals, 10 clearances and eight marks. Jared Dakin and Tom Lewis were clearance-happy themselves, combining for 15.
FINAL SCORES IN WEEK ONE OF THE SANFL FINALS...
Sunday September 3
ELIMINATION FINAL
Central District 12.10 (82)
Port Adelaide 11.9 (75)
QUALIFYING FINAL
Adelaide 11.9 (75)
Sturt 10.8 (68)
8,021 @ Adelaide Oval
INJURIES
Sturt -- Doyle (knee), Page (hamstring)
REPORTS
Central -- Hoskin (wrestling)
Port -- Carter (wrestling)
Adelaide -- Wright (rough conduct)
Sturt -- Coomblas (tripping)
RESERVES FINALS -- Eagles survive thriller, Blues to face minor premiers
The Reserves finals kicked off under lights at Thebarton Oval last Friday, with the Qualifying Final seeing the Double Blues push aside a rather wasteful Bulldogs outfit by six goals. The Blues ran off with it early, kicking to a 33-point quarter-time lead with a five goal to one opening term. That gap didn't change too much over the rest of the match, the closest the Dogs got was 24 points well into the final term, long after the ship had sailed out of port. It could have been far worse for Centrals, the Blues scoring 11 goals from 21 scoring shots. Sturt will go into their match against the Tigers in next week's 2nd Semi with plenty of confidence. Also to be played after the GF qualifier will be the 1st Semi, with the Dogs set to face the Eagles who eliminated the Panthers in their Elimination Final at Noarlunga on Saturday morning. This was one that well and truly got away from the Panthers, who dominated the tail end of the second term to lead by two goals at half-time, overturning the Eagles' two-kick lead earlier in the term. They stretched that to 20 points deep into the third term, but by the final change it was just seven points between them. Then the arm-wrestle began, the scores getting tied up three times after the Eagles kicked to a one-point lead mid-way through the last quarter. An exchange of behinds ensued, then a goal each way before a late rushed behind to the Eagles ended up being the final margin. Both Reserves finals will be played at Stratarama Stadium in Glenelg on Saturday from 11am.
ELIMINATION FINAL -- Woodville-West Torrens 10.9 (69) def. South Adelaide 10.8 (68)
QUALIFYING FINAL -- Sturt 11.10 (76) def. Central District 6.4 (40)
UNDER-AGE FINALS -- Bulldogs colts and pups drop chances, Blues forge on in both grades while Bloods kids outrun elimination
The Bulldogs luck in the Reserves trickled down into both their junior grade sides in their respective 2nd Semis, however they will both contest and host next week's Torrens Uni Preliminary Finals. In the U-16's, it was like a glimpse into what was going to happen to the two's, playing the curtain raiser on Friday afternoon. A horrid second and third term was the catalyst for their downfall, the Blues going from 11 points up at quarter-time to 21 come half-time. Centrals managed just one goal in the final term as the Blues took the first Grand Final spot with a 33-point win. They will face the Bloods next week, who triumphed against the Roosters in their 1st Semi. Down by 11 points at the long break, the Bloods then proceeded to kick seven of the next nine goals, running out 21-point winners and dumping North from the race. Then came the U-18's, starting with the cut-throat opening match where the Blues eliminated the Eagles with a 10-point win. Earlier on, it looked as though the Eagles would run with it after keeping the Blues to just one behind whilst kicking 3.1 for themselves. Sturt's goal-kicking fortunes improved though, reeling it back to a single goal by the long break. The Eagles were back out to a three-kick lead by the final change, but the Blues chased them down with a six goal to two last term. That brings us to the GF qualifier, the Panthers continuing the Bulldogs misfortunes in the sub-league grades in their 2nd Semi-Final. The Dogs did have more fight in them in this match, though their opening term was probably their undoing. South led by as much as 34 points in third term added time and the Dogs made one heck of a run in the last term. If not for a pair of late missed chances, the Bulldogs could have stolen it. Alas, they fell to a nine-point defeat.
U-16 1st SEMI-FINAL -- West Adelaide 12.12 (84) def. North Adelaide 9.9 (63)
U-16 2nd SEMI-FINAL -- Sturt 11.6 (72) def. Central District 5.9 (39)
U-18 1st SEMI-FINAL -- Sturt 13.9 (87) def. Woodville-West Torrens 12.5 (77)
U-18 2nd SEMI-FINAL -- South Adelaide 10.12 (72) def. Central District 9.9 (63)
Next weekend in Week 2 of the SANFL Finals...
Saturday September 9
U-16 PRELIMINARY FINAL
Central District vs. West Adelaide; 11am
U-18 PRELIMINARY FINAL
Central District vs. Sturt; 1:20pm
X-Convenience Oval, Elizabeth
RESERVES 2nd SEMI-FINAL
Glenelg vs. Sturt; 11am
RESERVES 1st SEMI-FINAL
Central District vs. Woodville-West Torrens; 1:30pm
Stratarama Stadium, Glenelg
Sunday September 10 @ Adelaide Oval
LEAGUE 1st SEMI-FINAL
Sturt vs. Central District; 12:15pm
LEAGUE 2nd SEMI-FINAL
Glenelg vs. Adelaide; 3:15pm
So until next weekend... see you at the Footy!
It's that time of year once more, we are now in survival mode as we kick off the 2023 SANFL Finals Series. Five teams, four weekends, the last team standing wins the prize. For the second time in the last three season, the Tigers are minor premiers and were watching in the stands, waiting in the wings for whoever would rise to challenge. In second place, you have the Double Blues, followed by the Crows. The AFL-backed side had a strong second half of the season, with several big wins including ones over the Blues and the top-placed Glenelg. The Blues on the other hand had more than their share of lucky escapes, but with some goal-kicking issues they've had to rely on a hardened defence for victory. Then there's the sudden death zone of the table, taken up by the Bulldogs and the Magpies. The Dogs are probably lucky to be in September footy, with a pair of fighting wins to finish the season. One of those was against the Magpies only last week, however only by the good graces of the Blues and their win against North, they were kept in contention. The football action now takes us to the Adelaide Oval, league headquarters and hallowed turf to many SA footy-heads. For the next few weekends, teams will fall off the wagon, leaving two to battle for the premiership flag and the Thomas Seymour-Hill Trophy. This is Finals Football.
Welcome to the Finals Week One edition of the SANFL Wrap-Up.
We start the finals action as we always do, with a cut-throat Elimination Final. This time around, its the Bulldogs facing off against the Magpies. These two sides have taken a victory each in this year's minor round, beginning with the Magpies' victory back in Round 9. The Dogs' second quarter was a waste, unable to take advantage of the 'Pies wayward shooting. They closed to within two kicks at the final change, but Port finished stronger to run out 23-point winnners. But last week, Centrals ended the seven-match streak of losses with a stirring come-from-behind win at Elizabeth, an eight to three goal final quarter sealing their September spot with a 15-point win after being behind by as much at three quarter-time. This would be only the second time these sides have met in an Elimination Final, it was a quarter century ago that the Magpies hammered the Dogs by 61 points in the 1998 edition on their way to that year's title at the old Football Park. Since that time, the two sides have met only a further three times in finals football, the 2000 Qualifying Final, the 2005 2nd Semi-Final and more recent was the 2015 1st Semi, all Bulldogs victories. In terms of success in this type of final, the Redlegs have won 13 eliminators from 19 appearances since the inception of the format in the 1973 season. In that half century, only 13 teams have won through to the Grand Final and only three have gone all the way to take home the premiership. Of course there was the aforementioned Magpies of '98 who finished fourth that season, while the Redlegs of 1984 and the Roosters of 2018 were able to do it from fifth. Glenelg holds the highest score of 24.22 against Woodville in the 1987 edition, though Norwood's effort against the Bloods in 1981 yielded the most goals with 25. Both Centrals and Port have appeared in seven Elimination Finals, with the Magpies having won three, the Dogs didn't win any until their 2015 and 2017 outings. Since last weekend, many would have expected the Magpies to not underestimate the Bulldogs after that final term drop-off and adapt as such, though motivation was well on the side of Centrals after that fighting finish and entering their first finals series in six seasons. What was played out was probably one of the most thrilling and entertaining outings between these sides in recent memory.
The Magpies were a bit more cautious in their approach early on, the Dogs proving to still be a pain in the rear end with their ball movement. Despite the better handling, the Bulldogs attack in the later stages of the opening term repeatedly missed the mark, unable to capitalise on some prime opportunities. Port would manage a late major to make sure the gap was well within strike, altogether they kicked three goals without a miss to Centrals' 3.4 as the Dogs went into the first change with a four-point lead. It was a bit of tit-for-tat scoring in the second quarter, the deficit not reaching any more than a couple of straight kicks for over 20 minutes with more missed chances on goal from both sides. But then in the last six minutes of the term leading into the long break, the Magpies nailed a trio of unanswered goals to overturn the Dogs' lead in their favour. Port scored 4.5 to Centrals' 2.2, the 'Pies leading by 11 points at half-time. When play resumed, Port could have really put space between themselves and the Dogs, but after spraying through a couple of early chances to open the second half, the gap was back down once more to just a single straight shot by the final change. A couple of Centrals' majors during the third term would definitely be making the highlights reels, they kicked 4.1 to the Magpies' 3.2 to have a difference of six points Port's way at three quarter-time. Three times during the final quarter was the scores tied, the first with the Dogs' first goal of the term, then again at the 15 minute mark and then on the cusp of time-on. Centrals would then bag a goal at the beginning of the added period and a late behind made it a two-kick gap, which would prove to be the killer blow for the Magpies, Centrals winners by seven points and advancing to a 1st Semi-Final. Harry Grant was named best for the Doggies, with 22 disposals, 10 tackles and six clearances. Mention definitely must be made of Aiden Grace's third term antics, two goals coming from Tony Hall-esque angles among the five he scored. For the Magpies, it was Jackson Mead with 19 disposals, eight tackles and five clearances. Jed Hagan and Orazio Fantasia combined for seven goals, while Scott Lycett was pushing for Power selection with 35 hitouts in the middle.
That now brings us to the Qualifying Final, this season it was the Double Blues against the Crows to decide who would challenge the minor premiers. The points from the two outings this season were also shared. Sturt would win the first back in Round 6 at Unley, an almighty tussle right to the end. The gap at the breaks was never more than a single straight kick, but for the bulk of the match it was Adelaide in front until three quarter-time when scores were levelled. The Blues defenders had their work cut out for them in the final stanza, but with the only goal in the quarter they would finish up 10-point winners. But then a fortnight ago, the Crows returned the favour at Oxford Terrace, holding the Blues to one major while bagging six of their own for a 16-point win. These sides haven't met in an Qualifying Final before, but in their only meeting in a final, it was the 2016 Preliminary Final where the Blues won by 35 points on their way to the premiership. Adelaide have appeared twice, the first was back in 2019 in a loss to the Magpies, then last season against the Redlegs which they won. For the Blues, historically the Qualifying Final has not been kind to them. They've appeared in 14 games with just four victories, their last game in 2018 resulting in a 21-point loss to the Eagles, which they didn't recover from as they were bounced from finals in straight sets. But they have recovered in the past, bouncing back from losses in 1976 and 2017 to take out the flag. The best record in Qualifiers belongs of course to the Magpies, with 12 wins from 17 appearances, while on the other end of the spectrum its the Panthers with no triumph to their name from three games. Port also holds the best score of 23.17 against the Dogs in the 1989 series and the Eagles with the most goals with 24 scored in 1992. There have been 19 winners of the Qualifying Final that have gone on to win the season, while the losers have come back four times. There was the aforementioned Sturt outfits, as well as the Eagles of 2011 and the Norwood side of last season.
The Blues went into this match on the back of a win against the Roosters at Prospect last week, while the Crows went down to the formerly defending premiers in Norwood at The Parade. Adelaide's stocks have been tested as of late, with some injuries to key players and of course the qualification rules set forth by the league that came into effect with their seniors failing to reach September football. As a result, the AFL-listed contingent was down to 13 for this match. The Blues wasted little time getting onto the goals column, booting the opener in under two minutes. For the next 18 minutes, both sides could only find minor scores, Adelaide blowing several prime chances as they fell back to a four-kick gap come quarter-time. The Blues bagged five goals to one to go into the first change leading by 23 points, the board reading 5.3 to 1.4. From here though, the goals were much harder to come by for the Blues, but the Crows were still unable to capitalise on their chances especially in the second term. Adelaide did, however, manage to keep the gap at four kicks going into the changerooms at the long break. The Crows chipped two points off the Blues earlier advantage, scoring 2.3 to 2.1 as the deficit was down to 21 points come half-time. When play resumed, the Crows kicked three straight goals before the Blues replied with any of their own. Sturt's lead would be shrunk down again after their last shot on goal went wide for an overall third term tally of 2.1, a third major would have restored their 21-point lead but instead would be only 16 points in front at the final change. With the loss of an influential ruckman during the third quarter, things in the middle started to turn Adelaide's way and the Blues game-plan was about to unravel. The Crows would ram through 5.2, with Sturt managing one behind in the interim. The Blues finally put one on the board deep in added time, but a further pair of missed chances would find them heading to a sudden-death Semi-Final next week. The Crows won by seven points to set up a Grand Final play-off against the minor premiers. Jackson Hately was Adelaide's best afield, with 22 disposals and eight tackles, other contributors included Billy Dowling who inflicted nine tackles, while Tyler Brown had seven clearances. For the Blues, James Battersby was best with 32 disposals, 10 clearances and eight marks. Jared Dakin and Tom Lewis were clearance-happy themselves, combining for 15.
FINAL SCORES IN WEEK ONE OF THE SANFL FINALS...
Sunday September 3
ELIMINATION FINAL
Central District 12.10 (82)
Port Adelaide 11.9 (75)
QUALIFYING FINAL
Adelaide 11.9 (75)
Sturt 10.8 (68)
8,021 @ Adelaide Oval
INJURIES
Sturt -- Doyle (knee), Page (hamstring)
REPORTS
Central -- Hoskin (wrestling)
Port -- Carter (wrestling)
Adelaide -- Wright (rough conduct)
Sturt -- Coomblas (tripping)
RESERVES FINALS -- Eagles survive thriller, Blues to face minor premiers
The Reserves finals kicked off under lights at Thebarton Oval last Friday, with the Qualifying Final seeing the Double Blues push aside a rather wasteful Bulldogs outfit by six goals. The Blues ran off with it early, kicking to a 33-point quarter-time lead with a five goal to one opening term. That gap didn't change too much over the rest of the match, the closest the Dogs got was 24 points well into the final term, long after the ship had sailed out of port. It could have been far worse for Centrals, the Blues scoring 11 goals from 21 scoring shots. Sturt will go into their match against the Tigers in next week's 2nd Semi with plenty of confidence. Also to be played after the GF qualifier will be the 1st Semi, with the Dogs set to face the Eagles who eliminated the Panthers in their Elimination Final at Noarlunga on Saturday morning. This was one that well and truly got away from the Panthers, who dominated the tail end of the second term to lead by two goals at half-time, overturning the Eagles' two-kick lead earlier in the term. They stretched that to 20 points deep into the third term, but by the final change it was just seven points between them. Then the arm-wrestle began, the scores getting tied up three times after the Eagles kicked to a one-point lead mid-way through the last quarter. An exchange of behinds ensued, then a goal each way before a late rushed behind to the Eagles ended up being the final margin. Both Reserves finals will be played at Stratarama Stadium in Glenelg on Saturday from 11am.
ELIMINATION FINAL -- Woodville-West Torrens 10.9 (69) def. South Adelaide 10.8 (68)
QUALIFYING FINAL -- Sturt 11.10 (76) def. Central District 6.4 (40)
UNDER-AGE FINALS -- Bulldogs colts and pups drop chances, Blues forge on in both grades while Bloods kids outrun elimination
The Bulldogs luck in the Reserves trickled down into both their junior grade sides in their respective 2nd Semis, however they will both contest and host next week's Torrens Uni Preliminary Finals. In the U-16's, it was like a glimpse into what was going to happen to the two's, playing the curtain raiser on Friday afternoon. A horrid second and third term was the catalyst for their downfall, the Blues going from 11 points up at quarter-time to 21 come half-time. Centrals managed just one goal in the final term as the Blues took the first Grand Final spot with a 33-point win. They will face the Bloods next week, who triumphed against the Roosters in their 1st Semi. Down by 11 points at the long break, the Bloods then proceeded to kick seven of the next nine goals, running out 21-point winners and dumping North from the race. Then came the U-18's, starting with the cut-throat opening match where the Blues eliminated the Eagles with a 10-point win. Earlier on, it looked as though the Eagles would run with it after keeping the Blues to just one behind whilst kicking 3.1 for themselves. Sturt's goal-kicking fortunes improved though, reeling it back to a single goal by the long break. The Eagles were back out to a three-kick lead by the final change, but the Blues chased them down with a six goal to two last term. That brings us to the GF qualifier, the Panthers continuing the Bulldogs misfortunes in the sub-league grades in their 2nd Semi-Final. The Dogs did have more fight in them in this match, though their opening term was probably their undoing. South led by as much as 34 points in third term added time and the Dogs made one heck of a run in the last term. If not for a pair of late missed chances, the Bulldogs could have stolen it. Alas, they fell to a nine-point defeat.
U-16 1st SEMI-FINAL -- West Adelaide 12.12 (84) def. North Adelaide 9.9 (63)
U-16 2nd SEMI-FINAL -- Sturt 11.6 (72) def. Central District 5.9 (39)
U-18 1st SEMI-FINAL -- Sturt 13.9 (87) def. Woodville-West Torrens 12.5 (77)
U-18 2nd SEMI-FINAL -- South Adelaide 10.12 (72) def. Central District 9.9 (63)
Next weekend in Week 2 of the SANFL Finals...
Saturday September 9
U-16 PRELIMINARY FINAL
Central District vs. West Adelaide; 11am
U-18 PRELIMINARY FINAL
Central District vs. Sturt; 1:20pm
X-Convenience Oval, Elizabeth
RESERVES 2nd SEMI-FINAL
Glenelg vs. Sturt; 11am
RESERVES 1st SEMI-FINAL
Central District vs. Woodville-West Torrens; 1:30pm
Stratarama Stadium, Glenelg
Sunday September 10 @ Adelaide Oval
LEAGUE 1st SEMI-FINAL
Sturt vs. Central District; 12:15pm
LEAGUE 2nd SEMI-FINAL
Glenelg vs. Adelaide; 3:15pm
So until next weekend... see you at the Footy!
