Good weekend of Lacrosse for MLC and I can actually say that ‘None’ of our teams lost.
Well as a matter of fact all MLC teams had great games last weekend with all but the U15s winning their respective games.
The Under 15 boys Drew with Camberwell.
I was told by one of those kids that he hit the pipe 8 times for the game. I told him to stop bragging and score more goals. I have watched the U15s play 4 or so times this year and they are a good unit. A fair amount of the opposition is a little less testing so a Draw is very Positive.
This is the Green light to up the tempo for the next 5 rounds heading into finals…….Work hard on the track and you will be good next outing.
On the light side I was speaking to one of the U15 coaches and he said the boys had at least 25 shots in the quarter. A bit frustrating heh !
A classic statement from 1987 is “Even if you hit the Pipe a Million times, it will never be a Goal” ; )
Boys we have great nets, lots of Lax balls so hit the shooting Gallery !
S/L had an amazing start to their game where we had them reeling.
A Good win in the end but me being me question the fact that we did not “Smash Em”
Div 1 guys travelling along very nicely with another impressive win.
I witnessed their second half and noticed the calmness amongst the group.
Still with a few more wins needed to see finals action I am very pleased with this team’s progress.
Div 3 , Well what can I say. They had the annual trip to Bendigo and they had a good win.
They encountered the Biggest Bloke ever known to man to play Lacrosse.
I believe his name was Mongo (6’9” and 300 kegs) and he did put adrenaline into our boys to stay clear of him.
Good to have a beer with a most of the Div 3 boys when they finally got back from Bendigo. It was great to have a chat with Anthony Bosisto and reflect on years gone by and especially to have a Nicosia Kebab with him at 10.00pm Sat night.
Senior Girl’s continue to win and sit on top of the ladder.
This team has a great balance of athleticism and smarts.
The girls are working hard on the track and mentoring and developing the younger members. Rocket spoke of the “Mossies” last week and they are dynamite.
Still I need to keep mentioning that “subs must be paid”.
At least when I mention it some members move on it and get it paid.
We have bills to pay and not a lot of subs are still outstanding but we need as a Club to get a clean sheet.
This week we have Only State League playing so I urge everyone to get to that game at the Town hall against Surrey and support vigorously. This is a big game for this team and as Rubber mentioned previously to have a lot of supporters on the sidelines it gives at least a 3 goal home advantage.
Let’s take that 3 goals and I will see you all at the Town Hall at 2.30pm this Saturday.
Regards to ALL
Gus
P:S
I would also like to report on last Sunday’s Sausage Sizzle at Masters Toorak.
What a great job by the Suffolk Family in setting it all up and rostering shifts for the day.
Richard, Tarryn, James and Riley Suffolk chipped in as a family and did all of the buying and set up on the day. Riley sold chocolates and kept an eye on the supplies all day.
One of our customers said Riley would be a “Banker” when he gets older.
Special thanks to Alberto and Will Rice, James Garrett. Darcy Campbell, Drew Bracken,Nic Chapman, Will James, Josh and Mike Naughton and Craig Browne for manning the stall and selling sausages and drinks on behalf of the club. Great team effort.
We raised approx $580 from this day which takes our BBQ earnings to well over $2000
We have one more to go next Sunday at masters Oakleigh so let’s hope we can take the total over $3000 for the year.
Bendigo Bank are the people to see if you’re in the market for anything financial. It could be be a car loan, investment opportunity or even looking to buy your first house. Contact Sue Foley and the team at Murrumbeena to get all the advice you need.
With a “new app” available, it’s now even easier to take that step!
The ‘Minions Movie” last Sunday was a great day for all who attended.
A big thanks to Lauren Mitchell for organising and making it happen!
Keep a look out for more events coming up on the social calendar!
#banana
This Saturday in lead up to the “ONLY” game on this weekend, there is a supporters lunch being held at Beer Deluxe at 12pm!
Please contact Lauren or Zac if you are interested in going
Match Reports
State League V Camberwell
Win 16 to 9
Best start to a game we have had this year and selfless the ball movement was terrific, Pat Mac was dominating in the middle and Billy Exton stepped up to control X and allow our outside shooters time and space above G.L.E. with the result being a 7 to 1 first quarter and 20 goals was on the cards for the first time in years.
We did fall back to some selfish old habits a bit in the second and 3rd quarters and mixed in with some poor passing stifled us on the scoreboard a bit but we now have great team orientated attack players and the signs that we can play a style of lacrosse that will compete with anyone come finals.
The challenge ahead is simple, we play every other team once more to round out the season and means we must win at least 3 games Vs Surrey Park, Williamstown, Eltham and Footscray to cement our spot and we play Surrey Park and Eltham over the next 2 weeks..
Rub
D1 v Eltham
Things are going well in D1. The team was a bit up and down at the start of the season as players were rotated through State league or not available, but over the last few rounds as the teams have become more settled we are finding ourselves working well together. D1 has a blend of old heads and young blood. We are keeping it simple in attack and it is working well. Lots of ball movement and working for each other. Jay heads up the defense and is having another great season. Over the last few weeks we have beaten the top couple teams. Another couple of testing games coming up boys. Get to training and we can continue the good form.
Squeak
Women’s B Grade
The team headed to Altona to face Newport with a number of changes – Romy was a late withdrawal thru injury, Bruiser was unavailable due to work commitments and Nina was leaving for the UK. Fortunately Sarah Bown returned from a long injury layoff and Anne Maree volunteered to help out with numbers so we had 11 at the start of the game.
Newport was strengthened with a number of experienced players in their line up and all was set for a close tough game.
Malvern scored the first goal thru Tara and it was then goal for goal with Newport taking the lead midway thru the half. Malvern settled and scored some late goals to lead at half time 6 -4.
The second half was no different, the intensity was high from both teams but Malvern was able to control the play through great teamwork and contested ground balls to win the half 8 – 4 and the game 14 – 8.
It was probably the best team game and most consistent the team has played considering the pressure throughout the game.
Every player played well and contributed to the win.
Special thanks to Tarryn for playing in goals, she did a great job making numerous saves and provided plenty of transition with her clearing.
Thanks also to Anne Maree for playing her second game for the year and making sure the team had numbers.
Anne Maree and Ivy were exceptional in Defence, making intercepts, picking up ground balls and playing solid D on their opponents. Everyone who played in D did a great team job.
Tara, Eleanor & Kate shared the centre face off duties and won the majority and were great all over the ground. Tara played her best game for the season (perhaps for the past 2 seasons) and her aggression and experience were invaluable to the team not to mention her 7 goals!. Eleanor also played one of her best games and similar to Tara her experience around the ground was great.
The Mozzies continued on from last week and were tremendous. Their hard running all over the ground along with their intensity and ground balls was great particularly under the pressure that was put on by the opposition and they are now becoming regular goal scorers for the team.
It was also great to have the Team Captain Sarah back on the field and her experience and leadership was really valuable to the team as well as scoring 2 goals.
Lauren rotated thru attack and the midfield and her improvement each week is evident and she provides good balance to the team.
Once again a great effort by everyone and the team should be proud of their performance in a tough game played under high intensity and pressure. If we keep playing like that every week we will be very competitive when it comes to finals.
Div 3 V 16 Bendigo 2
Malvern travelled to Bendigo on the weekend to play Bendigo and had a great start outscoring Bendigo 5 to 1 in the first quarter thanks to the great work in the centre of young Aaron “Azza” Currie dominating the centre faceoffs.
The 2nd quarter was more of the same, the third quarter saw Bendigo tighten up their defence to restrict Malvern to 2 goals. The last quarter was business as usual with Malvern scoring 5 goals to 0.
Overall it was one of the best team games this year to keep Malvern in the hunt for finals.
Best: Aaron Currie, Tim Laidlaw, Rod Finnigan, Paul Spierling.
Goals and Assists: Rod Finnigan 6-2, Tim Laidlaw 5-0, Brendan Farrell 3-1, Anthony Bosisto 1-3, Aaron Currie 1-2, Brad Currie 0-1, Kon Mitsopoulos 0-1
U17 V Footscray
Well this was the big one! The rematch we’ve all been waiting for since Round 1……
It was too bad they called up Thursday night and gave us a Walkover!
NOOOOOO !!!!
Oh well, we will meet in finals I guess
U15 V Camberwell
This was a top of the table clash, first v second. These 2 teams are a long way ahead of the competition. It was tight all game. Very fast up and down the field with plenty of great transition. The Malvern boys in this team continue improve. Tom Martin is becoming a great defender. He has the best poke check in the competition and is improving each game on ground balls after he has stopped his attacker. Ryan is a ground ball king. He runs hard all game and 1 of only a couple who will use his body in defense instead of chasing sticks. Byron has been playing many positions this year. His defense is excellent and always run hard in the midfield. Ben is a great short stick defender and contributed with a handy assist on Saturday late in the game. Garrett always makes great position on the attack. We just need some of our bigger player to look inside and find him. Lachlan tried to body the biggest Camberwell player on Saturday. It didn’t go so well for him. Thanks for jumping in goals in the last quarter. Mitch is our big kid this year, The coaches put a lot on him and he is doing a great job. The Camberwell goal keeper had an outstanding game and was the difference between the 2 teams. I think we had 25 (yes 25!!!!) Shots in the last quarter. Most of the play was in our half but pipes and hitting the goalie don’t count on the score board. We were a goal down with about a minute to go and in the end were lucky to draw the game. We will see this team a few more times this season. Some shooting practice is needed.
Squeak
Girls U15
U15 girls unfortunately also had a loss this week 17-10 against a much strong Newport team. The dynamic duo, Emma & Sarah are a pleasure to watch. The girls played hard from centre draws, to goals to defence – all of Rocket’s hard work in dodges is really paying off! Brooke & Paige also did well in defence and on the rest of the field. Our girls are a strong part of this combined team and each week they show an improvement in their skills.
Girls U13
U13 girls had an early start this week against Williamstown – 9am start instead of the usual 9.45am start.
The game was at Newport for the Women’s Gala Day event.
Although the girls lost 17 to 5 they played a great game of lacrosse. This team is a combination of Malvern, Caulfield and Surrey Park. There are quite a few girls who have never played lacrosse before and they are starting to understand the game and trying hard each week. With no Meg, or Brooke this week, Paige was left to represent Malvern. She played a great game of “D”.
U11 Reds
It was a big weekend in world news, but early on Saturday morning the Town Hall played host to an earth-shattering cataclysm that dwarfed Marriage Equality and overshadowed the drama in Tunisia. Footscray’s best came ready to play, but nothing could have prepared them for the spectacular display of wit, grit and spirit that the Under Eleven Reds were about to unleash.
The day started inauspiciously, though, and notably, every Malvern player about to be immortalised in the fires of battle was new to the Club this year. Some, like Amelie and Julien Mansfield, had only one game’s experience under their belt, and Daniel and Joseph Casuscelli donned red and black jerseys on this momentous day for the very first time. To add even more gravity to the occasion, another pair of brothers was representing the Club for the last time, as Joe and Doug Massey were on the verge of beginning a new life in London. Joe was more aware of this than anyone, and sported a special red hat to acknowledge it, with a pom-pom so big that it raised his height to almost four feet.
It must have made quite a difference, because when Mike Naughton blew his whistle to start the game, Joe took off like a rocket and steered the team to an early lead with three first-quarter goals. Jake Sedey was dynamic in the midfield, gathering enough possession time for both Mansfields to shoot the first goal of their respective careers, and some handy saves from Joseph and Doug at the other end saw the red and black in the box seat when the half-time party popper blew.
But the day was not over yet. Footscray used the break to recover their morale, and when Joe slid the goalkeeper’s helmet over his hat to start the third quarter, he faced a barrage of high-velocity rubber that put the visitors back in the lead. At the final break it seemed that the Reds would have to put another game down to experience, but just when the final term began, a bright red comet tore across offensive half of the field like a supernatural prophecy.
Julien Mansfield’s long red hair rippled majestically in the wind as he and the midfielders put on a brilliant show of teamwork and skill. Joe, Jake, Amelie and Doug all threw assists as he poured in goal after goal, and Joseph Casuscelli found room to throw in the first of his own career. The defensive teamwork was so steady that his brother Daniel didn’t let a single shot past him at the other end. Malvern’s tally streaked past their opponents’ as the final few minutes of the game ran down, and when Joe Massey left the field, no hat on earth would have been big enough to hide his smile.
It was a pleasure to watch the Club’s newest players work so well together, and as the Masseys leave for England, they can be proud that they’ve led the development of a great spirit among the Club’s youngest team. We wish them the very best for the future.
Under 11 Blacks
Malvern Blacks played against Footscray Green, a team recently played at the lightning carnival.
After a good training session Thursday, where focus was on shooting, we were well prepared to take on Footscray who have a fantastic goal keeper.
The first quarter was a tight tussle, and to Footscrays credit, their goalkeeper did everything and more demonstrating high skill, good body position, and making every shooter earn their goal.
As such and even though we had control, we were only up 3-2 at quarter time.
To the kids credit, they listen, take instruction, and work hard and this was rewarded in the second quarter as we headed to a 6-3 half time lead.
The second half we were rewarded for persistence, and ran away with the game winning 16-6.
Special mention to Will Rice who dominated across defense repelling the ball on countless occasions, as well as Ben Godber and Riley Suffolk who listened to instruction and made significant contributions to the win as the the game wore on.
A weekend off and then out to Williamstown on the 11th July.
On a final note, Doug and Joey Massey bid farewell as they continue their lives in London, we wish them all the best in the future and they will always remain Malvern Lacrosse Family.
With thanks,
Adam Barnes
