R15 2024 | Thirds vs Hawthorn
Coming off a spirited but wayward 7-point win against fellow finals aspirant Box Hill North last week to keep their finals destiny in their own hands, the Unicorns immediately faced the pressure again at home against another direct contender in Hawthorn, who sat just half a win and 2 premierships points above them in 5th position on the ladder. With the top 5 sides qualifying for finals, the magnitude of this 8-point game was enormous.
As expected in soggy, windy and miserable conditions, plus what was on the line between two evenly matched sides, the match proved to be a thrilling arm wrestle from start to finish. Neither side was able to establish any substantial leads despite owning momentum for different periods of the match, with the margin never exceeding a couple of goals for either side.
The opening quarter saw the home team narrowly edge out to an 8-point lead, as both sides took a bit of time adjusting to the conditions. It was Hawthorn who managed to kick truly in the second term, kicking 3 goals to none to take an important 9-point lead into the major break. Both teams knew goals were going to come at a premium so converting the chances presented were crucial. A third quarter response saw the Unicorns take control for the majority of the term with empahsis on winning the territory battle qnd playing simple wet weather footy became the key focus by looking gain ground and create stoppages. The lead changed hands again from this momentum shift for MHSOB to win the surprisingly accurate quarter 4 goals to 2 and cling to a narrow 3-point advantage heading into the huddle at three-quarter time.
The Unicorns kicked away to a handy but certainly not unassailable 12-point lead late in the final quarter. This was a position all too familiar for the home side having led by this exact margin at the same time against Old Xaverians 2 weeks earlier before conceding 2 desperately late goals to walk away with a hollow draw. Lo and behold, the Hawks rallied to claw back that 2-goal margin to level the scores with very little time remaining. A draw would have taken the Unicorns' finals destiny out of their hands, however with lessons learned and more composure this time, the home side was able to muster one final surge deep into attack, where vice-captain and midfield bull Alex Shulman squeezed a wobbly punt out of a stoppage to register an all-important go-ahead behind. With screams of "30 seconds! 30 seconds!" screeching out from both benches, the visitors as expected played on from the kick-in and launched it as far as possible. However, the wing was as far as they were able to reach, as a game-saving tackle halting the Hawks from going any further was laid by the ever-tenacious Wayd Nash to cause an enormous stoppage. One more ensuing ball-up on the muddy Woodfull-Miller Oval was enough as the relieving sound of the siren rang out for the Unicorns to hang on by a point in an epic contest.
On-baller Alex Shulman was the unanimous best for the Unicorns, with the conditions suiting his in-and-under contested style of play perfectly and even causing headaches for the Hawthorn defenders from clever positioning in the forward line stoppages to kick 3 goals (and the match-winning behind) to go with countless clearances and contested possessions. Rotating ruck and key forward duo Brendan O’Carroll and Adam Ashton thrived in the stoppage-heavy conditions with plenty of hitouts to advantage between the two, imposing their larger frames and getting around the ground to present as a tall option. Defensive trio Avinash Nair, Max Nash and Lucas Blatchford were standouts in the back half. Nair, in his first season for the club, showed his evident improvement throughout the year with great balance between daring runs and dropping back to spoil and tackle where necessary. Nash (not to be outshone by his brother's epic tackle) was tenacious all day with his attack on the ball and gave his opponents no space with desperate, dutiful defensive efforts. Blatchford again was always positioning himself cleverly to intercept numerous Hawthorn attacks and using his neat disposal and smart decision-making to generate forward thrusts from defence.
The equation becomes simple for the Unicorns now. A win against 3rd-placed Marcellin away next week guarantees a finals berth, while a loss coupled with a loss to Hawthorn would also see the Unicorns progress through in the final 5. The most important part of this win is that finals destiny remains fully in the hands of MHSOBFC.
Final score: MHSOBFC 8.11-59 defeated Hawthorn 9.4-58
Best Players: Alexander Shulman, Brendan O’Carroll, Adam Ashton, Avinash Nair, Max Nash, Lucas Blatchford
Goals: Alexander Shulman 3, John Crilly, Dinesh Francis, Bryan Hernandez, Bryce Kennett, Brendan O’Carroll