The Wallis brothers have an unenviable assignment on Saturday when their unbeaten Mount Burr heads to the home ground of ladder-leading Hatherleigh in the Mid South East Football League match of the day.
This is certainly a match which could go either way and the same could be said for the three other contests in round six.
The results of round five were all one-sided with winning margins ranging from 56 to 132 points.
It is chiefly up to Sam and Josh Wallis and teen Jackson Dean to nullify the home ground forwards.
Ruckman/forward Darcy Bateman was the stand-out forward with eight goals in the last home game for Hatherleigh.
However, he twisted his ankle at the Bay on Saturday and is far from certain of taking his place against the Burr boys.
If that is indeed the case, I expect Josh Wallis to stand Eagles coach Tom Hutchesson, his brother Sam will mind MSEFL leading goalkicker Paddy Chay and Dean will be given the task of stopping Brad Mitchell.
Speaking of defensive ploys, Eagles skipper Will Chay will tag Mount Burr coach Clint Gallio while ex-coach Gerard McGrath will be looking to prevent Mozzie vice-captain Jack Gregory from adding to his season’s aggregate of 19 goals from four matches.
Cars will be backed up to the Princes Highway given the huge interest generated by this cross-town derby.
The large home ground and firm surface will provide Hatherleigh with the winning edge.
Glencoe v Kalangadoo
The feud between the Murphies and the Magpies date back to the mid-1920s and rivals the durability and tenacity of the Hatfields and the McCoys in the USA.
It is one of the reasons why this match will be one of the best-attended sporting fixtures in the region on Saturday.
The Max Matthews Memorial Cup has taken up almost residency at the Kalangadoo Soldiers Memorial Park and this is a fact that sits uneasily with the Kirrip Road crowd.
The black and whites have lowered the colours of the maroon and- olds on more than 20 consecutive occasions and none was sweeter than the 2019 grand final victory at Mick and Jean Walker Oval at Mount Burr.
Coming into this match, Glencoe are in better form and sit in fourth place.
This could be improved if the MSEFL tribunal agrees to the request of the Murphies and awards them the premiership points which were stripped from Robe owing to a team sheet error in round two at the seaside.
Kalangadoo has just ended a four-match losing streak at Tantanoola’s expense and have made good use of Connor Gentile in attack.
He has done the heavy lifting in the forward line and has been rewarded with 17 goals.
Gentile should be on the winning side.
Tantanoola v Nangwarry
The loser of this contest will be the only MSEFL team to be winless in 2024 and be outright occupant of the lowest rung on the premiership table.
To be kind, the Tigers and the Saints have yet to play four consistent quarters so far this season and this has been reflected on the scoreboard.
Nangwarry has copped some stick from a media source but the club has a proud past and a promising future.
The Saints senior colts have hit a purple patch in the past fortnight and claimed big wins over two highly-fancied opponents.
Hatherleigh has won a record 15 flags in this grade but was thrashed on its home deck on May 4.
Nangwarry teens showed this was no fluke on Saturday when it put reigning premiers Robe to the sword.
Regarding the senior match, the 42 players should be striving for selection in the MSEFL side which takes on the Limestone Coast League at Blue Lake Sports Park in Mount Gambier on June 8.
Saints icon Trevor Fenn is an example of a player who rarely tasted success in his early career other than in the MSEFL interleague sides.
Fenn improved his game through participation in representative football and later became a key member of Nangwarry’s premiership teams in 1993, 1994,1997 and 1999 and the club’s record games holder.
Robe v Port MacDonnell
Port MacDonnell has much work to do to avoid a third consecutive loss when it takes on Robe on their deck.
The Roosters have never lost on the scoreboard this season and the club has accepted the loss of premiership points and score following a team sheet error in round two.
Robe won easily at Nangwarry in round five even with coach Nathan Brown, vice-captain Jack Sneath and playmaker George Dutton on the sidelines.
They should be right to resume their places against a team which still has plenty of firepower including a trio of Mail Medallists.
Manning up on the Roosters is the best way to stop them from getting their running game from going.
It remains to be seen if the Demons have the fitness and discipline to do so on the large Robe Oval.
