Round 8 Hostplus SANFL League Match Wraps – Sunday

The wait to win at Unley continues for West Adelaide after it succumbed to an unbeaten Sturt by just four points at Wigan Oval.

Chasing their first win at Oxford Terrace since Round 8 of 2013, the Bloods did everything but creep across the line after leading at every change throughout the afternoon.

It wasn’t until Sturt bigman Daniel Fahey-Sparks kicked an impressive goal out of the ruck in the 10th minute of the fourth term, that the hosts hit the lead.

Double Blues goalsneak Josh Hone – who kicked half of his team’s goals – then slotted his fourth to put the hosts nine points in front midway through the final quarter.

But the plucky visitors weren’t done yet after second-gamer Dylan McCormick nailed his set shot from beyond 50m to put them back within a goal in the 25th minute.

Sturt ball magnet Tom Lewis missed a snap from 25m which led to West moving the ball quickly down the other end of the ground where the ball was camped for the dying moments.

The Double Blues faithful began celebrating their 15th win in succession against West and eighth for the season once Lewis emerged from the stoppage in the back pocket.

Lewis finished with 25 disposals, eight clearances while his skipper James Battersby collected 32 touches and 11 clearances.

Marty Frederick finished with 20 disposals, six tackles and five clearances while Fahey-Sparks was important for Sturt with 19 disposals, five clearances and his go-ahead major in the final term.

West’s Michael Mattingly was particularly damaging in the first half before finishing with 22 disposals, eight tackles and five clearances while rebounding defender Callum Park was the leading possession-winner on the field with 29.

Tom Morrish had 24 disposals and a running goal for the Bloods while recruit Sam Frost continues to find his feet at SANFL level, this time tallying 23 disposals, 15 tackles and eight clearances.

South Adelaide saved its season with an upset 27-point victory against North Adelaide at Prospect Oval.

In desperate need of a win after losing their past five in a row, the Panthers kept in touch with the Roosters on the premiership ladder by drawing within one win of the hosts, fourth-placed Woodville-West Torrens and fifth-placed Central District.

It felt like the visitors were on a mission from the first bounce as they led the inside 50m count 51-31 for the match while leading at every change en route to a third win of the year.

North got within 10 points when Will Gowers pounced on a loose ball to dribble through a goal in the sixth minute of the second term but from there, South managed to keep Jacob Surjan’s men at arm’s length with a three-goal buffer.

South ruckman Keegan Brooksby was outstanding in the middle with 15 disposals, seven marks, four clearances, four tackles and 42 hit outs.

His service allowed for a very even spread of contributors amongst the Panthers midfielders such as Mitch O’Neill (21 disposals), Kobe Mutch (19 disposals), Hayden Sampson (18 disposals), Ely Smith (18 disposals) and Oliver Davis (17 disposals).

Key forward Zachery Sproule booted three goals before not appearing in the fourth quarter due to a suspected foot/ankle ailment while Liam Fitt and Ben Shillabeer kicked two goals each for the visitors.

North’s Dyson Hilder was the only multiple goal scorer for the hosts, who were unable to get their fluent style of game going at any stage.

Frank Szekely was the Roosters’ leading disposal winner with 28 while Sam McInerney tried hard to get his side back into the game with 26 disposals, 12 marks and a nice snap goal late in the second quarter.

Reigning Ken Farmer Medallist Daniel Menzel was the hero as Woodville-West Torrens held off a fast-finishing Port Adelaide by just three points at Alberton Oval.

The mercurial Menzel, who had played the past three matches in the Reserves, proved his undeniable class with a booming 50m set shot to regain the lead in the 25th minute of the fourth term.

Recalled by Eagles coach Jade Sheedy to the line-up after booting five goals in the seconds, the former Geelong cat was extremely cool as he soaked up the pressure following his mark on the lead from a pin-point Will Pearce pass.

The 31-year-old had seemingly shut the door on the Magpies when he booted the second of his three majors 13 minutes into the last quarter as the visitors built a commanding 21-point lead in the context of the game.

But Tyson Goldsack’s men refused to roll over as clever goalsneaks Cody Szust and Jed Hagan booted the next four goals in succession to claim an unlikely lead entering time-on.

It was to be Menzel’s moment though as the Eagles earned their third victory in a row despite losing the inside 50m count by a staggering 31 to 63 and clearances by 29 to 37.

Hard-running Eagle Luke Beecken racked up a team-high 30 disposals while Riley Knight continued his return to top form with 27 disposals and eight tackles.

Former Magpie Jimmy Toumpas enjoyed his return to Alberton for the Eagles with 23 touches while Wodonga recruit Max Beattie again caught the eye with 20 disposals and a clever goal tucked up in the forward pocket in the second stanza.

Port officials would be delighted with the first outing of former Geelong forward Quinton Narkle, who was incredibly constructive with his 29 disposals and six clearances on debut in the Hostplus SANFL League.

Trent Dumont’s consistency is extremely evident in racking up a team-high 32 disposals and five clearances while Jed Hagan had 23 disposals along with his two final term majors.

Power captain Tom Jonas was solid in defence throughout his rare SANFL outing, tallying 17 disposals and five marks while Szust finished with three goals from 11 disposals.