By Ken Moore
GARFIELD’S slender hopes of playing a part in this season’s finals were dashed by its 16point loss to Moe last week but that is unlikely to deter it from having a big crack at Morwell this week.
The Stars are itching to knock off a team above them on the ladder and hold high hopes of upsetting Morwell, a team that also has struggled to notch big scores.
Jake Hower and Harley Lacunes showed they were returning to their best and utility Dean McFarlane, back after a broken ankle, was terrific when introduced off the interchange bench.
Garfield midfielders Ben Marsh, Lacunes, Shane Reid and Jake Hower should be able to hold their own against Luke Franklin, Adam Bailey, Sam Mills and Michael Marchment and this will put the Stars in with a huge chance.
Garfield’s courage and work ethic still stand out more than its skills and I’ll tip the Stars to produce the upset of the round and roll Morwell by a narrow margin.
Neighbours Drouin and Warragul meet on Sunday.
The Hawks have a poor record against the Gulls in recent seasons and it is hard to see the trend changing this week.
The Hawks enter the game on a low, having lost to bottom side Leongatha, and Warragul, with eight victories, is fresh from the bye and it is likely that ruckrover John Reid, defender Nick Humphrey and possibly the talented but injuryprone tall utility Xavier Gargan will return.
On the downside, promising young defender David ScottSmith is believed to have glandular fever and was almost certain to miss.
On exposed form, the Gulls’ midfield, with the experience of Des Barr, Leigh Sheehan, Nick Edney and Rob Murphy aligned with the youth of Ryan Davey, should come up trumps against Travis Delarue, Michael Ablett, Kent Edwards and Danny Murphy.
Key Drouin forward Brent Mounsey missed last week and is reportedly due to enter hospital with a foot injury and must be extremely doubtful.
Warragul should win comfortably with the highlight of the match likely to be the ruck duel between the emerging Matt Gray and Bob McCallum.
Cellardwellers Leongatha will travel to Sale to meet the top side.
The Parrots will be buoyed by victory over Drouin but the game still looks a mismatch and t he Parrots will be grateful to emerge with less than a 100point loss against the talentladen Magpies.
Last season’s premier Traralgon banished lingering fears that it was on a slide with a top effort against Maffra last week.
This week it plays host to Moe and has too much to lose to drop this game and that motivation should help it get the points and keep its season alive.
The weekend’s fixtures, with likely winners in capitals: TRARALGON v Moe, GARFIELD v Morwell (at Bunyip), SALE v Leongatha, Drouin v WARRAGUL (Sunday), MAFFRA bye (v New Zealand).
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