Ballarat embracestriple treat of AFL action

NORTH Melbourne, St Kilda and Melbourne took the bragging rights as Mars Stadium in Ballarat played host to three AFL season practice matches last weekend.

Eyeing improvement in their fourth season under former Hawthorn premiership coach Alistair Clarkson, the Roos overcame a 31-point half-time deficit to defeat an undermanned Collingwood 12.18 (90) to 14.5 (89) in wet and windy blustery conditions on Sunday.

Earlier in the weekend, St Kilda defeated Essendon 17.13 (115) to 10.12 (72) on Saturday, while Melbourne was leading Richmond 12.6 (78) to 6.7 (43) before Friday night’s contest was called off during a second lightning delay.

The three AFL Community Series games were part of the ongoing collaboration between the AFL, Western Bulldogs and Visit Victoria to ensure Ballarat remains a key venue for elite football during the redevelopment of Mars Stadium.

Pleasingly for win-starved North Melbourne fans, first-year forward Lachy Dovaston put his hand up for a round one debut.

Taken with the 16th pick in last year’s draft, Dovaston kicked three majors in a lively display up forward.

Fittingly, he capped off an eye-catching performance by running into an open goal to put North in front with less than three minutes remaining.

A win over an undermanned Magpies was the perfect response to the Roos’ poor showing a week earlier against Melbourne.

Midfielder Luke Davies-Uniacke revealed the loss to the Demons had come under intense internal scrutiny during the week.

“Last week was pretty embarrassing, just the way we came out and attacked that game,” he said.

“We had some good honest reviews.

“The lead-up to this week was awesome. We went through everything that went wrong in the game last week, and it was pretty simple, we just needed to turn up.

“That’s what Clarko and all the coaches made a good point of. If we nailed our roles, we’d get a good result.”

Davies-Uniacke hailed the second-half fightback as team-driven and not reliant on specific individuals.

“All the communication out there was positive and that’s something we’ve been working on and probably struggled with in the past,” he said.

“When teams do get a job and the confidence dims, everyone gets a bit insular, so we’ve worked on getting around each other a bit more and each line making sure the comms (communication) is still strong.

“I thought X (ruckman Tristan Xerri) led the way with a couple of great efforts; Sheez (Harry Sheezel) was great; but the backline stood up very well.”

Finn O’Sullivan (24 disposals), Tom Powell (27), Davies-Uniacke (33), Jy Simpkin (27) and Sheezel (33) led the way for the Roos, with Dovaston’s three-goal haul also winning plaudits.

 

“He’s such a threat up there; he’s so dangerous to play on,” Davies-Uniacke said.

“I personally wouldn’t want to play on him as it would be a tough day at the office.

“I’m happy I gave him his first goal in a praccy match.”

New captain Nick Larkey (three), Jack Darling and youngster Cooper Trembath (two each) all contributed multiple goals

Best for Collingwood, which was without star Nick Daicos and about 10 members of their best team, was Josh Daicos (29 disposals), Patrick Lipinski (27) and Dan Houston (25), while Beau McCreery shone in the midfield with 17 touches, five clearances and a goal.

Meanwhile, St Kilda’s 43-point win over Essendon was headlined by a four-goal haul from livewire Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera.

In a change of role, the 23-year-old played largely out of the goalsquare, with devastating impact.

The win came at a cost for the Saints, who will take on Collingwood this Sunday, with new skipper Callum Wilkie (calf) and Ryan Byrnes (ankle) both sustaining injuries.

Byrnes was on crutches post-match and Wilkie was also limping in a worrying sign ahead of their showdown against the potent Pies.

Archie Roberts, Lachie Blakiston and Zak Johnson fared best for the Bombers, while one of their three first-round selections from last year’s national draft, Dyson Sharp, enhanced his claims for a round one debut against Hawthorn with a polished performance.

Friday’s clash between Melbourne and Richmond proved an interrupted affair.

The start of the game was delayed by lightning in the Ballarat area, while a second strike early in the third quarter brought a premature end to proceedings.

Encouragingly for the Demons, Kysaiah Pickett and Caleb Windsor both shone in the midfield, which has been given a makeover following the off-season departures of Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca, and with Jack Viney sidelined with an achilles injury.

Youngsters Xavier Lindsay (14 disposals) and Harvey Langford (11, one goal) also showed out in their side’s 35-point win.

After losing emerging star Taj Hotton to a long-term hip injury in the previous week’s match simulation against Essendon, the Tigers suffered a further blow with one of their prized first round picks from the 2025 national draft Sam Cumming suffering a shoulder injury before half-time.

Bright spots for the Tigers were full-forward Tom Lynch, who kicked 2.3, and former No. 1 draft pick Sam Lalor (15 disposals and five clearances).

Richmond launches its 2026 season against Carlton on 12 March, while the Demons clash with St Kilda on 15 March.