AFTER finishing fourth at the end of the home-and-away season, Eltham’s Division 1 side moved steadily through the finals series before capping a great year with a 16-14 win over Williamstown in the grand final on Saturday.
Williamstown ran a number of great set plays during the first quarter but brilliance f rom Eltham’s goalkeeper Jamie Stevens and some strong defence by the likes of Scott Schenk, Glen Esler and Jake LiRossi kept it to just four goals.
Eltham managed two to stay in touch but needed to lift its game.
After the short break, Eltham did exactly that and turned the tables. Tom Shakespeare and Cam Wallace, alternating in the centre, started winning the face-offs and some good technical saw Eltham pile on a 7-2 quarter.
This was the start of an onslaught by Andrew Millar whose back-toback goals, executed with skill and purpose, inspired his Eltham teammates.
Then Cam Wallace, having been crunched in front of goals, managed to put one in the net while falling backwards and it seemed nothing could stop Eltham.
After the long break, Williamstown managed two early goals but Eltham continued to control the game with the defensive team stopping any more goals for the quarter.
Liam Sedgwick scored a beauty, after heavy defence failed to stop him, then Millar scored three more with the aid of Brad Kendall’s perfectly-timed passes.
The final quarter was Williamstown’s strongest as it forced its way back into the contest. Williamstown scored the first goal of the quarter but, again, the Eltham attack answered. Williamstown lifted its intensity and Eltham made a few technical errors and its five-goal lead became
three and then two. Though Williamstown outscored Eltham in the final quarter, Eltham hung on for a thrilling premiership win.
In the under-18 grand final, Eltham lost 10-6 to Footscray.
On a brighter note Liam Kennedy became the second Eltham player in two years to be named the competition’s most valuable player.
– By Pauline Maher
13. Feb, 2012 
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