2016 VAFA Premier B Finals: St Bede's/Mentone Tigers 14.8.92 defeated Beaumaris Sharks 9.11.65

Both Beaumaris (1st, 13-4-1) and St Bede’s/Mentone (2nd, 13-5) had similar paths to the finals in 2016.

After being relegated from Premier section, the Sharks wasted no time indicating that they fully intended to climb back up asap. They went undefeated through the first half of the season, with a draw against Fitzroy their only blemish. Although they were tested and defeated several times in the later rounds, they never dropped out of the top two and finished up the top of the tree.

The Tigers got off to a slow start with a couple of early losses, but seven wins in a row through the middle rounds catapulted them into the upper echelons and they spent the second half of the season in the top two, trading places with Beaumaris. Their four point loss to Monash in Round 18 meant they relinquished the minor premiership. The two sides first met back in Round 4 and the Sharks took a six goal win, but the Tigers got their revenge in Round 11 snatching a one-point heart-stopper. 

First Quarter: SBMT 3.4.22; Beaumaris 1.4.10 
Chris Richards got the Tigers off to a great start after a blistering tackle from Michael Barnes allowed the ball to spill out and he finished it off. Beaumaris had the next three scoring shots but couldn’t find the big sticks. Scott Gower missed a quick snap, Lachlan Boyd retrieved the ball from the Tigers kick-in but missed on the run, then Daniel Gribbin took a contested mark but hit the post. The Tigers joined in with a couple of behinds of their own when Barnes took a contested mark but missed form the boundary and Brayden O’Toole hit the post after Daniel Garside marked the Sharks kick-in and sent the ball straight back inside 50. Drew Kelly finally broke through for the Sharks, finishing well after Gribbin crashed the pack and Sam McBain put on a nice spin move. Patrick Hurst replied for the Tigers a couple of minutes later, a neat little sidestep allowing him space to finish a nice goal on the run. Erish Uthayakumar snapped but missed, and Chris Richards was also unable to convert after a nice pass from Josh Cowan. Spectators got more than they bargained for when Luke Edmondson was dacked in a tackle, revealing, well,…too much, before Alex Smout took a strong contested mark and converted the set shot. Gribbin received a nice pass from Boyd but missed the set shot, giving the Tigers a two goal lead at quarter time.

Second Quarter: Beaumaris 4.8.32; SBMT 3.4.22
The second term was all Beaumaris, although they once again took a long time to find the goals. The first score came from Boyd six minutes in and was followed by misses from Gribbin and Matthew Petering. Josh Ward got the ball from the Tigers kick-in but was also unable to convert. McBain finished off a chain of handballs at the 18-minute mark, Gribbin took advantage of good forward pressure from Josh Ward and just ‘yoinked’ it, and Milne took a mark and converted the set shot as the Sharks kept the Tigers goalless for the quarter and took a ten-point lead into half time.

Third Quarter: SBMT 7.5.47; Beaumaris 6.10.46
Jaryd Robertson scored first for the Tigers after the break and Beaumaris added another couple of behinds when Robert Cathcart missed a snap and Milne received a nice pass from Will Murton from a throw in, but was unable to convert. Gribbin took a strong contested mark and scored the Sharks first, extending their lead to two goals. The Tigers fought back with three goals in quick time. Uthayakumar was the beneficiary of a clever Luke Velluto toe poke followed by a handball over the top from Chris Richards. O’Toole found Paul Wintle unmarked inside 50 and Barnes kicked one of the goals of the day, roving a throw-in and bouncing a goal over a bunch of heads in the goal square. This restored the Tigers lead before a late goal to Milne made it a one-point game at three-quarter time.

Fourth Quarter: SBMT 14.8.92; Beaumaris 9.11.65
The scoring end to this point had been the City End, with ten goals kicked compared to just three goals to the opposite end emblazoned with “Sautner Goal.” The Sharks looked to continue that trend when they found Milne one-on-one in front of goal twice in the first five minutes and he kicked goals both times, giving Beaumaris the ascendancy. However, the Tigers managed to reverse the momentum, starting with a great tackle to Barnes who was rewarded and converted the free kick. George Rowlands followed with a goal soon after, finishing what was probably the play of the day. At a stoppage on the Beaumaris forward line, Chris Mangoni got the clearance which was followed by handballs to Robertson, Richards, Cowan and Brett Denton. Beaumaris got the ball back briefly before Rowlands intercepted and booted the ball between the uprights. Lachlan Mirams marked a Beaumaris defensive clearance but failed to convert, before Uthayakumar intercepted the kick-in and scored another one for the Tigers. A Milne goal halfway through the term brought the margin back to three points. In the end the Tigers finished with a rush, with four goals in quick time. Barnes ran into an easy open goal after getting on the end of a chain of handballs, Robertson finished off a strong contested mark, Josh Cowan pounced on a Sharks defensive fumble and rolled it through, while Uthayakumar gratefully another Sharks defensive mistake as they were attempting to go across goal and nailed the set shot. In the end the Tigers ran away with a 27-point win and, as a result, have a week off, a Grand Final berth and a spot in William Buck Premier.