Naracoorte booked their finals spot for 2022 with a win over Kingston that was the important result of the round 14 games of the Kowree Naracoorte-Tatiara 2022 season.
The Demons were holding on to fifth coming in to the clash and needed to get one more win to seal their finals spot. Naracoorte started the game strongly and apart from a Saints fightback early in the second quarter, they were never in real trouble of dropping the game. Sam Willson had a day out with seven goals and Rory Taggert was a problem Kingston couldn't solve as well. Rory kicked six goals of his own and had plenty of the ball. Sam Willson, Dylan Albrecht and Rory Taggert were the Demons best players. Kingston found it hard to find a consistent winner in the forward line. Todd Lockwood provided a target with three goals. Jack Harding, Ben Warner and Chad Wood were the Saints best players.
Lucindale continued their charge towards finishing on top after the minor rounds after the Roos defeated the Kybybolite Tigers by 59-points. The game was in the balance at half time as both teams were finding ways to get goals. Kybybolite had eight goals at half time and were right in the contest. The Roos however, lifted in the second half to pull away and get the victory. Hamish Gordon kicked five goals and Riley McFarlaine added three of his own to help the Roos get across the line. Bradley McCarthy, Luke Kelsh and Hamish Gordon were Lucindale's main contributors to the victory. Stephen Craig kicked four goals and Billy Laurie added three goals for the Tigers to keep them in the contest for most of the game. Callum Masters, Sean Munn and Stephen Craig were the Tigers best players.
Keith won a low scoring contest against Bordertown as they continue to look to put away the double chance. Both teams found it hard to score goals as both only had one goal each by half time. The Crows added just four more goals in the second half, but it was enough to get across the line over the Roosters. Billy Wade led the scoring for Keith with two goals. Jonathon Wilson, Nick van den berg and Billy Wade were the Crows best players. Bordertown couldn't find a multiple goal kicker during the game. They only kicked two for the match and they came from the boots of Lewis Crawford and Jacob Eats. The Roosters best players were Matthew Leigh, Jonty Searle and Rory Tink.
Mundulla recorded a strong second half in its win over Padthaway. The Tigers were up at half time by 15-points, but opened the game up in the third quarter to set up a big win by 60-points. Harry Kuchel ended up being the only multiple goal kicker for the Tigers with five goals. Harry Kuchel, Nicholas Mosey and Dylan Mosey were the Tigers best players. Tobin Cox was the only Padthaway who was able to get multiple goals for Padthaway with two goals. Joshua Miller, Will Rivers and Willo Brown were named as Padthaway's best players.
Border Districts won the battle of the Eagles as they proved far too good for Penola. Borders had a very strong first half and they really put together a strong four quarter performance. Dylan Auciello had a day out in front of goal with six goals. Mitchell Coles kicked five goals of his own. Nathan Naylor, Mark Quinn and Dre Stirling were Borders best players. Luke Walker kicked two goals for Penola to be their leading goal kicker. Penola's best players were Kaleb Messenger, Bradley Bryant and Brock Egan.
Round 15 this week and with two minor rounds to go, every game involving a top five team now can change the outlook of the top five placings as far as what will be the match ups in the first week of the finals.
Kybybolite host Penola in arguably the most interesting game of the round. The Tigers have played some good football but just not getting the wins. Penola have only one win for the season and will be looking at this game as their best chance to get win number two. The Tigers will start as favourite, but the Eagles will be ready to go right from the start.
Naracoorte host Bordertown and the Demons are looking for another win to build momentum towards the Finals. The Demons played good football last week and have many weapons to throw at the Roosters. Bordertown have some good players who can cause Naracoorte problems, but the Demons should get across the line.
Lucindale travel to Padthaway knowing a win will seal top spot on the ladder for the finals. The Roos have had a great season so far and will be determined to book their spot in the second semi-final. Padthaway will look to cause one more upset this season. They have beaten Mundulla and twice have beaten Naracoorte to show they are more than capable if things fall their way. The Roos will be favorites, but you can't write the Lions off.
Border Districts would be determined to win their final home game of the season when they host Keith on the weekend. The Eagles recorded a win last week and have had another building season. Keith is the inform team of the comp and continue to look to book their double chance in the finals with another win. This game should be a scrappy dogfight, but the Crows should have too many weapons for the Eagles and get across the line.
Kingston host Mundulla in the match of the round and a victory is a must get for both teams as both look to get the double chance. Kingston got ran off their feet last weekend by Naracoorte and would be very determined to bounce back on their home ground. Mundulla welcomed back some players last weekend and they are gearing up to challenge for another shot at another Premiership. Hopefully the weather is a nice day as both teams have some good ball users that are good to watch when firing. These two teams put on a classic game last season in Kingston and I'd expect this game would be very much the same.