With football returning to most leagues across the state the past weekend saw 14 Werribee players back in action at local level. Once again there were more strong performances from players on the comeback from injury setbacks.

GEELONG FOOTBALL LEAGUE

St Mary’s were the biggest winners of the round in the Gelong Football League with Jay Dahlhaus turning it on for the Saints in his first match at the senior level since May 23. Playing mainly as a forward the livewire booted three goals in a 22-possession game while also laying four tackles.

Darcy Chirgwin also contributed three goals in the 108-point St Mary’s win as he played as a third and at terms second forward. Chirgwin also brought some good forward half defence in another encouraging display. Similarly Max Augerinos also had a big impact in attack as well as through the midfield for the Saints. The 24 year-old had a strong four-quarter performance with 25 disposals at 84% efficiency and also added a goal.

Several Werribee players were among the best for Geelong West in their loss to St Joesph’s. Emannual Ajang had 25 disposals, 6 marks and a goal as the Giants went down by 25 points. Phillip Moi Moi finished with two majors and utilised his attributes with his pace and elusiveness highlights.

Also with Geelong West, Lachie Taylor had his finest showing in a number of weeks to be named second best at Drew Oval in the lone Sunday match. Meanwhile, Tyler Watts did the little things well for the Giants, was physical in the contest with some notable one-percenters and follow up work.

Aiden Domic was involved in a come from behind win for Bell Park over South Barwon. After trailing by almost four goals at quarter time the Devils eventually overcome the deficit and secured a five-point victory. Domic was effective by foot, tackled well and showed great leadership throughout.

VICTORIAN AMATEUR FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Harry Stubbings produced a best-on-ground performance for Old Scotch as they fell to Collegians narrowly by seven points in Round 14. Stubbings racked up big possession numbers while gaining plenty of metres with his run and carry and long kicking.

For St Bernards Edyn Sibbald played in a win over lowly Old Trinity. Sibbald played his role up forward, kicking a goal and having a number of score involvements as the Snowdogs kicked 19-goals on their way to a 50-point victory over the competition cellar dwellers.

ESSENDON DISTRICT FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Lucas Rocci played in comfortable win for Aberfeldie with the third placed Blues enjoyed a 48-point triumph over sixth placed Avondale Heights. Rocci’s two way running, contested possession work and field kicking were all on display in a solid outing at Canning Reserve.

WESTERN REGION FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Archi Manton starred at both ends of the ground for Yarraville Seddon in windy conditions against Hoppers Crossing. Manton started forward but then went back and would play most of the game at one end of the ground. In attack he continued his strong goal kicking form, booting four majors and was also one of his team’s best defenders in their loss taking a number of intercept marks.

BALLARAT FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Among the best for Darley in their loss to top placed North Ballarat was Ryan Kemp. Despite going in undermanned, Kemp helped ensure the Devils were more than competitive with his pressure and tackling excellent playing mainly through the midfield. He also kicked a goal when rested up forward.

HAMPDEN FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Another player seeing his first senior action since late May was Tex Korewha and he didn’t appear to miss a beat in Koroit’s 97-point win over Terang Mortlake. Korewha spent a greater chunk in the ruck than anticipated but proved he was up to the task. He also did some damage up forward slotting three goals.

Werribee Football Club's annual auction fundraiser is back and happening online for the second time following a hugely successful virtual edition last year.  

The annual fundraiser takes place for the 30th time in 2021, with items in the auction open for bidding from 6pm Saturday 31 July up until 7pm Sunday 15 August.

CLICK HERE: MORE DETAILS + AUCTION ITEMS

Items available for bidding include:
- An Exclusive Fishing Charter with Merv Hughes
- A Lunch with Dale Morris
- A Landscaping and Gardening package courtesy of Creative Gardens
- A cheese making experience for 8 people thanks to Cheeselinks
- An Afternoon Tea with Julia Gillard
- Vouchers to spend at local Wyndham restaurants and businesses
- Gym memberships, advertising packages, memorabilia, merchandise and more!

We are also still accepting donations; if you would like to donate to the auction, or have any enquiries, send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Werribee made a successful return to field from another two-week hiatus with a come from behind victory over the Northern Bullants in Round 16.  The Big W trailed all day at Preston City Oval before coming home with a wet sail, piling on eight final quarter goals to win by 30 points and break a run of two consecutive losses.

Werribee: 1.0 5.7 6.12 14.17 (101)
Northern Bullants: 5.7 8.8 9.10 10.11 (71)

GOALS
Werribee: H. Garoni 3, S. Mannagh 2, W. Buzza 2, C. Thae 2, T. Gribble 1, L. Wagener 1, M. Hanson 1, N. Hayes 1, R. Pendlebury 1
Northern Bullants: P. Ahern 4, J. Velissaris 1, G. Strachan 1, L. Mackie 1, W. Murphy 1, B. Silvagni 1

BEST
Werribee: T. Gribble, M. Hanson, H. Garoni, D. Brew, M. Spencer, B. Malual
Northern Bullants: T. Jones, J. Velissaris, G. Strachan, B. Silvagni, T. Wilson, P. Ahern

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Big W went into the match without key backs Nick Coughlan and Nathan Cooper and then had skipper Michael Sodomaco withdraw just moments before the bounce due to hamstring tightness. His replacement was Aidan Johnson who after just completing a running session was handed a surprise debut. With a decent breeze favouring the city end of the ground, the home team made the most of their decision to kick in that direction as they opened up a 31-point lead at quarter time after dominating the opening stanza following some early back and forth. Having been held scoreless for the more than 30 minutes, Werribee final got on the board when Logan Wagener, playing in his first match for the club since debuting at Box Hill in Round 4, snapped truly shortly before the break.

Despite the early deficit it was far from panic stations for Werribee and they made the perfect start to the second term with Hudson Garoni goaling after the first minute. But two misses followed and when the Bullants quickly added back-to-back goals the margin was back out to 35 points, 12 minutes in. Garoni would be the one to reply for Werribee with consecutive goals himself before another run of behinds by the visitors had the scoreboard reading 4.7 to 7.8. Nick Hayes added ou fifth major deep in the quarter but it wouldn’t be the final score as tempers flared after a late injury to a Bullants player with the hosts converting from a free kick with the final possesion of the half.

With Matt Lobbe dominating in the ruck, Matt Hanson, Tom Gribble and Dom Brew continued to win plenty of the footy in the centre square and around the ground in the third quarter but scoring was hard to come by. After four straight behinds for Werribee, Wylie Buzza calmly slotted what would be our loan major for the quarter, after 18 minutes of play. The goal reduced the margin to 10 points, but it didn’t stay there for long with the Bullants finding a quick reply through Jean-Luc Velissaris. Defenders Max Spencer, Lou Pinnuck and Ariek Lual did an outstanding job to limit the Bullants to a single behind over the final 10 minutes, winning back possession on multiple occasions, while Bior Malual's dash off halfback came without reward late as the Big W went into the last, 16 points down.

With one final role of the dice the goals came thick and fast for Werribee in the fourth quarter with Matt Hanson starting the procession. Shaun Mannagh was next on the board and when Connor Thar finished off the outside of his right boot from close range moments later, Werribee had the lead for the first time, nine minutes into the final term. Three more majors came over another five-minute period via Ryan Pendlebury, who followed up his own hack forward with a classy running goal, and then Buzza and Mannagh again, which all but guaranteed the Big W the points. The result and Werribee's fifth win of the season was confirmed by young debutant Noah Gribble who was mobbed by teammates after kicking the final goal of the game. Gribble, the younger brother of standout midfielder Tom, finished with 11 disposals and two tackles in his first taste of VFL footy.

KEY PLAYERS
Tom Gribble: 35 disposals at 83% efficiency, 9 clearances, 9 tackles, 6 inside 50s, 6 rebound 50s, 4 score assists.
Matt Hanson: 31 disposals at 81% efficiency, 16 handball receives, 8 clearances, 6 inside 50s, 5 tackles, 1 goal.
Dom Brew: 21 disposals, 15 contested possessions, 10 tackles, 8 clearances, 7 inside 50s
Hudson Garoni: 18 disposals (15 kicks), 10 marks (4 contested), 4 tackles, score 3.6
Matt Lobbe: 16 disposals, 7 marks (1 contested), 49 hit-outs, 5 clearances, 4 tackles, 3 rebound 50s
Wylie Buzza: 15 disposals, 11 contested possesions, 6 marks (3 contested) 9 hit-outs, 4 tackles, 2 goals

NEXT MATCH
Werribee vs Geelong
Date & Time TBC
Avalon Airport Oval