Last weekend saw a much smaller Werribee contingent at local level with seven players loaned out to the Sydney Swans and Gold Coast Suns and a bye in the Geelong Football Legaue. Of the nine Werribe players that lined up for their community clubs several continued to show consistent form.

VICTORIAN AMATEUR FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION

Darcy Bennett has had a terrific month for Fitzroy but his perfomance in the weekend’s win over AJAX might have been his best showing in 2021. The young ruckman provided first use to his midfielders and also marked strongly in windy conditions taking a handful of contested grabs both behind the ball and in attack.

Harry Stubbings turned out for Old Scotch in Round 12 playing in a 78-point loss to St Kevins. The speedster displayed good running patterns on the wing, marked the ball well and used his pace to break tackles.

WESTERN REGION FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Dan Nielson had another strong outing For Werribee and Districts with the hulking forward following up a six goal-haul with four goals in his side’s big win over Point Cook. Nielson now has 23 goals on the season and continues to bring great attitude and effort each week. The Round 12 win also moved Werribee and Districts top of the ladder courtesy of percentage after Altona lost to Spotswood.

Liam Holt-Fitz was one of the best for Yarraville Seddon in their 38-point loss to Deer Park. Holt-Fitz went goalless but tackled well and worked hard defensively. Meanwhile, in the same match James Edmonds had quieter possession game but brought some good forward pressure, was clean below his knees and effective with his disposal.

BALLARAT FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Ryan Pendlebury played a different role for Melton South against North Ballarat, filling a need in the ruck. While the Panthers suffered a big loss for the second week in a row Pendlebury competed well at the stoppages and also found plenty of the ball to be among his side’s best players.

Matt Brett was again in the best for Darley who went down to Lake Wendouree by 34 points in their Round 9 encounter. Brett played in defence for the Devils and was able to be freed up at times, taking a few contested marks when he was, while also providing some good drive out of defence.

GOULBURN VALLEY FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Ariek Lual had another solid outing for Seymour in a hard-fought victory over Shepparton. He lined-up across half-back and on the wing in a match played in tough conditions. Lual was composed with the ball while providing a marking option out of defence.

OVENS & MURRAY FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Aiden Johnson split his time 50/50 between full forward and CHF in Lavington’s loss to Myrtleford. Matched-up against one of the league’s best defenders, Johnson displayed his marking ability when there was decent delivery and finished with one goal while also laying some strong tackles.

The Werribee Football Club answered a call to help VFL rivals field sides over the weekend after AFL clubs from Sydney and Queensland were forced to relocate to Victoria due to COVID outbreaks and travel restrictions.

With the Swans, Giants, Lions and Suns not having access to their usual pool of top-up players, a loan system was introduced and with Werribee having a bye several Big W players took up the opportunity to run out for a couple of opposition clubs in round 13.

Aiden Domic, Archi Manton and Logan Wagener all suited up for the Gold Coast on Saturday before Tom Body, Darcy Chirgwin, Nathan Cooper and Tylar Watts joined Sydney on Sunday.

Werribee football manager Mark Micallef said all seven players jumped at the chance to gain match time at VFL level.

“The boys enjoyed the opportunity and all thought it was really good to play with AFL-listed players and personally just see where they are at from a VFL perspective,” he said.

“It also offered us as coaches and match committee members a chance to gain some good insights. We had football staff at both games and we also received really good feedback from both Sydney and the Gold Coast on how the boys performed.”

Despite Gold Coast being well-beaten at Box Hill the trio of Domic, Manton and Wagener all made contributions with Wagener named among the best for the Suns.

“Logan Wagener played as an inside-mid for Gold Coast and displayed his ability to win the ball and his in and under capabilities,” Micallef said.

“Archi Manton played up forward and was able to take some strong marks on the lead while Aiden Domic played on a wing, lining up on AFL-listed talent which was really good exposure and development for him.”

The four who played with Sydney did so on familiar soil with the match between the Swans and Frankston taking place at Werribee with the Dolphins victorious by 28 points.

“For Sydney, Tylar Watts played in the ruck and as a key forward, he competed extremely well, not only in the air as he displayed some good movement at ground level too and also kicked a nice goal,” Micallef said.

“Darcy Chirgwin played as a high half-forward and looked to push up into the midfield. He showed really good work rate and the ability to get it on the outside being involved in a quite a few chains of play.

“Nathan Cooper played his usual role as a key defender where his ability to shut-down his direct opponent was a highlight, and Tom Boyd played as a third tall defender where his intercept ability and athleticism at ground level were features of his game.”