GRAND FINAL PREVIEW AND PREDICTION: Men’s Premier Division Reserves

Premier Division Reserves Grand Final

Written by Michael Shillito

Sydney University vs. Pennant Hills Demons – Saturday, September 15 at 10.00am at Blacktown International Sportspark

Grand Final Day kicks off on Saturday with the Premier Division Reserves Grand Final. It’s a game that should be closely contested, with Sydney University taking on Pennant Hills.

The Students were Minor Premiers, dropping only two games during the regular season and enjoying a comfortable 27-point result against the Demons in the Major Semi-Final. It’s been a memorable season for the Students at this level, but this last hurdle will be the toughest of all.

There’s no shortage of forward firepower to get a winning score on the board. Nik Dale and Oliver Wetzlar have formed a handy combination on the forward line, and the Demon defenders will need to be at the peak of their game to keep both of them quiet.

Seb Travaskis, Jack Fox and Tom Dunlop have kept opponents weary all season, and they’ll be working hard to contribute to Premiership success. They will be players to watch if the Students are going to get over the line.

The Demons have had to play three tough finals already to get this far. A good win over UNSW Eastern Suburbs kick-started the finals campaign, but the Demons had to do it tough, going down to the Students in the Major Semi-Final and having to come from three goals down to get over North Shore in the Preliminary Final. But in the end they got there.

If they are going to conjure up a winning score, the Demons will need a big goal-kicking contribution from Anthony Brawn. The evergreen Demon may be in the twilight of his career, but he’s shown this season that he still has the ability up forward, and has already drawn twin flags from the goal umpires 49 times this season.

There’s some handy experience in the midfield. Patrick Witt’s season has seen him take out the Snow Medal as Best and Fairest in this division, while Lukas De Vries and former Phelan Medallist, Keiran Wright will also be dangerous on this big stage.

The Demons won the first clash between the two sides, back on the opening day of the season, with a 9-point result at Mike Kenny Oval. But the Students took out the return fixture at Sydney University No. 1 Oval by 30 points in Round 9, and backed it up with the Major Semi-Final win.

This should be closely contested, and with the lure of a Premiership up for grabs, the stakes are high. This is the last chance the Demons will have to take some silverware out of 2018, and they’ll give it everything they have. But over the course of the season, the Students look to have the edge. It will be close, but the Students have what it takes to get it done.

Prediction – Sydney University by 8 points.

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