RJ
Years ago
Classics - FRANKSTON preview
Under 12 Girls
Five clubs will represent SA with the dominant Sturt and Forestville sides probably looking at a top 4 finish. To do so the Sabres will have to battle the 4th ranked Dandenong Rangers and 5th ranked Diamond Valley. Sabres hoping they'll be too good for the Rangers as they were in the Final of the Norwood Tournament. Bendigo is a bit of an unknown but should be a comfortable win for the Sabres. If Sturt can beat both the Rangers and Eagles a top four finish would seem likely. Forestville meanwhile has the 3rd ranked Bulleen Boomers as well as the 6th ranked Sandringham Sabres. Sydney Comets also could represent a challenge but I'm tipping the Eagles to go through as second in this pool behind the Boomers. Norwood will be looking forward to a win against the lowly Geelong but appear too far behind the big guns of the Melbourne Tigers and Nunawading Spectres to advance to the top 8. Southern will battle Woodville in the same pool and both will struggle against the strength and size of the #1 ranked Knox Raiders. The Tigers will be hoping a win against Kilsyth will get them through and I believe they'll manage it while the Warriors will battle Kilsyth for 3rd in the pool.
Final Standing: Sturt 1-4, Forestville 5-6, Tigers 7-8, Norwood 12-16, Woodville 12 -16.
Under 14 Girls
Teams from SA (4), Vic (8), NSW (2), Tas (1) and ACT (1) make this a very interesting group. The absence of Central Districts opens the door for the unlucky Southern Tigers to make the trip down the coast. Sturt go into the weekend as SA's top side and will battle the always strong Dandenong Rangers as well as the surprising Doncaster side. Canberra too have shown great improvement at this level in the last couple of years and Sturt could finish anywhere from top to bottom of their pool. Melbourne proved too good for everyone over Easter walking away with the title and they would be expected to go top of Group C. North Adelaide will battle with the Melbourne Tigers and Werribee who will actually be playing each other for a spot at the National Club Championships on the Friday night of Classics weekend. Sydney Comets come to the Classic undefeated at home and looking for a good showing against the more fancied southern state's clubs. Forestville will face the Nationals bound Eltham (Grand Finalist of the Easter Tournament) who should take top spot of this pool. The Eagles battling with Kilsyth and New Norfolk from Tassie for the second top 8 spot. I'd suggest the Eagles will make it though as second seed from the pool. Southern face Vic powerhouse Nunawading as #1 seed but as is the way probably have the best chance of making the top 8. Hills District from NSW and Geelong will be tough for the Tigers but they are not in the same class as those the other SA teams have to face.
Final Standing Prediction: Sturt 3-4, North Adelaide 5-8, Forestville 5-8, Tigers 7-8.
Under 12 Boys
Being #1 isn't always a good thing and Sturt will face that challenge this weekend. While the Sabres will avoid the Victorian top seeds, the depth in Victoria makes Group D always a tough start to the weekend. The Sabres will face local side Frankston for top spot of the pool and may also be troubled by Broadmeadows but should get by the Bronocs. Eltham may prove more of a challenge for the Sabres as they did at Easter. A tough draw means the Sabres may actually miss out on the top 8 despite clearly being SA's best side. West Adelaide will face Kilsyth and Blackburn (who have the Norwood Easter Championship under their belt already) for a top 8 spot but first will have to deal with Northern Suburbs. Another very strong Group. Southern Tigers main opposition will come from the two Victorian sides in their pool, the currently undefeated Knox Raiders and Dandenong Rangers. That being said also in this pool is the Eastern Mavericks who have a recent win against the Tigers and could pull an upset here if their game holds up for all 3 pool games. Bit disappointing not to see South or Woodville here but their absence opens the door for the improving Forestville Eagles and above mentioned Mavs. Forestville have the tough task of facing #1 seed Werribee plus two more tough Victorian teams Sandringham and Diamond Valley. As with the Mavs if their game can rise to the occasion the Eagles just might slip into the 2nd top 8 spot of the pool but they could just as likely go 0-3.
Final Standing Prediction: Sturt 9-10 , West Adelaide 10-12, Tigers 11-12, Eastern 13-16, Forestville 13-16.
Under 14 Boys
An extremely unlucky North Adelaide will be up the road at Nunawading this weekend while SA's big three battle with the best from the south eastern states. Norwood come into the weekend as our #1 side and face #4 and #5 Victorian ranked sides Werribee and Blackburn. These two teams will be playing off Friday night for a place at the National Club Championships giving the Flames two tough competitors coming off a very important game. Blackburn's performance over Easter was enough for to earn them a Grand Final against West and the Flames will definitely have to be at their best to get a win against either Victorian side. Norwood will also face Canberra who may prove more of a challenge then many would believe. Sturt's pool includes the Melbourne Tigers and McKinnon (again playing for a Nationals spot Friday night) and Northern Suburbs. Sturt definitely have the tools to go 3-0 in this pool but will be challenged by the Tigers. West Adelaide will be looking to avenge their disappointing State Championships result and that result actually has meant they have an easier draw in making the top group. Top seed of their pool is Broadmeadows who are Nationals bound but have already lost 2 games in the Vic Championship competition. The Broncos are definitely within reach for the Bearcats. Sutherland from NSW and Nunawading make up the group. The Sharks have lost two games in Sydney so far this season and appear gettable as do the Spectres who are having their own problems in the extremely even VJBL U14 boys Championship competition.
Final Standing Prediction: West Adelaide 1-4, Sturt 5-8, Norwood 9-10.
All up I've probably shown the S.A. teams a bit of a bias but hey how many Victorians are going to read this!?
