VFL Match Report: Round 12 vs Footscray

15/06/2026

Round 12 saw us travel to Mission Whitten Oval to take on the Footscray Bulldogs, and under blackened skies illuminated by artificial light, we delivered a gritty, physical victory over the reigning Premiers.

With one end of the ground heavily favoured by the blustery conditions on Saturday afternoon, it was a brave defensive effort against the wind in the final term that got us across the line, prevailing 8.11 (59) to 6.12 (48) for our fourth win of the season.

Starting with the breeze behind us, we weathered an early storm and made the first strike against the run of play, transitioning the ball with speed to find Noah Yze inside 50, who coolly converted his set shot from 30 metres out.

Liam Coghlan had some athletic moments in defence, spoiling strongly on numerous occasions, intercepting and playing on quickly to provide a quick rebound, while the likes of Andreas Stefanakis and Willis Reidy were continually harassing as the ball hit the deck in the forward half.

Kyle Cooper and Darcy Chirgwin began to find their feet at the contest, winning clearances to give us first use and more opportunity moving forward, with the repeat entries resulting in a Lachlan Voss major following a free kick to once again give us the lead.

It was all square at the first break, as Footscray found an equaliser in the final few minutes to level the scores at 2.2 (14) as we entered the huddle.

The start of the second term saw us defending against the wind, and Owen Bater’s strong mark drifting back under pressure one-on-one inside 50 was indicative of the desperate defence we brought early.

While denying the Dogs at one end, we were able to use sharp, precise passing, combined with great overlap running, to transition the ball at will, however for all the good work we were unable to capitalise on the scoreboard early.

It took a moment of Josh Hutchings brilliance to get us on the board in the second term, with a blistering Nathan Philactides run and bounce down the wing delivering out in front of the 194cm key forward, who ran onto it and snapped from the boundary at full tilt for a miraculous goal.

Our ascendancy across the ground began to bear fruit as the term wore on, with Voss snaring a strong contested grab 20 metres out, which he duly converted, to give us a 10-point lead nearing half time, and one that could have been higher, too, with both Daniel Pinter and Jet Peckett finding opportunities in front of goal, however were unable to take their chances.

We held a 10-point lead as we headed into the rooms at the main break, having kept the Dogs to just four behinds despite our opponents having the benefit of the significant breeze.

It took less than a minute for us to extend the lead as the second half got underway, with Ben Stephenson on the end of a nice handball chain out of the middle sending one straight over the goal umpire's hat from just inside the paint of the 50.

It was soon four goals in a row for the Zebs as we continued to press, with Darcy Chirgwin winning a free kick at a stoppage inside 50, slamming the ball through the middle to make the margin a game-high 22 points, before relentless attack saw Reidy convert from the pocket after a brilliantly weighted pass from Lach Riley put us 29 points to the good, having kicked five unaswered goals.

Two late goals to the Dogs, however, saw our lead reduced to 19 points at the final break, leaving us ahead 7.9 (51) to 4.8 (32) as Head Coach Daniel Ward addressed the troops for the final time.

Facing a Footscray fight back, the first goal of the final term was crucial, and it was Riley that provided it, presenting strongly to mark a pinpoint Pinter pass and slotting the set shot to push our lead back to 25 points.

The lights came on as the skies turned from overcast to leaden, and the Dogs continued their charge, hitting the scoreboard with consecutive majors to cut the deficit to 14 points as the contest entered time on.

As Footscray kicked towards another one-on-one inside 50, it looked as though they were going to overwhelm us, however second gamer Noah Sutherland provided a brilliantly timed spoil to thwart what looked like a certain mark as the heavens finally opened.

Under all sorts of pressure, the back six stood tall, continually repelling what seemed like an endless amount of inside 50s for the Dogs and tackling with ferocity to force a stoppage as soon as the ball hit the deck.

The clock ticked past 30 minutes, but we continued to hold strong, claiming an eventual 11-point victory in what was a gutsy effort.

Cooper and Philactides led the way in terms of disposals racking up 34 and 31, respectively, both career highs, while Voss was our only multiple goal kicker, finishing the afternoon with two majors.

With four wins from our first 11 games this season, we have eclipsed our tally of three wins and a draw from last year, and continue to build as the second half of the season rolls on.

We will look to keep the momentum rolling next week as we return to Wilson Storage Trevor Barker Beach Oval for a double-header against Tasmania, with the VFL contest getting underway at 1:05pm on Sunday, June 21.

SCORES

Sandringham: 2.2, 4.4, 7.9, 8.11 (59)

Footscray: 2.2, 2.6, 4.8, 6.12 (48)

Goals: Voss 2, Yze, Stephenson, Riley, Reidy, Hutchings, Chirgwin

Disposals: Cooper 34, Philactides 31, Chirgwin 24

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