By David Nagel
During lockdown some people go the fridge, some wander off to the pantry and some like to walk the dog or excessively mow their lawns…well here at the Gazette, we’re nerdy and we fill our time in by doing stats.
And what the stats show us is that apart from one game this year that the West Gippsland Football Netball Competition (WGFNC) is being totally dominated by one team – back-to-back reigning champions Phillip Island.
The Bulldogs’ five-point loss to Nar Nar Goon in round three is the only blemish in a quite spectacular season that has the Bulldogs currently riding an eight-game winning streak.
Consider this, when the Bulldogs won the first of their two consecutive flags in 2018 they had a percentage of 194 and in 2019 that leapt to a preposterous 282.
This year Beau Vernon’s Bulldogs have taken that even a step further with the Doggies currently sitting on a percentage of 302.99. Basically, after 11 rounds and with everyone playing each other once, the Doggies have been more than three times better than their opposition this year.
The next best percentage is held by second-placed Inverloch-Kongwak – almost half-way back on 156.80.
As the Goon proved at the Cowes Recreation Reserve in round three, nothing is a given in football, but these Bulldogs are going to be almost impossible to stop when, or if, we move into finals mode this year.
So let’s take a look at some of the stats.
Health Check
All clubs feel a little bit hard done by with injuries but some have cause to complain just a little bit more than others.
Tooradin-Dalmore has used the least number of players this year with 31 while Dalyston has really tested its depth by having 37 players pull on the black and white stripes this year.
The Seagulls were about to be tested, with Blake Grewar and Dylan Wilson both suffering hamstring injuries against Cora Lynn in round 11, but lockdown may be helpful.
When it comes to familiarity on the park Dalyston has only had four players play every game this year, the least in the competition, with Cora Lynn leading the way with nine.
Nathan Gardiner, Robbie Hill, Jaxon Briggs, Ryan Spierings, Lochie Peluso, Matt Ryan, Tristan Fernandez-Phillips, Anthony Giuliano and Travis Woodfield are the players that David Main has relied on in all 11 games this season.
And the Cobras have only used 32 players, equal second best in the competition with Kilcunda-Bass.
Phillip Island has used 36 players and only had five players play every game this year, with its results underlining its enormous depth.
Winning Streaks
As mentioned earlier, Phillip Island is currently on an eight-game winning streak, with Tooradin-Dalmore next best…protecting a three-game run of wins when we finally return to the park.
Inverloch-Kongwak had a seven-win streak between rounds two and eight, while Cora Lynn and Nar Nar Goon have put together five-game winning streaks this year.
Garfield started the season with three consecutive wins but has been less impressive since, winning just four of its next eight games. And when Bunyip wins, they win next start, with their four wins coming in two blocks of two.
Dalyston is currently enduring the longest losing streak of the season at nine, with Kooweerup opening its season with six consecutive losses.
Ladder
If the WGFNC finals series remains as a top six, it appears set with Garfield the only team that could fall out of the finals race at the hands of Warragul Industrials.
The game between the Stars and Dusties, currently scheduled for round 14, is the game that looks to have the most dramatic consequences for that particular part of the ladder.
The battle for third is crucially important this year, with the possibility that Tooradin-Dalmore, Nar Nar Goon and Cora Lynn could be split only by percentage.
Three versus six – taking on Garfield or Warragul Industrials – is a lot more appealing for those teams than taking on each other in an elimination final in week one of the finals. Four versus five is going to be one hell of a contest this year…with elimination at stake!
At the tail of the table, Dalyston’s only chance to crow-bar itself from the bottom of the ladder will take place in round 15, in the game currently scheduled against Korumburra-Bena.
But these equations could all change, particularly if lockdown continues and the WGFNC is forced to reduce the length of its finals series. Could this year’s finals series be knocked back to four or five teams…only time will tell!
Goal Kicking
Only five out of the 12 teams in the WGFNC are goal-kicking at 50 per cent or better with Warragul Industrials 54.81 per cent, Phillip Island 54.67, Nar Nar Goon 54.24, Garfield 53.24 and Kilcunda-Bass 50 leading the competition for accuracy.
The Panthers are exactly 50-50 this year, kicking 101 goals from their 202 shots at goal.
Korumburra-Bena clearly has the poorest conversion rate, going at 41.77 per cent, kicking just 66 of its 158 shots at goal. Obviously we don’t have a measurement for kicks out of bounds on the full, so the accuracy measurement will not be exactly right.
Not surprisingly, Phillips Island has created the most shots at goal this year with 353 attempts, or 32 per game, while Dalyston has created just 118 – or just 11 per game.
The Bulldogs are the clear front-runner in this category, with Tooradin-Dalmore clearly next with 321 shots at goal and Inverloch-Kongwak heading the rest of the pack with 303.
After 11 rounds of football – or roughly 22 hours of play – it’s quite remarkable that Cora Lynn and Nar Nar Goon have had the exact same amount of scoring shots this year with 271.
Interestingly, Kilcunda-Bass (202) deserves to be bracketed with Garfield (216), Bunyip (210) and Warragul Industrials (208) in creating the next best amount of opportunities.
Korumburra-Bena (158) and Kooweerup (151) can bracket next, with Dalyston (118) bringing up the field.
Despite Tooradin-Dalmore having the most talked about forward line in the competition, it’s Inverloch-Kongwak that has the most players to have kicked 10 or more goals this year, with eight.
Phillip Island and Tooradin-Dalmore are next best with seven, while Cora Lynn, Nar Nar Goon and the Dusties have had five players boot 10 or more majors this year.
