From offensive juggernaut to, well, offensive juggernaut, the Falcons girls simply ran every team off the floor on their way to the VJL 1 Championship.

After a slow start to the season, the girls started running and simply never stopped, leaving their opposition gone with the wind as they put together 15 wins from 16 games, and went 2-0 during the finals. Such was their dominance offensively that they scored 179 points more than the next highest scoring team during the regular season, and even on what coach Elias Palioyiannis described as an average night offensively in the Grand Final, still scored 42.

Energetic guard Grace Beasley led from the front with 24 points, but the team got contributions right down the list as they raced to an early lead, before fighting off a Diamond Valley comeback in the second half.

An outstanding defensive effort has seen the Falcons win VJL 3 Grand Final by 15 points over the Frankston Blues.

Playing in front of a large crowd at a busy Dandenong Stadium, we took control of the game from the tip off and worked hard at both ends of the court. Chloe Betts proved to be the dominant big on the court and thoroughly deserved her Grand Final MVP award.

The girls started positively and looked the better of the two teams as our offensive structures looked polished. We started to work hard defensively and took a 16-8 lead into the main break. Eight stops in a row immediately after half time certainly helped the cause as the 'dynamic duo' guard combination of Tamara Ludekens and Hayley McPhillips took control of the game. We totally smothered the Blues defensively to run out comfortable 30-15 winners to claim a well deserved championship.

Members of the Championship Team were; Chloe Betts, Daniella Cantanese, Hayley McPhillips, Holly Sainsbery, Jacqueline Stabelos, Jemima Sennitt, Katherine Ellis, Lauren Mitchell, Samantha Stewart and Tamara Ludekens.

All girls worked hard throughout the year and improved individually, but more importantly, a consistent approach to games from a team perspective was clearly evident as the season progressed.

A big thank you to Pina Cantanese (Team Manager), Michele Murray (Assistant Team Manager) and Kate de Groot (Team Motivator) for their support throughout the year as well as the commitment shown by all parents.

Winning a premiership from third place is tough.

Winning a premiership from third place after losing in week one of the finals is even tougher.

Holding on to a small lead in the dying minutes of a Grand Final with both your dominant bigs fouled out and the opposition, who have beaten you every time during the season, riding a wave of momentum?

That’s Brendon Gordon and his 14.3 Falcons girls.

After establishing an early lead, the Falcons saw the Hawks fight their way back into the contest. Louise Ching stepped up in her familiar Grand Final setting, while Lauren McDonald was powerful and the rebounds. The unsung hero however was Elise Thurman, who made big buckets and was rock solid with the ball down the stretch, while doing a defensive job on Ringwood’s star Point Guard.

It was a great reward for a bottom age team who played their best ball when it mattered the most, and fantastic experience for them to take forward as they push forward in their Basketball careers.

It was an impressive season from first year coach George Delgiannis, steering the girls all the way to the Grand Final. After the excitement of last week’s preliminary final, it was a slightly flat Sunday morning appointment against Kilsyth, who had been the competition leaders all season.

The girls fought the game out hard; staying very close to the Cobras right to the final minutes, before the Cobras finally pulled away and took a ten point victory. Jade Morgan was a beacon of stability as she had been all season and all the girls played hard on the day.

It was a great season for the Falcons who made a big run through the second half of the season and hit finals like a freight train. With a large bottom age contingent it is a very good sign for the future.

In a rematch of the semi-final two weeks earlier, the Falcons raced out of the starting blocks and established a solid early lead. This lead crept out around double figures before the Warriors managed to peg it back slightly in the midst of half time. It was clear to all that what looked like it may have been heading for a blowout would be a tough second half. Once again, the Falcons pushed their lead out; once again, the Warriors pegged it back, and with three minutes to go the lead was down to just six. The Falcons hung tough however, and protected their lead with some great defensive possessions, not letting the Warriors shooters find any space.

At the final siren, it was an eight point win for the Falcons, who had some battles with Oakleigh all season, some going their way, some not. Another bottom age team with loads of potential and a real chance to make some noise in the Under 14 age group next season. A great result for Jason Minerve and Ryan Denman, taking the coaching reigns in their first season.

After a slow start to the season with few wins, the boys pulled it together under the guidance of Coach Sean Johnston, to crawl into the top five and finally made it to the top of the ladder. For the finals, the boys started in third place. They won against Eltham and then Pakenham before facing Cranbourne in the Grand Final. They had lost against Cranbourne in the last game of the season before before finals so they trained hard over the two week wait for the last challenge.

In the Grand Final, the Wavelrey 14.3 boys' team started strong with 8 points on the board before Cranbourne were able to score. They continued dominating the game for the first half but the Waverley supporters' cheering helped the team keep in front all the way to the final siren with a very convincing win of 43 against Cranbourne's 23. Congratulations to Edward Standish for a well-deserved Grand Final MVP. Thanks to Coach Sean Johnston for his hard work and commitment throughout the entire season. Thanks also to the parents for getting the boys to all the various venues and helping with scoring.

Congratulations to the dedicated team of Trent Scarton, Angus Diviny, Edward Jiang, Spencer Spielvogel, Patrick Butcher, Callum Walters, Edward Johnston and Edward Standish. There were many fine individual performances during the season and some great team play. 

Want a team that will battle through adversity and still come through with the goods? This is probably the team.

Despite losing one starter to injury and another to ineligibility the boys started strong against the previously undefeated McKinnon team. An early lead however was quickly dissolved and the Cougars slowly but surely got on top. It looked as if the task would be too great for the Falcons, who, without the athletic Jayson Miller, were forced to play Centre Daniel Faaele for the entire game. The change in the game occurred when McKinnon opted to slow the pace down, the Falcons capitalised, forcing some turnovers and finishing at the offensive end to get back in the game. With big Dan doing work in the paint, and Alex Mascarin ripping down defensive rebounds like they were Boxing Day specials, the Falcons took an unlikely lead into the final two minutes. Some jittery free throw shooting kept McKinnon in the game and they took full advantage, knocking down a three to bring the lead back to just one, and then had a chance to win on the buzzer, but the Falcons defence stood firm and they took home a memorable win. A great effort by the boys and coach Fabian Galgani, who stepped in for son Stephen as he was overseas for the game.

16.4 Boys (Adam Scinski) 45 dft. 16.6 Boys (Bill Rowland) 32

East 4

In a local derby Grand Final, there was plenty of decent action on display. Two teams that have clearly shown an ability to score the ball during the season put on a Grand Final that was fast paced and very athletic. Waverley (4) established a lead through the first half and continued to build, pushing it out around the 20 point mark during the second half, and even entertaining the crowd with some upstairs shenanigans, however the boys from Waverley (6) showed they deserved to be in the Grand Final with some spirited play in the final minutes, working the lead back to 13 at the final horn. A great display of talent from both sides and an entertaining game to watch.

Going on previous form, this game was expected to be close. This expectation appeared to be right on the money as Waverley got home in an absolute thriller. In their two meetings during the season, Mornington won the first battle by three points, however Waverley scored a four point win the second time they met. When they faced each other earlier in the finals series, Mornington again got on top by just four points. It was always going to be a game of millimetres. Waverley are no strangers to close games, they won their preliminary final by just four points and when things got close in the big one, they held their nerve. The win marked a great end to a season for a team who had to deal with multiple injuries and a mid-season coaching change.

Well, scoring the ball was clearly not an issue for either of these teams. In fact, Waverley have had a great season scoring the ball, their tally in the Grand Final was about on par with their season average. Waverley had not beaten Southern Peninsula during the season, however both of their losses were by small margins, just six points and five points. They played this one like they believed they could win it, and they very nearly did. It was a good season from the Falcons boys, playing a tough section against many clubs’ first and second teams, and going very close to taking home the championship.