A cup win over Yarra Jets, the synthetic waiting, and a point to prove after last week. That is what Saturday is about.
Sixth on the table, 13 points from seven rounds, and the sting of last Saturday still fresh. The 3-2 loss at North Geelong was a game the Redbacks were in control of – until they weren’t. Collins put them ahead on 38 minutes, and Alan Mulchay’s side looked comfortable heading into the final twenty, but the concession of a penalty flipped the script. Anghel converted from the spot, Wall made it two a minute later, and Chapman completed the three-goal burst inside seven minutes. Diamond’s header on 83 was too little, too late. It was the kind of uncharacteristic collapse that demands a response.
Before that, the Round 6 comeback against Langwarrin showed the other side of this group. Down 1-0 at half-time, Marcus Day off injured, Mehmet Uysal came off the bench and changed the game with his set-piece delivery. Josh Dennett’s long throw caused chaos for the equaliser on 53 minutes, and Diamond rose to head home the winner in the 88th.
The Dockerty Cup victory over Yarra Jets during Easter was a timely confidence boost after the North Geelong setback.
North Sunshine sit 11th on six points, two wins from seven, and will arrive with nothing to lose. This is not a side that will be intimidated by the surroundings or the synthetic surface, and anyone who has watched VPL1 this season knows there are no easy fixtures in this division. But Eltham at home is a different proposition. The surface, the crowd pressing close to the pitch, the set-piece threat that gives the Redbacks a weapon from any dead ball.
Saturday, 3pm, The Web. The Redbacks have made this ground a difficult place to visit in 2026. Time for the Eagles to find out why.
Up the ‘Backs.