MPFNL
MEN’S DIV TWO SEN
RED Hill are the 2026 MPFNL Division Two Senior Men premiers after defeating Chelsea by 28 points on Sunday (13 September).
The game began tentatively with only a goal apiece scored in the first quarter. In fact, it wasn’t until the 18th minute when either side got on the board with Red Hill scoring a point.
Chelsea managed a major around five minutes later and held the lead over Red Hill until the 21st minute when Red Hill got their first major on the board.
Red Hill scored another point close to the end of the first and went into the first break with a two-point advantage.
Chelsea kicked a couple of points early in the second quarter to pull level with Red Hill on eight points apiece.
Red Hill responded by kicking two goals in the seventh and 11th minutes, pulling 12 points ahead before Chelsea got one back in the 13th minute to bring the margin back to a single straight kick.
That was the last major for the quarter with the rest of the time running down with five minors scored; four to Red Hill and one to Chelsea.
Red Hill went into the long break with a nine-point buffer.
Chelsea came out firing in the third quarter, slotting the first three scores of the term, two goals and one point to get four points up on Red Hill by the eight-minute mark.
Red Hill then quickly responded with their own major to grab the lead back, with Chelsea scoring a point at the 10-minute mark to get back within a single point.
During the next 13 minutes of play, Red Hill pushed hard and managed three goals and a point to pull 20 points ahead of their opponent.
Chelsea managed two minor scores before the three-quarter break and went into the final rest 18 points down and with plenty of work to do to convert a minor premiership into the big win.
It took less than a minute for Red Hill to slot their first major of the term, stretching their lead to 24-points.
Chelsea managed a point in the sixth minute before Red Hill began rubbing salt into the wound by slotting another major in the ninth minute.
Now down by 29-points with time ticking away, Chelsea grabbed a goal in the 14th minute, bringing the margin back to 23-points and offering a glimmer of hope.
Any momentum was dashed by a Red Hill goal a couple of minutes later taking the margin out to 29 points again.
The next two scores were Chelsea’s with a behind and a goal leaving the margin at 22-points with less than 10 minutes to play.
It wasn’t to be, and Red Hill kicked a final major in the dying seconds to put the final margin back out to 28-points. The finals scores were 11.7 (73) to 6.9 (45).
The win topped off a big day for Red Hill, also taking out the Reserves premiership.
Red Hill will now be promoted to MPFNL Division One for season 2027.
MEN’S DIV ONE SEN
DROMANA will meet Rosebud next Sunday in the MPFNL Division One Senior Men grand final after defeating Langwarrin on Saturday (12 September).
While the two teams appeared close on paper, with Langwarrin ending the regular season second on the ladder, and Dromana third, Langwarrin had a far stronger 2026.
The Kangaroos had only conceded three losses during the regular season, while the Tigers had eight losses to their name, leaving Langwarrin the favourites on paper.
Langwarrin managed the stronger start, with the first four scoring opportunities of the game going their way. By the 15th minute mark, they had slotted two goals and two points to be 14 points up, with Dromana having failed to score at all.
Dromana scored their first major in the 20th minutes, and after a few minor scores between the teams scored another goal in the 25th minute.
Dromana managed a minor score a couple of minutes later before Josh Smith scored a goal for Langwarrin in the dying seconds of the quarter to take his side into the first break eight points up.
Smith scored again early in the second, taking the Kangaroo’s lead to 14 points before Dromana got it through the big sticks twice to bring the margin back to just two points in the ninth minute.
A minor score for Dromana followed bringing the margin back to a solitary point before Jake Aarts slotted a goal for Dromana in the 13th minute to hit the lead for the first time in the game.
Langwarrin struck back a couple of minutes later to get a one-point advantage again before Dromana increased the heat in the last ten minutes of the quarter, kicking three unanswered goals.
The Tigers went into the long break 17-points up.
Langwarrin found some success in the early minutes of the third, scoring a goal and a point to bring the margin back to 10 points.
Dromana then kicked the next two majors, taking the margin back out to 22-points.
That was the last of the goals for the third quarter with Dromana kicking two points and Langwarrin one. The teams went into the final break with Dromana 23-points up and a grand final berth clearly visible to the team.
While Langwarrin kicked the opening point of the final term, Dromana then tightened the thumb screws and the next 10 scoring shots, five points and five goals, were on Dromana’s ledger.
By the 23rd minute of the fourth, Dromana had pulled out to a 57-point lead and had it in the bag.
Langwarrin kicked the last major of the match, before a point each in the dying minutes of the game.
When the final siren went, Dromana had notched a 51-point with. The final scores were Dromana, 15.11 (101), to Langwarrin, 7.8 (50).
Dromana will now face Rosebud who had a stellar 2026, conceding only two games in the regular season.
The MPFNL Division One Senior Men grand final will be played at Kinetic Stadium on Sunday 20 September at 2.30pm.
