By Will Jeffares
Frankston has secured a spot in the VFL Preliminary Finals for the first time in 28 years after warding off a late charge from Casey in electric scenes at Kinetic Stadium on Saturday night.
In front of a boisterous home crowd, the Dolphins blew the game wide open with nine unanswered majors over the middle two periods to open a healthy 41-point lead, but the Demons charged back to bring it back to within a kick late.
A last-minute sealer from Bailey Lambert, in his 50th VFL game, put the cherry on top as Frankston secured the 16.5 (101) to 13.12 (90) result to lock in a date with Southport at Fankhauser Reserve in the Preliminary Final.
After Noah Gown was a late withdrawal from the side, his inclusion, Angus Grant, got things rolling for the Dolphins, with the big man making no mistake from the set shot to strike first blood.
Casey got out the back to put through a response from close range, before another inclusion to the Frankston side, Harrison Jones, took a great mark inside 50 and put through his first of the night.
The Demons hit back with two of their own to hold a six-point advantage at quarter-time, adding another early in the second term to extend their lead.
Corey Ellison bundled home a much-needed goal, as Trent Mynott cleverly snapped through a quickfire second to level the scores in a flash.
It was great work from Mynott again, setting up Ellison for his second to give Frankston the lead, before the skipper also put through goal number two as the goals kept flowing for the Dolphins.
Matt Johnson showed his class with a superb pick up and checkside on the run. While Will Hamill joined in on the fun, steering home his set shot to cap off an excellent quarter of football from Frankston as they held a strong 23-point lead at the main break.
It picked up right where it left off in the second half for the Dolphins, after Darby Hipwell showcased his high-quality clearance work before finding a high-flying Jones inside 50, who converted his second and gave Frankston the perfect start.
A strong grab deep inside 50 by Ellison allowed him to go back and kick his third, before Hamill turned on the jets, slicing through the middle of the ground, to set up Mynott, who also grabbed his third and put the Dolphins 41 points ahead.
The home side’s run of nine consecutive goals was eventually broken as Casey got one back, but not before a magnificent fourth goal for Mynott pushed the margin back to 40.
While the Demons put two of their own on the board in response to get the difference back to 28 points, Mynott once again turned provider for Ellison, who got goal number four to extend Frankston’s healthy lead.
A late goal for Casey, however, had the Dolphins’ lead sitting at 26 points at the final break.
The Demons applied the pressure early in the final quarter, kicking the first of the term to inject some nerves into the contest for the home side.
Ellison slotted a much-needed settler for Frankston as the spearhead made it a handful of goals for the night.
Casey then made their move, quickly putting through three consecutive majors to make it just a one-goal game to set up a tense finish at Kinetic Stadium.
After being awarded a free kick inside 50, Tom Blamires stood up with a vital set shot that put the margin back out to 11 points, until another for the Demons had the difference sitting at five points.
Withstanding all the late pressure, it was Bailey Lambert who iced the game for the Dolphins, bouncing through the sealer to send Frankston to the Preliminary Final as the home faithful erupted.
When the game needed it most, it was players like Tom Blamires and Darby Hipwell who stood up in the engine room. Blamires finished with 33 disposals (15 contested), seven tackles, eight clearances, seven inside 50s and a goal in what was an incredible performance. Hipwell tallied 33 disposals (15 contested), a team-high 10 clearances and four tackles in a similarly excellent showing.
Jackson Voss was superb with his ball use and line-breaking ability out of defence, recording 34 disposals, eight marks, five inside 50s and 11 rebound 50s. Voss was instrumental to the Dolphins’ second-quarter surge.
Corey Ellison (five goals) and Trent Mynott (four goals) lead the way on the scoresheet, with the former having 13 disposals while the latter finished with 12 disposals and laid four tackles.
Taine Barlow and Joe Lloyd were, as per usual, brilliant down back. Barlow finished the contest with 19 disposals, eight marks, eight intercept possessions and eight rebound 50s, while Lloyd finished with 17 disposals (10 contested), seven marks, nine intercept possessions and five rebound 50s.
Returning to the side after missing his side’s defeat to Footscray last week, Will Hamill put in a fine showing, recording 20 disposals (11 contested), nine intercepts and a goal.
Jackson Kornberg’s side will now head up to the Sunshine State, where they will face Southport at Fankhauser Reserve, as they chase a Grand Final appearance.
The match will commence at 11:25am | The club will be hosting a watch party at Kinetic Stadium TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE
FRANKSTON 2.2 8.4 13.5 16.5 (101)
CASEY 3.2 4.5 8.9 13.12 (90)
GOALS
Ellison 5, Mynott 4, Jones 2, Blamires, Lambert, Johnson, Grant, Hamill
BEST
Blamires, Voss, Hipwell, Ellison, Mynott, Lloyd, Barlow
