By Jonty Ralphsmith
Southern Football Netball League Division 2 side Hampton Park has narrowly avoided an upset at the hands of Skye, getting up 9.20 74 to 9.2 56.
The Redbacks trailed for much of the day, taking until the last quarter to stand up and shift momentum their way, kicking 4.8 to 1.0.
Missing regular contributors Declan Brunnell, Liam Myatt and Dylan Morris, the visitors struggled to generate momentum against a side that didn’t kick a goal against Doveton last week.
It was ultimately Jye King who started to turn things around for Hampton Park, continuing his strong start to the season.
Having dominated as a physical man-on-man defender capable of peeling off and intercepting in 2024, the inclusion of fellow key-position-player Corey Braden allowed coach Hayden Stanton to throw King into the ruck.
It was his tap-work and inside presence which unlocked Hampton Park’s efficiency.
The strong first month for King follows a preseason where he trained as a fullback for the first time in his career as the Spiders looked to use his strength to outmuscle key forwards, while his willingness to wrestle in the ruck opens up his preferred hit-to zones.
Jayden Weichard continued his ball-winning ways in the midfield, Ryan Patterson provided energy out of the back half in his first match back from a hamstring injury and Brian Plapp kicked three goals.
Elsewhere, Doveton backed up its mauling of Skye with a comfortable 36-point victory over Highett.
Sam Muirhead and Cam Williamson combined for nine goals for Doveton, with its forward line clicking for the second consecutive week.
It sees Muirhead maintain top spot in the Division 2 goal-kicking tally, and, more holistically, he is contributing to an increase in Doveton’s scoring potency.
After struggling at times to generate enough scores in 2023, Doveton has this year kicked an average of almost 14 goals per game, and has the second most points for in the competition.
Cranbourne’s winless start to the season has continued, going down by two points to Dingley in Division 1.
