Competition amps up in Round 2 of River Murray Football League 2023 season

Locals support locals – that’s why this recent post is now free to read. Your support can help Murray Bridge News tell important local stories. Subscribe today.

The first round of the historic 2023 RMFL season, with three new teams in the mix, has given footy gurus Shane Snell and Matt Hood a taste of how the teams will go in the second round, which is also the Anzac Round.

The RMFL teams will recognise Anzac Day through presenting Anzac Day medals to their outstanding players.

Speaking of outstanding, a couple of outstanding nicknames have already emerged in the competition: “The Whiz” from the Tailem Bend Eagles and “Sticky Nicky” from the Mypolonga Tigers.

Snell and Hood agree that the Imps will beat the Tigers.

“The Imperials did enough to beat Ramblers last week, but they weren’t that impressive or clean with the footy,” Snell said.

“Ramblers put them under a bit of pressure, so they want to tidy up their ball use and their method going forward this week when they play Mypolonga.

“I believe the Imps are getting back John Boras – he’s a key forward – 100-goal kicker – who’ll straighten the Blues up a bit, and they’ll be able to juggle their outfit around.”

“Definitely thinking that Imps will get the job done, but Mypolonga are going to get better and better, as the season goes,” Hood said.

• Shane Snell’s prediction: Imperials to win
• Matt Hood’s prediction: Imperials to win
• Round two opponent: Tigers at Johnstone Park

Matt Hood felt the Cats were a bit undercooked for his liking, but he’s still tipping them to win against the Roos.

“I was down at that game on the weekend with the Cats versus the Suns, and the Cats were just underdone – they just hadn’t played enough together,” Hood said.

“They basically just need more time together, and they’ll really start to come good.

“I think perhaps a couple of their better players were down, but probably the shining light was Charlie Fisher at centre half forward – his marking was outstanding and probably the best game I’ve seen him play since playing in the River Murray.

“I think the Cats will get over the line – just the fact that they’ve had that hit-out last weekend and Mannum wasn’t playing footy.”

Snell begs to differ.

“I watched the livestream of the Cats, and I believe they’ve got a bit of improvement in them: They’ve certainly got the talent, but I’m going to go for Mannum at home, only by a a whisker,” he said.

• Shane Snell’s prediction: Roos to win
• Matt Hood’s prediction: Cats to win
• Round two opponent: Roos at Mannum Football Clubrooms

Hood feels that the Bluds’ stability will help them win on Saturday against the Storm.

“Jervois is pretty much unchanged,” he said.

“Their new player in the midfield, Josh Holding, had a little time off footy, but I think he found his feet very quickly on Saturday, and they’ve lost their ruckman from last year, but the guy that stepped into the ruck, Harry Barnettt, got ‘best on’ for Jervois on Saturday.

“So I think that’s a positive for Jervois – and they’ll potentially have Dylan Barry coming in this week.”

Snell agrees.

“Jervois’ record speaks for itself: They haven’t had to change for three years, as far as personnel and ability, and they’re going to play with more venom, so I’ll tip Jervois in a strong win,” he said.

• Shane Snell’s prediction: Bluds to win
• Matt Hood’s prediction: Bluds to win
• Round two opponent: Storm at Peake Oval

Although Matt Hood thinks the Cats and Roos are pretty even on paper, he favours the Cats to win.

“Looking at this week’s game, on paper, it’s very similar, as the Cats are a very good side, but I think the Cats will be better for the run,” he said.

“Probably the only thing I think is going to get the Cats over the line is the fact that Mannum didn’t play Round 1 – they had the bye, and I think Mannum will be in the Cat’s position this week, and I think they’ll be just a little bit underdone.

“Apart from that, Mannum got some really good recruits: Stevie Branson is a tall midfielder that’s a very good player, so he’s going to add on a lot to the midfield for Mannum.”

• Shane Snell’s prediction: Roos to win
• Matt Hood’s prediction: Cats to win
• Round two opponent: Cats at Mannum Football Clubrooms

Although Snell and Hood are impressed by the Tigers’ new player Sticky Nicky, they don’t think the Tigers can get over the line against the Imps this weekend.

“I’m expecting Mypolonga could be a lot stronger outfit than they were last year,” Snell said.

“On the weekend, they took it right up to Jervois, and if they were a bit more accurate, they could have had a bit more of a break at half time.

“But Jervois probably showed the pre-season work they’ve done, and the Tigers probably just ran out of steam.

“I’m quite impressed with a player called Paddy Davey and a defender in Riley Robertson, and add on Jack Daddo’s return from injury: They’re going to be a pretty solid-looking Mypo.

“I think it’s going to be a close match, but I think the Blues will do enough.”

“Nick Holz is a new player to Mypo – he’s going to get better as he starts to understand his team-mates, buts it’s Imps for me,” Hood said.

“What’s his nickname for the footy?” Snell added. “Sticky Nicky? He’s a very good mark.”

• Shane Snell’s prediction: Imperials to win
• Matt Hood’s prediction: Imperials to win
• Round two opponent: Imperials at Johnstone Park

Snell and Hood will both be singing “Here comes the Suns” this Saturday when the Suns play the Eagles.

“From what I saw in the livestream, the Southern Mallee Suns look like a better outfit than what we probably gave them credit for,” Snell said.

“They’ve got good players, and the key ones are obviously Keough and Josh Smithson.

“I think the Southern Mallee Suns are on a one-win-in-a-row roll, and I don’t think they’ll have any trouble accounting for Tailem Bend.”

• Shane Snell’s prediction: Suns to win
• Matt Hood’s prediction: Suns to win
• Round two opponent: Eagles at Pinnaroo Football and Netball Club

Although the Eagles have some good players, Snell and Hood doubt they can beat the Suns.

“I think Tailem Bend are just still putting it together,” Snell said.

“They probably had a slight win on the weekend, and they’ll find it hard to beat Southern Mallee Suns up Pinaroo.”

Hood agreed, although he was impressed by the talent in the Eagles.

“A guy called Ben Moroney kicked about four or five points on Saturday,” he said.

“He found the ball but just had a filthy day when it come to kicking … he should have kicked five goals, and they should have won by more.

“Obviously, Tom Keough was outstanding: No-one could go with him, and this Lewis – young, tall, sort of lanky lad – presented very well and did a very good job.

“And of course, Jacob Wilson’s a small forward that’s very dangerous and very clever – they call him the Whiz.

“But the Suns didn’t have too many passengers on Saturday, so they were very good.”

• Shane Snell’s prediction: Suns to win
• Matt Hood’s prediction: Suns to win
• Round two opponent: Suns at Pinnaroo Football and Netball Club

The Ramblers have a bye this week, but Snell offered his thoughts on their form in Round 1.

“They brought intensity,” he said.

“They probably lack a couple of key quality talls to be quite honest, and in the second quarter they lost Michael Wegner with a hamstring, so that’ll add to their woes.

“So I think that’s where they’re going to miss out a bit.

“They just need a bit more support in the height area, but they’ve certainly got enough skill and pace at times.”

Snell and Hood tip the Bluds over the Storm.

“I think Mallee Districts might have given a little bit better show against Tailem Bend, but they’re going to take four or five games to pick up the pace of our league,” Hood said.

“It’s diferent to what they’ve been used to: There’ll be bigger guys, more talented guys, so I think it’s going to take them a little while to get themselves going, but Saturday will be the first of the very good sides that they’re going to come up against, and I think unfortunately, it’s going to be a big win to Jervois.”

Although Snell was impressed with some of the Storm’s players, he still didn’t think that would be enough for a win against the Bluds.

“They’ve got some handy players – obviously the captain leads from the front, and Andy Vines is a pretty handy player, but I think the problem with the Storm is their talent pool stops off pretty quick,” he said.

• Shane Snell’s prediction: Bluds to win
• Matt Hood’s prediction: Bluds to win
• Round two opponent: Bluds at Peake Oval