From Ballarat Courier
Reported by Melanie Whelan
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FOR A FEW moments on Sunday night, Oli Tate studied the ladder and contemplated scenarios.

It is complicated, it is incredibly tight and there are few guarantees leading into the final round of the Victorian Football League.

He put the ladder away and will not look at it again this week.

From Cranbourne Leader
Reported by Paul Amy
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THEY won by 129 points on Saturday, but all told the losses outweighed the gains for the Casey Scorpions on the weekend.

By Sunday night a combination of injuries, retirements and qualification rules had significantly reduced their pool of players for the VFL finals.

The same happened last year.

It seems to happen every year.

It began when Jesse Hogan hyperextended a knee early in the match against Bendigo at Casey Fields on Saturday, causing the hearts of Melbourne supporters to sink.

He will miss the rest of the season.

Reported by Nick Wade
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GEELONG VFL captain Troy Selwood has been cleared of serious damage to his shoulder, but will still miss the Cats' final match of the home-and-away season this Friday night against Bendigo.

Selwood dislocated his shoulder in the Cats' narrow win over Port Melbourne on Saturday, requiring a trip to hospital to get it popped back into place.

While he has already been ruled out of the trip to Queen Elizabeth Oval, results of the scans have been positive and the tough midfielder remains a chance to return for the Cats' first final next weekend.

Geelong, which won its 10th straight match at the weekend and is gunning for back-to-back premierships, is three games clear on top of the ladder.

From Port Phillip Leader
Reported by Paul Amy
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GARY Ayres was disappointed. Of course he was.

In captain John Baird's 150th match, his Port Melbourne team had given all it had in an exhilarating match against Geelong and dropped six points short.

Baird was disconsolate after the game, taking a position on the floor and gazing across the changerooms.

The defeat left Port needing to defeat Coburg this week to contest its seventh consecutive finals series.

But, convinced it was his side's best performance this season, Ayres was drawing possibilities from the result, not dwelling on the must-win predicament ahead.

From Geelong Advertiser
Reported by James Hunter-Smith
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IT'S 10-straight wins for the VFL Cats.

But Port Melbourne did all it could to prevent Geelong's double-digit streak on Saturday.

The Cats trailed by seven points at half-time and two at the final break, with the Borough entering the final term with the breeze, momentum and raucous support at North Port Oval.

When Geelong attacked, Port had the answers, but the visitors featuring 17 AFL-listed players held their nerve and captured their 10th consecutive win.

Coach Matthew Knights said the clash was perfect for his players in the lead-up to finals.

From Bendigo Advertiser
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THE Bendigo Gold slumped to a 129-point defeat at the hands of the Casey Scorpions on Saturday.

The Melbourne-aligned Scorpions tore the Gold apart, winning 23.11 (149) to 2.8 (20)

“It was a combination of a young, inexperienced group being outmuscled and outplayed mixed with some genuine fatigue,’’ Bendigo Gold coach Aussie Jones said.

“Even some of our more experienced players are starting to feel the bite of 17 or 18 VFL games compared to a season at local level.”

Casey somewhat arrogantly won the toss and kicked into a five-goal breeze.

It mattered little as the Scorpions kicked five goals to one.

From Ballarat Courier
Reported by Melanie Whelan
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SUDDENLY, North Ballarat Roosters stagnated.

Players emphatically agreed when their coach called for intensity in the three-quarter-time huddle, but their nine-point lead at the final break quickly morphed into a 19-point loss at Eureka Stadium yesterday.

The Selkirk Roosters did not score in the final quarter against Victorian Football League top-four contender Williamstown.

They looked flat, defeated, before the Seagulls even really took full control.

Intensity was lost.

Roosters coach Gerard FitzGerald said his team showed it was close in measuring up against a top-four team – only 19 points short – but the Roosters were not quite there yet.

FRIDAY AUGUST 23
Bendigo Gold vs Geelong at Queen Elizabeth Oval,Bendigo 6:30pm

SATURDAY AUGUST 24
Collingwood vs Werribee at Victoria Park 11am
Essendon vs North Ballarat at Windy Hill 1pm
Williamstown vs Northern Blues at Burbank Oval,Williamstown 1:10pm(ABC1TV)
(Development League match starts at 10am)
Box Hill Hawks vs Casey Scorpions at Box Hill 2pm(3WBC)
(Development League match starts at 11am)
Sandringham vs Frankston at Trevor Barker Oval,Sandringham 2pm
(Development League match starts at 11am)

SUNDAY AUGUST 25
(Dev League)North Ballarat vs Werribee at Eureka Stadium 11am
Coburg Tigers vs Port Melbourne at Mantello Holden Oval,Coburg 2pm(Vision Australia Radio,Aussie Digital)
(Development League match starts at 11am)