OTHER clubs won more premierships, but Sandhurst stands alone as the only Bendigo league senior team to play finals in all 10 seasons of the 2010s.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Of those 10 finals appearances during the decade, the highlight year for the Dragons was 2016 when it proved to be a case of third time lucky.
Having lost the 2014 and 2015 grand finals to Strathfieldsaye, the Dragons emerged with the 2016 premiership after defeating arch-rivals Golden Square by 32 points.
As well as being a premiership season, the Dragons also had the 2016 Michelsen medallist when Kristan Height added the BFNL's top individual honour to his stunning list of accolades.
Before joining the Dragons in 2016, midfielder/forward Height - who polled 24 votes - had already won medals in the Goulburn Valley and Ovens and Murray leagues.
Height's was one of three Michelsen medals won by the Dragons during the decade.
Star ruckman Tim Martin won it twice, going back-to-back in 2013-14, with his 2014 tally of 34 votes a league record, surpassing the 33 fellow ruckman Tony Southcombe polled for Golden Square in 1972.
Martin polled votes in 13 of 18 games during his record-breaking 2014 season, but the week following his Michelsen Medal triumph was spent desperately trying to overcome a dislocated ankle - which he did - in time for the grand final against Strathfieldsaye.
Premiership captain Blair Holmes topped the Dragons' best player votes (six for best, five for second best) for the decade with 326.
Across all 10 clubs, only Golden Square's Jack Geary (378) earned more votes than hard-nut Holmes, who was among the Dragons' best players in 85 of their 200 games for the decade.
One of the competition's premier swingmen of the past decade, Matt Thornton, was the Dragons' leading goalkicker of the 2010s with 208.
Thornton (centre half-back), Martin (ruck) and Lee Coghlan (inter-change) were the three Dragons named in the BFNL's Team of the Decade.
YEAR-BY-YEAR:
2010
Finished - 5th (10-9)
lost elimination final to Maryborough
Most best player votes:
Blair Holmes - 49
Leading goalkicker:
Sam McGee - 35
............................................
2011
Finished - 4th (12-8)
lost first semi-final to Gisborne
Most best player votes:
Jon Coghlan - 49
Leading goalkicker:
Braidy Dickens - 57
............................................
2012
Finished - 4th (13-6-1)
lost first semi-final to Strathfieldsaye
Most best player votes:
Blair Holmes - 64
Leading goalkicker:
Ricky Symes - 73
............................................
2013
Finished - 5th (10-7)
lost elimination final to Gisborne
Most best player votes:
Tim Martin - 58
Leading goalkicker:
Ricky Symes - 49
............................................
2014
Finished - 2nd (18-4)
lost grand final to Strathfieldsaye
Most best player votes:
Tim Martin - 62
Leading goalkicker:
Mitch Dole - 57
............................................
2015
Finished - 2nd (16-6)
lost grand final to Strathfieldsaye
Most best player votes:
Codie Price - 42
Leading goalkicker:
Joel Wharton - 48
............................................
2016
Finished - 1st (18-2)
defeated Golden Square in grand final
Most best player votes:
Kristan Height - 65
Leading goalkicker:
Kristan Height - 44
............................................
2017
Finished - 4th (12-7-1)
lost first semi-final to Golden Square
Most best player votes:
Blair Holmes - 43
Leading goalkicker:
Andrew Collins - 42
............................................
2018
Finished - 3rd (14-7)
lost preliminary final to Strathfieldsaye
Most best player votes:
Zeb Broadbent - 57
Leading goalkicker:
Andrew Collins - 52
............................................
2019
Finished - 5th (12-7)
lost elimination final to Golden Square
Most best player votes:
Jake Pallpratt - 51
Leading goalkicker:
Matt Thornton - 42
BEST PLAYER VOTES:
1 - Blair Holmes
Votes: 326
Times in best: 85
Top 3: 52 No.1: 16
............................................
2 - Lee Coghlan
Votes: 240
Times in best: 66
Top 3: 36 No.1: 11
............................................
3 - Tim Martin
Votes: 239
Times in best: 57
Top 3: 39 No.1: 16
............................................
4 - Matt Thornton
Votes: 215
Times in best: 54
Top 3: 33 No.1: 13
............................................
5 - Nick Stagg
Votes: 214
Times in best: 69
Top 3: 31 No.1: 3
............................................
6 - Codie Price
Votes: 200
Times in best: 56
Top 3: 30 No.1: 9
............................................
7 - Joel Wharton
Votes: 178
Times in best: 52
Top 3: 23 No.1: 11
............................................
8 - Lachlan Ross
Votes: 163
Times in best: 39
Top 3: 24 No.1: 14
............................................
9 - Jon Coghlan
Votes: 151
Times in best: 39
Top 3: 25 No.1: 5
............................................
10 - Tom Hartney
Votes: 120
Times in best: 34
Top 3: 16 No.1: 6
TOP 10 GOALKICKERS:
1 - Matt Thornton
Goals: 208
High: 6 Games: 101
5+: 7 10+: 0
............................................
2 - Nick Stagg
Goals: 179
High: 7 Games: 105
5+: 2 10+: 0
............................................
3 - Joel Wharton
Goals: 173
High: 5 Games: 88
5+: 2 10+: 0
............................................
4 - Lee Coghlan
Goals: 172
High: 7 Games: 100
5+: 3 10+: 0
............................................
5 - Mitch Dole
Goals: 130
High: 6 Games: 55
5+: 2 10+: 0
............................................
6 - Ricky Symes
Goals: 122
High: 10 Games: 29
5+: 11 10+: 1
............................................
7 - Lachlan Ross
Goals: 119
High: 5 Games: 64
5+: 3 10+: 0
............................................
8 - Blair Holmes
Goals: 115
High: 5 Games: 78
5+: 1 10+: 0
............................................
9 - Andrew Collins
Goals: 110
High: 8 Games: 42
5+: 5 10+: 0
............................................
10 - Ryan Haythorpe
Goals: 89
High: 9 Games: 33
5+: 6 10+: 0
HEAD-TO-HEAD:
v Castlemaine
Record - 19-0-1
............................................
v Eaglehawk
Record - 10-11
............................................
v Gisborne
Record - 17-8
............................................
v Golden Square
Record - 12-15
............................................
v Kangaroo Flat
Record - 18-2
............................................
v Kyneton
Record - 16-3-1
............................................
v Maryborough
Record - 19-2
............................................
v South Bendigo
Record - 16-5
............................................
v Strathfieldsaye
Record - 8-17
DECADE RECORD:
Played - 200
Won - 135
Lost - 63
Drawn - 2
Winning % - 67.5%
Average for/agst - 102/68
Seasons in finals - 10
Finals record - 10-12
Premierships - 1
RESERVES:
Total wins - 157
Seasons in finals - 9
Premierships - 4
UNDER-18S:
Total wins - 179
Seasons in finals - 10
Premierships - 4
BENDIGO ADDY'S DECADE IN REVIEW SERIES:
BFNL - MARYBOROUGH
BFNL - KYNETON
BFNL - KANGAROO FLAT
BFNL - GOLDEN SQUARE
BFNL - GISBORNE
BFNL - EAGLEHAWK
BFNL - CASTLEMAINE
HDFNL - WHITE HILLS
HDFNL - NORTH BENDIGO
HDFNL - MOUNT PLEASANT
HDFNL - LOCKINGTON-BAMAWM UNITED
HDFNL - LEITCHVILLE-GUNBOWER
HDFNL - HUNTLY
HDFNL - HEATHCOTE
HDFNL - ELMORE
HDFNL - COLBINABBIN
LVFNL - PYRAMID HILL
LVFNL - NEWBRIDGE
LVFNL - MITIAMO
LVFNL - MARONG
LVFNL - MAIDEN GULLY YCW
LVFNL - INGLEWOOD
LVFNL - CALIVIL UNITED
LVFNL - BRIDGEWATER
LVFNL - BEARS LAGOON-SERPENTINE
Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.
