The importance of a quality big man was on show in the BFNL's two most important games in round 16.
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Sandhurst's Hamish Hosking and Golden Square's Matt Compston played integral roles in their teams wins over Kyneton and Gisborne respectively.
Hosking has been one of Sandhurst's best players all season, but he saved arguably his most impressive performance for the Dragons' most important games of the year.
With Kyneton skipper James Orr sidelined through injury, Hosking took over, collecting 30 possessions and 51 hit-outs.
Hosking had a staggering 22 clearances - the only other player to have more than 20 clearances in a match this season was Gisborne's Brad Bernacki, who had 24 in his 52-possession game against Castlemaine.
Hosking gave his midfield first bite of the cherry and he kept working the ball forward himself, which was crucial in wet conditions where scoring was difficult.
Statistically, Compston didn't have the numbers that Hosking accumulated, but his value to his team was just as high. Compston had 13 possessions, nine clearances and 79 hit-outs in Square's 10-point win over Gisborne.
The absence of Gisborne ruckman Braidon Blake because of a groin injury was telling.
That's why Gisborne will wrap him in cotton wool until the second semi-final.
The ruck is where Gisborne, Golden Square and Sandhurst, should they make the finals as expected, have an advantage on Strathfieldsaye and South Bendigo.
Meanwhile, one of the most remarkable streaks in Bendigo footy came to an end on Saturday.
For the first time in the 15 games he's played this season, Strathfieldsaye's Jake Moorhead failed to collect at least 30 possessions.
According to Premier Data, Moorhead "only" had 28 possessions in the Storm's win over the Roos.
In his previous 14 matches the Storm ball magnet racked up possession counts of 33, 36, 37, 45, 39, 38, 40, 32, 41, 36, 35, 45, 34 and 36.
The consistency of his performances should see Moorhead at the pointy end of next month's Michelsen Medal count.
One of Moorhead's team-mates will challenge him strongly for votes. Cal McCarty is in the middle of a Moorhead-like streak himself.
McCarty has picked up more than 30 possessions in his past nine matches, including 38 touches and five goals in the win over Kangaroo Flat on Saturday.
In terms of the Michelsen Medal, McCarty missed rounds three to eight because of injury, which will hurt his chances.
How teams try to contain Moorhead and McCarty through the finals series will be an intriguing sidebar.
PLAYER LEADERBOARDS - ROUND 17
RANKING POINTS
- Aidan Hare (Mb) 214
- Dillon Williams (Eh) 179
- Bailey Henderson (Cm) 172
- Cal McCarty (SS) 164
- Hamish Hosking (Sh) 163
- Daniel Clohesy (SS) 160
- Ryan O'Keefe (KF) 152
- Liam Latch (Mb) 148
- Michael Herlihy (SB) 145
- Harrison Huntley (Kyn) 136
DISPOSALS
- Aidan Hare (Mb) 47
- Liam Latch (Mb) 41
- Bailey Henderson (Cm) 40
- Cal McCarty (SS) 38
- Billy Evans (Eh) 37
- Dillon Williams (Eh) 35
- Michael Herlihy (SB) 35
- John Watson (Cm) 33
- Hunter Lawrence (SS) 33
- Thomas Gardam (Mb) 33
CONTESTED DISPOSALS
- Aidan Hare (Mb) 19
- Flynn Lakey (Gis) 18
- Dillon Williams (Eh) 15
- Seb Bell-Bartels (Gis) 15
- Bailey Henderson (Cm) 14
- Coby Perry (Mb) 13
- Jake Moorhead (SS) 12
- Mitch Collins (KF) 12
- Dean Bartrop (Kyn) 12
- Cal McCarty (SS) 11
MARKS
- Daniel Clohesy (SS) 12
- Ryan O'Keefe (KF) 11
- Liam Latch (Mb) 11
- Michael Herlihy (SB) 11
- Hunter Lawrence (SS) 10
- Cal McCarty (SS) 10
- Lachlan Gill (Gis) 10
- Liam Wilkinson (Cm) 9
- Kobe Lloyd (Eh) 9
- Dillon Williams (Eh) 9
CLEARANCES
- Hamish Hosking (Sh) 22
- Aidan Hare (Mb) 14
- Dillon Williams (Eh) 11
- Cal McCarty (SS) 11
- Mitch Collins (KF) 11
- Matt Compston (GS) 9
- Billy Evans (Eh) 8
- Flynn Lakey (Gis) 8
- Bailey Henderson (Cm) 7
- Nick Lang (KF) 7
LOOSE BALL GETS
- Hunter Lawrence (SS) 12
- Cal McCarty (SS) 11
- Thomas Gardam (Mb) 11
- Ricky Monti (GS) 10
- Flynn Lakey (Gis) 10
- Lachlan Gill (SS) 10
- Mitch Rovers (KF) 10
- Liam Bryne (SB) 10
- Caleb Fisher (Kyn) 10
- Kyle Symons (KF) 9
HARD BALL GETS
- Aidan Hare (Mb) 11
- Dillon Williams (Eh) 9
- Nathan Horbury (SB) 6
- Dean Bartrop (Kyn) 6
- Billy Evans (Eh) 5
- Seb Bell-Bartels (Gis) 5
- Noah Walsh (Eh) 5
- Harvey Gallagher (Sh) 5
- John Watson (Cm) 4
- Noah Wheeler (Eh) 4
TACKLES
- Aidan Hare (Mb) 19
- Liam Latch (Mb) 13
- Bo Alexander (SS) 12
- Isaac Carracher (Sh) 12
- Daniel Clohesy (SS) 11
- Liam Bryne (SB) 10
- Nick Doolan (Gis) 9
- Louis Mott (KF) 9
- Coby Perry (Mb) 9
- James Coghlan (Sh) 9
SCORE INVOLVEMENTS
- Michael Herlihy (SB) 10
- Brock Harvey (SB) 8
- Lachlan Sharp (SS) 7
- Jake Moorhead (SS) 7
- Lachlan Gill (SS) 7
- Riley Wilson (SS) 7
- Zac Hare (SB) 7
- Will Allen (SB) 7
- Kaiden Antonowicz (SB) 7
- Will Keck (SB) 7
SPOILS
- Jack Reaper (Gis) 9
- Ryan O'Keefe (KF) 8
- Dylan Harberger (Mb) 8
- Macklan Lord (Gis) 7
- Brodie Fry (KF) 6
- Jacob O'Brien (Eh) 5
- Lachlan Hull (Mb) 5
- Harrison Huntley (Kyn) 5
- Tanner Nally (Sh) 5
- Sam Nettleton (Cm) 4
HIT-OUTS
- Matt Compston (GS) 79
- Hamish Hosking (Sh) 51
- Jack Lawton (Eh) 40
- Michael Pilcher (SS) 38
- Jake Postle (Mb) 36
- Nick Lang (KF) 33
- Guy Dickson (Kyn) 20
- Sam Nettleton (Cm) 18
- Max Johnson (KF) 17
- Ben Eales (Gis) 14
READ MORE: BFNL MATCH REPORTS FOR ROUND 17
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