SPORT Groundhog Day for NTFL as top trio lead flag race again Crocodiles, Tigers and Buffs sitting pretty at Christmas break
TOP End footy fans can be forgiven for drawing comparisons with the movie Groundhog Day during the annual three-week break in the NTFL’s Premier League competition.
Last season’s top three sides are again in the mix to raise the premiership pennant 11 matches into the 2018-19 season.
Reigning premier Southern Districts and last season’s preliminary finalist Nightcliff have won nine matches and boast healthy percentages.
That has come about through potent forward lines, both sides booting 200 more points than the third-placed Buffaloes in a reminder they will play major roles in this season’s finals.
Districts’ bid for breakthrough back-to-back senior flags ran into a speed bump against Waratah at Fred’s Pass and the Buffaloes at Marrara.
But the playing depth they possess with Richard Tambling, Leroy Jetta, Jared Brennan and Charlie McAdam leading the charge, points to a big shot at another flag.
Sam Smith’s season-ending knee injury is something coach Shannon Rusca did not need, with Smith’s ability to play in front of goals, down back or in the ruck something he will have to fill very quickly.
Nightcliff has been the quiet achiever despite its lofty perch on the ladder, getting maximum value from established players Cameron Ilett, Phillip Wills, Nathan Brown and Daniel Bowles.
New spearhead Trent Melville leads the goalkicking and the team’s on-ball division is getting plenty of the football as March and a chance to snap a 54-year premiership drought looms large.
The Buffaloes got an early Christmas present when they beat Districts in the last home and away game before the break.
Veteran Darryl White at age 45 and playing coach Matt Campbell played major roles in the 16-point win that went part way to avenging the club’s heartbreaking one-point loss to the Crocodiles in last season’s grand final.
But a glance over their shoulders will reveal five sides hunting the Buffaloes for the vital double chance in the top five finals system.
Waratah under new coach Ryan Ayres and the Alwyn Davey-coached Palmerston are placed fourth and fifth, but with inferior percentages.
Waratah has not played any finals football since 2014 and Palmerston four years before that, creating a desperation among the players, coaching staff and fans that may prove the difference in who makes the March playoffs.
Waratah has beaten Districts and Nightcliff but lost to Palmerston twice, with matches against St Mary’s and the Magpies again in the first two Saturdays in January.
Last year’s finalists St Mary’s and the Tiwi Bombers are sixth and seventh, within striking distance of the top five but with some problems to overcome before the finals participants are decided.
St Mary’s have the best player in the competition in Nathaniel Paredes and the Rioli brothers, Shannon and Ben, who can break a game open in a matter of minutes.
But their ability to kick a winning score is hurting them.
Averaging 60 points a game has not been enough to beat the top sides, despite the Saints players getting their hands on the football as much as the opposition.
Palmerston’s 111-point loss to Districts in Round 9 looked to have sunk their chances of a return to finals football for the first time since 2010.
But back-to-back wins over the Buffaloes and Waratah has the Magpies in the five and looking to stay there in the seven matches remaining.
The form of Matt Dennis in the ruck, Rodney Baird down back and a band of young guns including Jonty Patrick, Ezekiel Frank, Liam McDonald and Jacon Lampton have Magpie eyes smiling at the prospect of finals football.
The Tiwi Bombers have little problem kicking goals – their faults stem from their defence where opposing sides have averaged more than 100 points against them in the 11 matches played until the middle of December.
First-year Wanderers coach Peter “Scrubber’’ Leonard will enjoy his Christmas lunch next Tuesday, knowing the youth under his tutelage are developing their own taste for senior football.
The young Muk Muks beat the Buffaloes three weeks out from the break and have beaten the Tiwis twice, despite the club’s hierarchy stating they were in rebuilding mode before the first bounce of the ‘18-19 campaign.
Districts, the Tiwis again, St Mary’s and Waratah face them in the first month after Christmas to see where the club is at in terms of a surprise finals campaign.