With almost all the local teams and leagues either on a bye or split round this weekend, it’s the ideal time to assess the situation of sides in our region as they make their run home towards the finals.

This time, the focus is on the Murray Football League, which is two-thirds of the way through its season with six rounds still to come.

Moama (second, 8-3-1)

The Magpies are well in the hunt, holding on to second position over Finley on percentage.

Moama has got the job done when it mattered but has been an inconsistent performer over its 12 games.

In their round four meeting with Finley, the Magpies looked every bit title contenders, obliterating, by 64 points, a Cats side that, as the season has gone on, has proven itself to be one of the league’s best.

Moama came within a point of clear league favourites Congupna in round eight, another indicator that the Mowers are a serious threat this year.

However, for every dominant performance, there are matching examples of below-average showings from the Magpies.

A round-three capitulation by 47 points against Deniliquin Rams, escaping lower-table side Rumbalara by 12 points and coming within a goal of defeat to one-win Barooga are clear indications of the Magpies’ potential shortcomings.

Goal accuracy has also been a consistent issue. While their overall season total of 126 goals to 129 behinds appears reasonably balanced, the Magpies’ accuracy has fluctuated regularly throughout the year.

Scorecards of 13.3 (round eight, Congupna) and 17.8 (round four, Finley) are counterbalanced by games of 3.10 (round three, Deniliquin) and 12.22 (round nine, Echuca United), making it tough to know what type of performance Moama will bring on any given week.

Moama has a mixed run home that includes games against minnows Barooga and Rumbalara, and matches with heavyweights Congupna and Mulawala and it remains to be seen where the Magpies will end up on a crowded Murray league table.

Finals are expected, and 2023’s 12 wins could be in reach if the Mowers maintain their form, but do they have the consistency to go one better than the preliminary final of past years?

Tongala (ninth, 4-8)

A season filled with promise for the Blues has given way through the middle third, and Tonny finds itself in the midst of a six-game losing slide.

New coach Billy Barnes took the helm this year and oversaw a raft of new recruits to the club, including AFL legend Brett Deledio, who, along with brother Matt, has made sporadic appearances this campaign.

Early season wins over Numurkah, Echuca United, Barooga and Rumbalara had Tongala in good stead with a third of the season gone, holding a 4-2 record.

As it turned out, those four sides are currently the lowest four on the table, aside from Tonny itself, and as the fixture list got tougher and injuries started to take their toll, the Blues began to fall away.

Competitive efforts against Cobram in round seven, and most recently against Moama in round 12, show that the Blues do have the potential to push the league’s better sides but it seems finals may have slipped out of reach.

All four teams the Blues have previously beaten lie ahead in the last six games, but with sixth place currently on seven wins, it seems unlikely Tonny will be able to catch the top six

However, the Blues are well-positioned to improve on the five wins they managed last season as they look to build a platform to push on from in future years.

Echuca United (12th, 0-12)

Echuca United decided to start over in 2024. With the departure of Farran Priest as coach, along with many senior players, and the introduction of Scott Beattie, the Eagles were always going to be up against it as they looked to build a new young team from scratch.

As is typical of any young side, United has shown periods of promise this year but has been unable to match its opposition over four quarters.

The Eagles’ round-seven contest against fellow strugglers Barooga was their best hope of adding a win to their tally for 2024, and United did lead by 10 at half-time before falling away in the second.

By design, 2024 was never going to be United’s year to compete for the title and missing the finals is a situation six teams are going to have to deal with, whether they scored a handful of wins or not.

The Eagles are banking on the development of their young players. Under a club legend in Beattie, a raft of young footballers have had the opportunity to make their senior debut and grow under the bright lights of top-flight Murray football.

United is playing a long game and regardless of how it closes out the season, whether 2024 was ‘worth it’ can’t be measured until several years down the line.

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Tuesday, 2nd July 2024

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