Box Hill suffered a loss to St Kilda in Round 10, going down by 34 points at RSEA Park.

Senior Coach David Mirra said the run of five straight wins came to an end on Saturday as a late game fightback eluded them.

“Trailing by 10 points at three quarter time, we were ultimately outmatched by a sharp St Kilda outfit,” Mirra said.

“It was a performance below the high standards this group has set, but the beauty of footy is the chance for immediate redemption.

“We look forward, as we prime ourselves to host the reigning premiers (Footscray) in a big game at City Oval this Saturday.”

Mirra summarised the performance of each AFL-listed Hawk below.

Henry Hustwaite (25 disposals, four clearances, three marks)

“Faced with a highly competitive inside battle against a dominant opposition ruckman, he showed great resilience to find plenty of the footy. While the standard clearance numbers were harder to come by this week, his work rate to win contested possessions and outnumber at contests around the ground never wavered.”

Harry Morrison (24 disposals, seven tackles, four marks)

“A steadying presence across half-back on a challenging day for our ball movement, Harry worked tirelessly to generate a team-high seven rebound 50s. While he’ll look to sharpen his trademark precision and decision making this coming week, his elite game understanding and on-field instruction continue to be an asset for our developing group.”

Noah Mraz (21 disposals, 10 intercept possessions, seven marks)

“A commanding, high grade defensive performance from Noah. He anchored the backline beautifully, leading the team in intercept possessions with three strong intercept marks. His aggressive tackling was a standout feature and his composure with ball in hand helped our ball movement.”

Bodie Ryan (20 disposals, six intercept possessions, five marks)

“Bodie had to work hard to find the football and provided six rebound 50s. While a few uncharacteristic fumbles and decision-making moments slowed his usual offensive drive from the back half, his ability to consistently get into dangerous positions remains a positive. He still needs to identify when he can really test the opposition and provide even more options for our ball movement.

Sam Butler (20 disposals, six tackles, four marks)

“Had to be versatile by rotating through the wing, midfield and forward line. Sam's defensive pressure was the highlight, laying six tackles characterised by chase down efforts and smart offside running lanes. He will look to translate these heavy involvements into maximum impact around the contest this weekend.”

Will McCabe (One goal, 18 disposals, five marks)

“It was fantastic to unlock Will’s run and carry with an extended block on the wing, where he looked natural creating options, defending with intent and pulling down a clean intercept mark. His subsequent rotation forward served as a craft-building opportunity and despite limited supply, a return of four inside 50s and a goal was an efficient reward for effort.”

Ollie Greeves (One goal, 18 disposals, four marks)

“Another encouraging performance in the midfield, highlighted by a forward-50 stoppage goal. Oliver made sound decisions with the ball and paired well with Hustwaite as our primary clearance player. His ongoing focus remains on maximizing his impact at every single contest and sharpening his first-possession cleanliness.”

Matt LeRay (17 disposals, six tackles, five marks)

“A standout performance from Matt, putting together his most complete and high-impact game to date. He gave us a bit of everything, showcasing elite work rate to gather handball receives, exceptional foot skills to slice the game open and genuine courage in aerial contests.”

Calsher Dear (17 disposals, seven contested possessions, six marks)

“Another invaluable developmental week for Calsher in the backline as he continues to add layers to his defensive craft. His natural ability to impact aerial contests was on full display and he absorbed positional and structural concepts that will ultimately make him a more complete forward. Refining his ball-use options remains his immediate focus.”

Jack Dalton (One goal, 16 disposals, three marks)

“Manned the half-forward flank with his trademark high work rate and running power, constantly working to open up the ground as a viable outlet. The highlight of his day was a brilliantly executed, high speed goal that he initially set up himself all the way from half-back.”

Finn Maginness (One goal, 15 disposals, two clearances)

“Overall didn’t have his usual impact on the game. He played a combination of wing, forward and inside mid. Kicked a nice goal from an angle in the third quarter to keep us in the game.”

Aidan Schubert (13 disposals, eight contested possessions, four marks)

“Aidan put his biggest weapon on display, taking a series of strong contested marks. He worked hard up the ground to aid our ball movement and earned several shots on goal; while he didn't capitalise on the scoreboard this week, the process to get those opportunities was excellent.”

Matt Hill (11 disposals, five tackles, three inside 50s)

“Brought a fierce, contested edge to the game, laying five hard tackles before injecting some serious power into our centre bounce rotations. Matt looked assured with ball in hand, consistently testing the opposition tacklers to create time, which set up Finn’s third-quarter goal.”

Max Ramsden (10 disposals, 10 hitouts, five contested possessions)

“Ramma shouldered a heavy load balancing ruck and forward duties on a challenging day. He fought tenaciously against a very good ruckman in Dodson and while standard supply was tough to come by when he drifted forward, his competitive effort provided a crucial contest.”

Cody Anderson (Two goals, eight disposals, two tackles)

“While every goal matters, Cody has a rare knack for delivering them exactly when the team needs them most. Booting a crucial major in the second to pull us within 10 points and another in the third to slash the margin to four. He will look to marry this clutch scoreboard impact with a return to his elite defensive pressure metrics this Saturday.”

Jaime Uhr-Henry (14 hitouts seven disposals, six clearances)

“An educational outing for Jaime as he went toe to toe with Dodson. He takes away some learnings not just from the hit-out battles but observing how a high-level ruckman works across the ground to test a defensive structure. This matchup provides a good blueprint for Jamie to attack his training blocks this week.”

A few VFL player shoutouts…

Tom Swainston (Six disposals, four marks, one tackle)

“Congratulations to Tom on making his senior club debut as our 23rd player on Saturday. We are very excited by the raw attributes he brings to the park and look forward to watching his rapid development. It was good to see him playing forward and taking some marks including a shot on goal, which we all wish he had of kicked. The pregame preparation was made even better with his parents in the rooms, sharing a proud family moment as Tom follows in the footsteps of his father, a fellow past player of the club.”

The Hawks return to Box Hill City Oval this Saturday afternoon, hosting the Footscray Bulldogs in Round 11.

VFLW Round 3 Results
Box Hill               2.4          2.4          6.5          7.5 (47)

Geelong              1.0          1.3          1.4          3.7 (25)

GOALS: Annabelle Embelton (3), Caitlin Thorne, Rebecca Neaves, Jessica Matin, Evelyn Connonlly.

DISPOSALS: Kayley Kavanagh (24), Tess Cattle (23), Matilda Van Berkel (20), Stasia Stevenson (17).