Victoria Metro has made it back-to-back national titles for the ‘Big V’ with an emphatic 57-point victory over Western Australia in the final of the 2023 Toyota Wheelchair AFL National Championships in Melbourne last Sunday.
A dominant first half against a strong WA team ensured the Vics went into the main break of the decider up by 38 points, and they went on with it in the second half, rolling to a 17.7 (109) to 8.4 (52) triumph.
Hawthorn's Yassin Hill steered the team to victory with a 12-goal haul, while Hawks Captain Jo Argaet also played an important part across the tournament.
It was the second-straight championship win for the Vics after ‘Vic Blue’ won the state its first national wheelchair crown in 2022.
The four-day carnival was played at the State Netball & Hockey Centre and involved more than 90 players across nine mixed teams.
It started with a 'lightning carnival' format consisting of 37 games over the first two days, with the top five teams progressing to division one and the remaining four teams placed into division two.
In the third-place playoff earlier on the final day of competition, South Australia were too strong for Finn Broadbent and Mitch Bond's Victoria Country, winning 20.8 (128) to 11.8 (74).
The victorious Vic Metro squad (VWFL clubs in brackets):
Judeland Antony (Richmond)
Nick Briant (St Kilda)
Will Crooks (Collingwood)
Yassin Hill (Hawthorn)
Vincent Naidu (Richmond)
Anthony Perito (Collingwood)
Ryan Smith (St Kilda)
James Weinert (Richmond)
Sebastian Welsh (St Kilda)
Coach: Matthew Morris
Assistant Coach: Andrew Paddle
For all results from the 2023 Toyota Wheelchair AFL National Championships, click here
For more information about the championships and Wheelchair Australian Rules, click here
