Elimination Final Match Preview: It Comes Down To This

It felt a lot like a finals preview when the two sides met back in round 18 and so it turned out to be.

The Hawks and Seagulls will clash for the second time in six weeks this Saturday, with the winner moving on and the loser bowing out in season 2024.

Who: Williamstown
Where: Box Hill City Oval
When: Saturday, 3:05pm
TV/Streaming: VFL live stream available via the VFL Match Centre ; and Live on Channel 7 from 3pm

Box Hill: played 18, won 12, lost 6 – 6th on the ladder
Williamstown: played 19 won 12, lost 7 – 8th on the ladder*

*Williamstown’s eighth placed finish come the end of the home and away season saw them play the ninth-placed Richmond in a wildcard game.

Dress For The Occasion

If you’re planning on attending the match we ask one thing: wear your colours!

Every little bit helps come finals time and we want to make sure City Oval is awash with brown and gold.

Plan Your Visit

If you’re coming along on Saturday there are a few important housekeeping matters you should be aware of.

Firstly, you can pre-purchase your tickets via this link. Adult tickets are priced at $15, concessions at $10 and children under 15 years of age are free.

Should you want to buy tickets on the gate you will be able to, but please note there will be no cash sales.

More, with a large crowd expected, parking in the immediate vicinity of Box Hill City Oval will be at a premium.

The venue is near to Laburnum Station, a short walk from Box Hill Central and readily accessible via the 271 and 279 bus.

A Little Bit of History

Given the clubs played so recently it feels like we’ve covered the history of. But, as a refresher and on account of the Hawks latest win, the updated tale of the tape now reads…

Played 46 (since 1996) – Box Hill 19, Williamstown 26, 1 draw

The Hawks’ 22-point win in round 18 was an important one in the context of the two side’s seasons, with the former finishing 6th and the latter 8th as a result of the eight-point swing.

All told, Saturday will be the eighth final Box Hill and Williamstown have contested and the first since the Hawks’ thrilling one-point win in the 2018 Preliminary Final.

The teams have twice played off in grand finals – the Seagulls claimed both the 2003 and 2015 deciders – and will meet for just the second time in an Elimination Final this weekend.

Overall, Williamstown lead the September head-to-head four games to three.

As for some added intrigue, long-time Williamstown coach Andy Collins traded the blue and gold for brown and gold in 2021 and remains very much involved via his role with Hawthorn.

‘Collo’ also brought former assistant Clint Proctor with him. Proctor would go on to coach the Hawks in his own right in 2022.

Just this season former Saint and Seagull Arryn Siposs joined the Hawks’ coaching ranks, while Ben Cavarra and Jaylon Thorpe have represented both clubs in the past.

2023 So Far

Picking up from when the sides last met, Box Hill consolidated that result by finishing the season with a nail-biting one-point win over GWS to book a finals berth and a hard-fought 11-point loss to minor premiers Werribee.

On account of a sixth placed finish the Hawks sat out the wildcard weekend, meaning Zane Littlejohn’s men have played just twice since the 28th of July.

Seven-and-one at round eight, the Seagulls had an up-and-down second half of the season. Having dropped back-to-back games in rounds 13 and 15, Williamstown re-ignited their top four charge with wins against Sandringham and Richmond.

Any ground they’d made up was lost, however, the loss to Box Hill in round 18 compounded by a follow-up defeat to North Melbourne a week later.

Justin Plapp’s side would settle to beat GWS in the final round of the home and away season, before comfortably accounting for Richmond in last weekend’s wildcard game.

Selection News

Zane Littlejohn and his match committee have swung six changes t the side which narrowly lost to minor premiers Werribee a fortnight ago, re-calling ruckman Ned Reeves, defender Jai Serong, dashing half-back Bailey Macdonald, creative forward Chad Wingard, excitement machine Changkuoth Jiath and the running man, Ed Phillips.

Its an encouraging suite of ins, fortifying every line of the Hawks’ match day squad with experience, versatility and class.

As is always the case, six ins require there be six outs. The developing VFL-listed quartet of Andrew Mathieson, Andreas Stefanakis, Daniel Wood and Kye Agosta are among the names to make way.

While Eastern Ranges draft hopeful Christian Moraes’ was a forecast omission following his cameo against Werribee and Clay Tucker is squeezed out as a result of the returning Ned Reeves.

One(s) to Watch

I feel bad for not mentioning this earlier in the piece, but it’s Cal Porter’s 100th VFL game!

Having played one game for Casey when a Gippsland Power product, ‘Ports’ would go on to feature in 33 VFL matches for Footscray, before crossing to Box Hill prior to the 2021 season.

Since then he has represented the VFL, won a Club best and fairest and, of course, been named captain.

A heart and soul figure, theres nothing more certain than the skipper delay any milestone celebrations until after the day is won on Saturday.

How To Follow

Match coverage will be provided via our social channels throughout the day, while a radio call will be available via our wonderful community partners 3WBC 94.1FM.

Where To Watch

You can catch the live stream via the VFL match centre! The VFL live stream is available via the VFL Match Centre; alternatively, Saturday’s match has been selected as one of two VFL finals to be broadcast back-to-back, with the coverage live on Channel 7 from 3pm.

Merchandise Sale

There’ll be a selection of match worn guernseys and player apparel available at our merchandise van next to the main gate.

There will be a variety of styles and sizes, so be sure to check it out!