Country Champs: Great Southern back in top flight after back-to-back titles

Great Southern Football League have jumped from the bottom division to top flight in two years after completing a perfect Nutrien Ag Solutions Country Football Championships Division Two campaign on Sunday.

The unbeaten GSFL defeated rivals Upper Great Southern by 31 points – 8.4 (52) to 2.9 (21) – in a one-sided Division Two decider at Sullivan Logistics Stadium.

It came a year after Great Southern won the Division Three grand final in what’s been a remarkable redemption tale.

They had winners all over the ground, from key defender Bodhi Stubber to half-back running machine Morgan Davies, midfield ball magnet Darcy Wallinger, link-up forward and captain Isaac Baum and exciting goal-kicker Jyrin Woods who kicked a game-high four majors.

Jayden Scott was awarded the Nutrien Ag Solutions Medal for best-afield in the grand final after a brilliant four-quarter performance.

For Uppers, midfielder Simon Panizza battled hard, Dion Anthony was lively across half-forward, Matthew White found plenty of it and Will Wiggett was a late spark in attack, but their inaccuracy in front of the sticks put them on the back foot all day.

It was a low-scoring opening term with ex-AFL veteran Brett Peake booting the only major with an opportunistic effort to give the GSFL a six-point quarter-time lead.

Goalsneak Woods then put on a show in the second with a beautiful crumbing goal followed by a strong contested mark and successful set shot.

After Travis Conn made it four on the trot early in the third quarter, Woods then slotted his third goal to make things difficult for Uppers who were still yet to find a major.

Finally, former East Fremantle gun and Wickepin player-coach Anthony broke the drought for Uppers at the 10-minute mark of the third.

But midfielder Darcy Wallinger, one of the GSFL’s best all game, shifted the momentum back in his team’s favour before man-of-the-moment Woods nailed his fourth was an eye-catching two-bounce effort on the run.

Wiggett kicked the Uppers’ second early in the final term before Baum’s close-range shot put a nail in their coffin at the other end.

It was remarkably a four-way tie for the Bud Byfield Medal as the division’s fairest-and-best player with Great Southern stars Davies and Baum joining Central Midlands Coastal on-baller Gus Devitt and Ongerup veteran and Subiaco premiership gun Justin Joyce as the joint winners.

The quartet joined Upper Great Southern pair Ryan Melvin and Declan Phillips in the carnival All-Stars side.

Fellow Division Two players, Central Midlands Coastal on-baller Gus Devitt and Ongerup veteran and Subiaco premiership gun Justin Joyce, were named as All-Stars.

SCOREBOARD

GSFL 1.1 3.2 7.3 8.4 (52)

UGSFL 0.1 0.3 1.5 2.9 (21)

GOALS – Great Southern: J Woods 4, B Peake, T Conn, D Wallinger, I Baum. Upper Great Southern: D Anthony, W Wiggett.

BEST – Great Southern: J Woods, D Wallinger, I Baum, J Scott, B Stubber, M Davies, R Valli. Upper Great Southern: D Anthony, M White, S Panizza, W Wiggett.